Listen to the report from KUAR s politics reporter Sarah Kellogg
The Arkansas House voted to ultimately pass SB6. It s undetermined whether Gov. Asa Hutchinson will sign it into law.
Credit Arkansas House
By a vote of 76-19, the Arkansas House passed Senate Bill 6, which bans the legal practice of abortion with few medical exceptions and no exceptions for rape or incest. Anyone found guilty of performing or attempting to perform an abortion could face a fine of up to $100,000, up to 10 years in prison, or both a fine and prison sentence.
The bill now goes to Gov. Asa Hutchinson who has not said if he will sign it into law.
Hear the report from KUAR s political reporter Sarah Kellogg.
A bill that would have widened an existing law regarding free speech on college campuses in Arkansas stalled Monday due to a lack of action.
Senate Bill 191, which would have created the “Free Thought In Higher Education Act,” failed to advance the Arkansas Senate Education Committee when no member seconded a motion to pass the bill.
Bill sponsor, Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Jonesboro, called SB191 the next step of the current “Forming Open and Robust University Minds” or FORUM Act that the legislature passed in 2019. That law eliminated free speech zones on college campuses and instead declared all accessible outdoor areas on a campus to be a public forum.
Although the Arkansas General Assembly didn’t meet last week because of severe winter weather, House Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, still commends
Credit Arkansas Senate
An Arkansas Senate Committee voted on Wednesday to advance a bill that would require state agencies to return fines collected from businesses that violated rules, orders or directives to mitigate or prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor committee passed Senate Bill 301 by a voice vote. According to the proposed legislation, the health directives and orders issued under the public health emergency that Gov. Asa Hutchinson declared in March of 2020 failed to provide alternative compliance opportunities for businesses.
In presenting the bill, Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Jonesboro, called the bill a statement on the lack of legislative participation and input over decisions the state made concerning the COVID-19 pandemic. He said this bill would hinder the executive branch’s ability to enforce the law, without legislative participation.
Rep. Aaron Pilkington, R-Knoxville, presents SB24, which establishes Stand Your Ground statute in Arkansas
Credit Arkansas House
A bill that would establish a Stand Your Ground law in Arkansas has advanced to the House after members of the House Judiciary Committee narrowly voted to approve it on Tuesday.
The House voted 10-9 to advance the bill, with chair of the committee Rep. Carol Dalby, R-Texarkana, voting to break the tie.
Earlier in the meeting, the committee voted 7-11 not to add an amendment to the bill, brought by its sponsor, Rep. Aaron Pilkington, R-Knoxville. The amendment would have removed the term lawfully present from the bill. According to Pilkington, the National Rifle Association was neutral on the amendment.