arkansas senate
Arkansas Senate approves proposal to increase food stamp asset limit
A proposed increase of Arkansas’ asset ceiling for federal nutrition assistance passed the Senate on Thursday with bipartisan support. Senate Bill 306 initially would have raised the resource limit to $12,500 for Arkansans to qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly called food stamps. The bill was amended to lower the proposal to […]
Proposed law restricting school bathroom use will return to Arkansas House
A proposed law that would restrict bathroom use in Arkansas public and charter schools based on students’ gender assigned at birth passed the Senate with a 29-6 party-line vote Monday. House Bill 1156 would apply to multiple-occupancy restrooms and locker rooms, as well as rooms for students on overnight trips. It also requires schools to […]
Arkansas licensing board for home inspectors will be combined with two others under bill
A state Senate panel on Tuesday approved a bill that consolidates three real estate-related professional licensing boards into one despite strident objections from members of one of the boards. Senate Bill 354 would abolish the Arkansas Abstracters’ Board, Home Inspector Registration Board and the Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board and replace them with a single […]
Arkansas Senate approves bill restricting transgender adults’ bathroom use
The Arkansas Senate approved a proposed law Tuesday that would criminalize entering and remaining in bathrooms and locker rooms that do not match a person’s gender assigned at birth if there are children present. Senate Bill 270 would add the proposed Class C misdemeanor offense to existing state law regarding sexual indecency with a child. […]
Arkansas lawmakers send sweeping education bill to governor’s desk
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders will sign her signature education package into law Wednesday, two weeks after the bill was filed. The Arkansas Senate gave final approval to Senate Bill 294, also called the LEARNS Act, on Tuesday. “I’m ready to sign it into law tomorrow and end the failed status quo that has governed our […]
Heightened requirements to put measures on the Arkansas ballot awaits Sanders’ signature
A proposed Arkansas law that would make it harder for citizen-led petitions to qualify for the statewide ballot passed the Senate and went to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk Monday. House Bill 1419 would require canvassers to gather signatures from at least 50 counties — up from the 15-county threshold laid out in Article 5 […]
Arkansas bill to remove work permit requirement for children under 16 goes to Sanders’ desk
A proposed Arkansas law that would remove the requirement for children under 16 to prove their age to get a job will head to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk for approval. House Bill 1410, or the Youth Hiring Act, would delete the portion of existing law that requires an employment certificate “accessible to the Division […]
Arkansas bill restricting transgender adults’ bathroom use will be amended, returned to committee
Arkansas legislators will amend a proposed law that would make it a crime if an adult “knowingly exposes his or her sex organs to a minor of the opposite sex” in a public restroom or changing room. Sen. John Payton (R-Wilburn), the sponsor of Senate Bill 270, pulled the bill from consideration on the Senate […]
Arkansas Senate approves bill to hold libraries accountable for ‘obscene’ material
A bill that would open the door to criminal liability for the distribution of “obscene” content by school and public libraries passed the Arkansas Senate on a party-line vote Wednesday and will next be considered by the House. All six Senate Democrats voted against Senate Bill 81, and 27 Republicans voted for it while two […]
Arkansas Senate approves bill allowing malpractice suits for transgender minors’ health care
A proposed law that would allow medical malpractice lawsuits against Arkansas doctors who provide gender-affirming care to transgender minors passed the Senate on Tuesday with a party-line vote and will go to the House for consideration. Senate Bill 199 would create civil liability for a doctor who “performs a gender transition procedure on a minor […]
Arkansas school bathroom use bill will be amended, sent back to committee
The bill that would restrict bathroom use in Arkansas public schools based on students’ gender assigned at birth will be amended and returned to the Senate Education Committee, Senate sponsor Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Jonesboro) said Thursday. House Bill 1156 was expected to receive a vote from the full Senate a day after passing the Senate […]
Rural emergency hospital proposal passes Arkansas Senate unanimously
A proposed state law that could bolster federal funding for rural hospitals as an incentive to specialize in emergency and outpatient care passed the Arkansas Senate and was sent to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk Thursday. House Bill 1127 received “yes” votes from all 34 senators, with one senator absent. The bill passed the House […]