The Arkansas Legislature Convenes Next Week. Here are a Few Bills We’re Watching.

Legislation,

The Arkansas Legislatures convenes one week from today — Monday, January 13.

Lawmakers began pre-filing bills in November. Below is a list of some of the measures that legislators will consider in the coming weeks.

Bad Bills

H.B. 1011 (Abortion): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would repeal virtually all of Arkansas’ pro-life laws, and it would legalize abortion throughout the state. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1013 (Bioethics): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D – Little Rock) governs fertility treatments in Arkansas. The bill would let fertility labs in Arkansas create, freeze, store, and kill human embryos as part of unethical in vitro fertilization—or IVF—practices. Human beings are not lab material. This bad bill fails to respect every unborn child’s right to life. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1014 (Bioethics): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would require the State and Public School Life and Health Insurance Program to pay for unethical IVF practices. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1020 (School Choice): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would repeal the 2023 LEARNS Act’s education freedom account program that lets students use public funds to pay for an education at a private school or at home. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1028 (Libraries): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would repeal Arkansas’ laws that protect children from harmful sexual material. It also would let libraries lend or share obscene material, and it requires public libraries to have “a written policy prohibiting the practice of banning books or other materials because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval” in order to receive public funding. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1031 (Sex Education): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would make it possible for the Arkansas Department of Education to implement Planned Parenthood-style sex education as part of larger changes to public school health curriculum. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1032 (LGBT): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would prevent healthcare professionals from helping people overcome unwanted same-sex attraction or gender confusion. The way the bill is written, H.B. 1032 would let counselors, doctors, and other healthcare professionals encourage people to be LGBT, but healthcare professionals would not be able to help people overcome unwanted same-sex attraction or accept their biological sex. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1033 (Red Flag Law): This bad bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would create a “red flag” law in Arkansas making it easier for authorities to confiscate firearms from citizens that the government deem a danger to themselves or others. Read The Bill Here.

Other Bills We are Watching

H.B. 1018 (Family and Medical Leave): This bill by Rep. Andrew Collins (D — Little Rock) would create an income tax credit for employers who provide paid family and medical leave, such as maternity leave, to employees. Family Council has no position on this bill. Read The Bill Here.

H.B. 1044 (Raffles): This bill by Rep. R. J. Hawk (R — Bryant) and Sen. Jonathan Dismang (R — Little Rock) amends Arkansas’ charitable raffles and bingo laws. The bill would let colleges and universities conduct raffles in-person or online during sporting events. Schools would be able to sell raffle tickets themselves or use a nonprofit charity affiliated with the school to conduct the raffle. The bill contains a provision preventing casinos from operating or administering a raffle on a school’s behalf. Schools could use raffle proceeds to benefit school athletic programs — including purchasing and maintaining athletic facilities or providing financial aid, scholarships, stipends, and other compensation to student-athletes. Family Council has no position on this bill. Read The Bill Here.

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Family Council Submits Comments Supporting ADE Rules to Protect Student Privacy at School, On Overnight Trips

Legislation,

On Wednesday Family Council submitted public comments supporting the Arkansas Department of Education’s new rules protecting student’s physical privacy at public schools and on overnight school trips.

Last year Gov. Sanders signed Act 317 by Rep. Mary Bentley (R – Perryville) and Sen. Dan Sullivan (R – Jonesboro) protecting privacy in public school locker rooms, showers, restrooms, changing areas, and similar facilities.

The law requires public schools to designate these facilities for “male” or “female” use.

It also addresses sleeping accommodations for students on overnight school trips — something that has been a serious problem for students in other states.

The Department of Education’s new rules will act as executive policies to help ensure Arkansas’ public schools are properly following Act 317.

Below is a copy of the comments we submitted to the Arkansas Department of Education on Wednesday:

I am writing to express Family Council’s support for the DESE Rule Governing Public School Policies Relating to Overnight Travel and Use of Public-School Lavatories. The language in the rules is consistent with Act 317 of 2023, a law Family Council supported during the 94th General Assembly. The rules adequately address public school policies concerning the designation of shower rooms, changing areas, restrooms, locker rooms, and similar facilities at public schools. They also properly address sleeping accommodations for students on overnight school trips.

According to a demand letter by attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom, in June of 2023, the Jefferson County Public Schools in Colorado assigned two girls to share a hotel room with a male student during a school-sponsored, overnight trip for fifth-graders to Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. This decision jeopardized the physical privacy and safety of the students and caused them unnecessary stress. DESE’s proposed rules promulgated in accordance with Act 317 will help ensure that students in Arkansas do not encounter a similar situation.

Boys and girls deserve privacy when they shower, sleep, change clothes, or use the restroom at school or on a school trip. These rules promulgated in accordance with Act 317 will protect the physical privacy and safety of public school students. We fully support the rules and look forward to their implementation.

Every student has a right to physical privacy and safety at school and on school-sponsored trips.

Public school students’ school records are protected by law, because we value student privacy. A student’s physical privacy should be just as important.

Act 317 helps protect the physical privacy of public school students in school showers, locker rooms, restrooms, and similar facilities on campus, and it helps protect physical privacy and safety on overnight trips.

Family Council was pleased to support Act 317. We are grateful to the General Assembly for passing Act 317, we are grateful to Gov. Sanders for signing it into law, and we are grateful to the Arkansas Department of Education for promulgating good rules to implement it.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Arkansas Department of Education Accepting Public Comments on Rules Protecting Student Privacy

Legislation,

The Arkansas Department of Education is accepting public comments on newly proposed rules protecting the physical privacy of public school students.

Last year Gov. Sanders signed Act 317 by Rep. Mary Bentley (R – Perryville) and Sen. Dan Sullivan (R – Jonesboro) protecting privacy in public school locker rooms, showers, restrooms, changing areas, and similar facilities.

The law requires public schools to designate these facilities for “male” or “female” use.

It also addresses sleeping accommodations for students on overnight school trips — something that has been a serious problem for students in other states.

The Department of Education’s new rules would act as executive policies to help ensure Arkansas’ public schools are properly following Act 317.

Every student has a right to physical privacy and safety at school and on school-sponsored trips.

Public school students’ school records are protected by law, because we value student privacy. A student’s physical privacy should be just as important.

Act 317 helps protect the physical privacy of public school students in school showers, locker rooms, restrooms, and similar facilities on campus, and it helps protect physical privacy and safety on overnight trips.

Family Council was pleased to support Act 317. We are grateful to the General Assembly for passing Act 317 and to the Arkansas Department of Education for promulgating rules to implement it.

Family Council’s team is reviewing the proposed rules, and we intend to offer public comments on them later this month.

You Can Read a Copy of the Proposed Rules Here.

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