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Arkansas House Passes Bill Protecting Religious Freedom

Apr 4, 2025Jerry CoxReligious FreedomArkansas Legislature, Religious Freedom, Religious Liberty

On Thursday the Arkansas House of Representatives passed a good measure protecting religious liberty.

H.B. 1615 by Rep. Robin Lundstrum (R — Elm Springs) and Sen. Gary Stubblefield (R — Branch) would ensure that religious organizations and religious individuals are not penalized for living out their deeply held religious convictions.

Time and again, wedding venues, bakeries, photography studios, florist shops, and others have been targeted by public officials and dragged into court simply because their owners wanted to operate according to their deeply held convictions.

H.B. 1615 will help prevent the government from burdening the free exercise of religion in Arkansas.

As we have written before, Arkansas has passed some of the best religious freedom protections in the country over the years. In 2015, the state enacted its Religious Freedom Restoration Act. And lawmakers passed good bills in 2023 to strengthen that law.

H.B. 1615 helps further improve Arkansas’ laws protecting the free exercise of religion.

The bill now goes to the Arkansas Senate for consideration.

The Following Representatives Voted For H.B. 1615

Andrews
Beaty Jr.
Beck
Bentley
S. Berry
Breaux
A. Brown
K. Brown
M. Brown
N. Burkes
R. Burkes
Joey Carr
John Carr
Cavenaugh
Childress
C. Cooper
Cozart
Crawford
Dalby
Duffield
Duke
Furman
Gazaway
Gramlich
Holcomb
Hollowell
Jean
L. Johnson
Ladyman
Long
Lundstrum
Lynch
Maddox
J. Mayberry
McAlindon
McClure
McCollum
M. McElroy
McGrew
B. McKenzie
McNair
S. Meeks
J. Moore
K. Moore
Nazarenko
Painter
Pearce
Pilkington
Puryear
Ray
Richmond
Rose
Rye
Schulz
R. Scott Richardson
M. Shepherd
Steimel
Torres
Tosh
Underwood
Unger
Walker
Wing
Wooldridge
Wooten
Speaker Evans

The Following Representatives Voted Against H.B. 1615

F. Allen
Barnett
Clowney
A. Collins
Ennett
D. Garner
Gonzales
Hudson
Magie
McCullough
McGruder
J. Richardson
T. Shephard
Springer
Steele
Wardlaw
Gonzales Worthen

The Following Representatives Voted “Present”

Brooks
Eaton
Eaves
Eubanks
Hall
Hawk
Womack

The Following Representatives Did Not Vote

Achor
Barker
Barnes
K. Ferguson
Henley
Milligan
Perry
Vaught
Warren
D. Whitaker

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

House Committee Refers Bad Internet Gambling Bill to Interim Study

Apr 4, 2025Jerry CoxGamblingArkansas Legislature, Casino Gambling, Gambling

On Thursday, the Arkansas House Judiciary Committee referred H.B. 1861 — a bad bill that would legalize internet gambling — to Interim Study.

Sending a bill to Interim Study means the legislature may discuss the legislation between now and the next regular legislative session, but the lawmakers will not vote on the issue for now.

H.B. 1861 by Rep. Matt Duffield (R — Russellville) and Sen. Jamie Scott (D — North Little Rock) would let casinos licensed in Arkansas conduct Internet gambling online from anywhere in Arkansas.

Current law allows gambling at three casinos in the state — Oaklawn, Southland, and Saracen — and sports betting is allowed online via smart phones.

H.B. 1861 would let these casinos run slots and other types of gambling online, statewide. Following extensive debate in committee on Wednesday, Rep. Duffield requested to pull the bill down so it could be sent to Interim Study.

We already have seen how gambling addiction has become a serious problem. Last year the Arkansas Problem Gambling Council announced it has seen a 22% increase in calls for help with problem gambling — driven largely by sports betting.

Internet gambling would make it possible for compulsive gamblers to gamble — and lose — 24 hours a day from anywhere in Arkansas. That kind of gambling ruins lives, tears families apart, and hurts communities.

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

Medical Conscience Protection Law Receives Strong Support in Arkansas Senate

Apr 4, 2025Jerry CoxBioethicsArkansas Legislature, Bioethics, Conscience

On Thursday afternoon, a conscience protection measure received strong support in the Arkansas Senate.

S.B. 444 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Lee Johnson (R — Greenwood) strengthens the healthcare workers’ rights of conscience law Arkansas passed in 2021. Among other things, this good bill adds whistleblower protections for healthcare workers, and it helps protect all medical professionals from having their rights of conscience violated.

In 2021, Arkansas passed Act 462 protecting healthcare workers’ rights of conscience.

Before that law passed, Arkansas’ conscience protections were narrowly focused on abortion and end of life decisions, and they protected very few people. Act 462 helped broaden those protections and apply them to all healthcare workers.

S.B. 444 will help enhance the conscience protections Arkansas enacted four years ago. It now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration.

The Following Senators Voted For S.B. 444

J. Boyd
J. Bryant
Caldwell
A. Clark
Crowell
B. Davis
Dees
J. Dismang
J. Dotson
J. English
Flippo
Gilmore
K. Hammer
Hester
Hickey
Hill
Irvin
B. Johnson
M. Johnson
B. King
M. McKee
J. Payton
C. Penzo
J. Petty
Rice
Stone
G. Stubblefield
D. Sullivan

The Following Senators Voted Against S.B. 444

G. Leding
F. Love
R. Murdock
J. Scott
C. Tucker

The Following Senators Were Excused from the Arkansas Senate

S. Flowers
D. Wallace

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