State Legislators Pass Resolution Against Abortion Amendment

On Wednesday the Arkansas House of Representatives passed a resolution opposing the abortion amendment currently vying for the ballot.

Lawmakers convened in Little Rock on Monday for a special legislative session.

Arkansans for Limited Government has until July 5 to collect 90,704 valid signatures from registered voters to place the Arkansas Abortion Amendment on the November ballot.

H.R. 1003 by Rep. Ryan Rose (R — Van Buren) says:

WHEREAS, prior to the United States Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, Arkansas had enacted laws protecting women and unborn children from abortion; and

WHEREAS, from January 22, 1973, to June 24, 2022, the United States Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade prevented Arkansas from protecting women and unborn children from abortion; and

WHEREAS, on June 24, 2022, the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in its Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision; and

WHEREAS, that same day the State of Arkansas certified that Act 180 of 2019, the Arkansas Human Life Protection Act, prohibiting abortion except to save the life of the mother in a medical emergency is in effect; and

WHEREAS, an effort is now underway to enact the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024; and

WHEREAS, the ballot title of the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024 states that the amendment prevents the State of Arkansas from prohibiting, penalizing, delaying, or restricting abortion during the first twenty (20) weeks since the first day of the pregnant female’s last menstrual period; and

WHEREAS, the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024 would legalize abortion on demand during approximately the first five (5) months of pregnancy in Arkansas, thereby depriving unborn children of their fundamental right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; and

WHEREAS, the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024 proposes various exceptions that would permit an abortion up until birth in many instances; and

WHEREAS, the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024 nullifies all laws and amendments that conflict with it, thereby jeopardizing measures such as parental-consent laws that historically have enjoyed bipartisan support; and

WHEREAS, the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024 also would jeopardize the constitutionality of public health and safety requirements the State of Arkansas might deem appropriate and necessary for abortion procedures and for those who perform abortions,

NOW THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:

THAT the House of Representatives oppose the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024, and encourage all registered voters to vote against it.

Below is a list of co-sponsors who supported the resolution.

Rep. Achor
Rep. Andrews
Rep. Beaty Jr.
Rep. Bentley
Rep. Breaux
Rep. K. Brown
Rep. M. Brown
Rep. Burkes
Rep. Cavenaugh
Rep. Cooper
Rep. Crawford
Rep. Duke
Rep. Eaves
Rep. Evans
Rep. C. Fite
Rep. Furman
Rep. Gonzales
Rep. Gramlich
Rep. Haak
Rep. Hawk
Rep. G. Hodges
Rep. Hollowell
Rep. Long
Rep. Lundstrum
Rep. J. Mayberry
Rep. McClure
Rep. McCollum
Rep. McGrew
Rep. B. McKenzie
Rep. McNair
Rep. S. Meeks
Rep. Milligan
Rep. J. Moore
Rep. K. Moore
Rep. Painter
Rep. Pilkington
Rep. Puryear
Rep. Ray
Rep. R. Scott Richardson
Rep. Steimel
Rep. Tosh
Rep. Underwood
Rep. Unger
Rep. Vaught
Rep. Watson
Rep. Wing
Rep. Wooten

The Arkansas Abortion Amendment would write abortion into the state constitution, allowing thousands of elective abortions in Arkansas every year.

The amendment does not contain any medical licensing or health and safety standards for abortion, and it automatically nullifies all state laws that conflict with the amendment. That jeopardizes even the most basic restrictions on abortion.

The measure contains sweeping health exceptions that would permit abortion through all nine months of pregnancy in many cases.

The amendment also would pave the way for publicly funded abortion in Arkansas by changing Amendment 68 to the Arkansas Constitution that currently prohibits taxpayer funded abortion in the state.

To date, multiple organizations have come out against the amendment, including: