On Thursday the House Public Health Committee gave a “Do Not Pass” to a bad bill that would legalize kratom in Arkansas.
“Do Not Pass” means the committee voted not to pass the bill. Committee Chair Rep. Jeff Wardlaw described the motion as a way to “kill a bill.”
S.B. 534 by Sen. Greg Leding (D — Fayetteville) and Rep. Jon Eubanks (R — Paris) is a bad bill that would legalize kratom and dangerous extracts made from kratom in Arkansas.
The federal government has advised states to prohibit kratom, and the Arkansas Health Department has done so.
The Mayo Clinic has called kratom “unsafe and ineffective,” writing,
Poison control centers in the United States received more than 3,400 reports about use of kratom from 2014 through 2019. These included reports of death. Side effects reported included high blood pressure, confusion and seizures.
S.B. 534 would legalize kratom for sale all over Arkansas. The bill is backed by powerful interests who want to legalize dangerous drugs without any regard for the health or welfare of Arkansans.
During Thursday’s committee meeting, lawmakers heard testimony about how kratom’s dangers, and Rep. Zack Gramlich (R — Fort Smith) made a motion “Do Not Pass” against S.B. 534.
During his comments against the bill, Rep. Gramlich described a seventh-grader who was caught using kratom and trying to sell it to other students at a school in his district a few years ago.
Following discussion, the committee members voted to give S.B. 534 a motion of “Do Not Pass.”
The Arkansas House Public Health Committee did the right thing by soundly rejecting S.B. 534. Kratom is a dangerous drug, and our state has worked hard to protect people from it. We appreciate Rep. Gramlich opposing this bad bill, and we appreciate the committee choosing not to pass it.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
