Family Council Supports Physical Privacy and Safety Act

Legislation

On Monday state Senator Linda Collins-Smith (R-Pocahontas) filed S.B. 774, the Arkansas Physical Privacy and Safety Act.

Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement saying, “This is a good bill that will help ensure all Arkansans are protected and their privacy is respected. Arkansas needs this legislation to help protect children in public school showers, locker rooms, and restrooms. I hope the Arkansas Legislature will support this good bill.”

Cox said the legislation protects the physical privacy of people in showers, restrooms, and locker rooms on government property. “This bill does not affect private businesses like Walmart or Target. It is narrowly tailored to apply to government property, such as public schools, state parks, and government buildings. It simply requires a person using a public shower, locker room, restroom, or similar facility on government property to use the facility that corresponds to the biological sex listed on his or her original birth certificate. It also provides reasonable accommodations for transgender individuals.”

Cox said the legislation is important, because Arkansas law currently does not protect the privacy of students and others on government property. “Every student in Arkansas has a right to privacy and safety. Public school students’ school records are protected by law, because we value students’ privacy. A student’s physical privacy should be just as important. This bill will help protect the privacy of public school students in school locker rooms and restrooms.”

Cox said Family Council plans to support passage of the Arkansas Physical Privacy and Safety Act. “Arkansas has a duty to protect the privacy and safety of its schoolchildren. I believe that’s something our elected officials want to do. That’s what S.B. 774 does. We look forward to working with legislators to pass this good bill into law.”

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Two Home School-Related Bills Filed

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Rep. Mark Lowery (R-Maumelle) has filed two bills expanding opportunities for home schoolers to utilize the state’s “Tim Tebow” law.

Arkansas’ “Tim Tebow” law lets home schoolers try out for extracurricular activities at their local public schools, provided they can demonstrate academic eligibility and meet any other criteria required by the school

Making “Tebow” Fair for Home Schoolers

H.B. 1474 lets a home schooled student try out for extracurricular activities at a neighboring school district if the student’s resident school district and the neighboring school district both agree to allow it.

Right now, some public school students can attend school in neighboring school districts by “mutual agreement” of the two districts; if both school districts agree it is OK, the student can attend school in a neighboring district. H.B. 1474 gives home schoolers the same option under the state’s “Tim Tebow” law.

The bill also ensures tryout criteria are fair for home schoolers . In some school districts, home schoolers who want to participate in extracurricular activities have been required to meet unfair tryout criteria. H.B. 1474 ensures public school students and home schoolers have an equal opportunity to tryout for extracurricular activities.

Expanding “Tebow” to Private Schools as Well as Public

H.B. 1481 expands Arkansas’ “Tim Tebow” law to let home schoolers tryout for extracurricular activities at private schools as well as public schools.

Under this bill, a home schooler may request to tryout for extracurriculars at a private school within 25 miles of where he or she lives. The private school is not obligated to let the home schooler tryout. Any home schooler who is allowed to tryout for extracurricular activities at a private school would be required to meet the same standards and criteria as a student enrolled in the private school.

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Arkansas Legislative Committee Passes Two Pro-Life Bills

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Today the Arkansas House of Representatives’ Public Health Committee passed two good, pro-life bills.

H.B. 1428 by Rep. Lundstrum (R-Elm Springs) makes it clear that abortion clinics will be inspected at least annually, and it ensures any clinic that fails inspection will be shut down. It also cleans up language in some of Arkansas’ abortion statutes, and it closes a loophole in Arkansas informed-consent law. You can read the bill here.

H.B. 1434 by Rep. Collins (R-Fayetteville) prohibits abortions performed due to the baby’s sex. Recently our friends at Live Action posted undercover videos of abortion clinic employees counseling women on having sex-selection abortions. H.B. 1434 is similar to laws passed in other states. It protects unborn babies from being aborted due to their sex. You can read the bill here.

These bills now go to the entire House of Representatives for a vote.

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