Governor Signs Budget Measure Providing $2M for Moms in Need

Last week Gov. Sanders signed a measure budgeting $2 million for grant funding to charities that help women with unplanned pregnancies.

H.B. 1202 by the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee provides $2 million in funding for grants to pregnancy help organizations.

Under H.B. 1202, grant money can go to pregnancy resource centers, maternity homes, adoption agencies, and other charitable organizations that provide material support to women with unplanned pregnancies.

The State of Arkansas also can award funding to charities that promote infant and maternal wellness and reduce infant and maternal mortality by:

  • Providing nutritional information and/or nutritional counseling;
  • Providing prenatal vitamins;
  • Providing a list of prenatal medical care options;
  • Providing social, emotional, and/or material support; or
  • Providing referrals for WIC and community-based nutritional services, including food banks, food pantries, and food distribution centers.

The measure makes it clear that grant money will not go to abortionists or their affiliates.

Since 2022 Family Council has worked with the Arkansas Legislature and the governor to secure funding every year for pregnancy resource centers. These state-funded grants have helped support dozens of charities that assist women and children in Arkansas.

The grants are optional. Pregnancy resource centers are not required to accept public tax dollars if they do not want to. But for those who do receive grant money, the funding may make a tremendous difference.

Pro-lifers in Arkansas have worked hard to prohibit abortion. We need to work to make abortion irrelevant and unthinkable as well. Supporting pregnancy resource centers is one way we can do that.

Pregnancy resource centers give women real options besides abortion — making it less likely they will travel out of state for abortion or order illegal abortion drugs online.

With the governor’s signature, H.B. 1202 is now Act 1006 of 2025.

We want to recognize the Arkansas Legislature for proposing and passing this good law, and we want to thank the governor for signing it.

Act 1006 means Arkansas will be able to continue providing real support to women and families. That is something to celebrate!

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

Arkansas Governor Signs Good Law to Prohibit Race-Selection Abortions

Last week Gov. Sanders signed a good law to prohibit certain abortions if Arkansas’ pro-life laws ever change.

Since 2022, abortion in Arkansas has been prohibited except to save the life of the mother. This year the Arkansas Legislature passed a law clarifying and closing possible loopholes in the state’s pro-life laws.

Before the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade, Arkansas enacted dozens of different laws restricting and prohibiting abortion — including laws protecting unborn children from being aborted because of their sex or because they may be at risk for Down Syndrome. Technically, those good laws are still on the books, and they could be enforced if a federal court ever blocked Arkansas’ laws that generally prohibit abortion.

S.B. 591 by Sen. Clint Penzo (R — Springdale) and Rep. Karilyn Brown (R — Sherwood) would prohibit abortions performed due to the unborn baby’s race if Arkansas’ pro-life laws are ever amended or struck down.

This good law passed with overwhelming support in the Arkansas House and Arkansas Senate. On April 22, Gov. Sanders signed it — making it Act 973 of 2025.

Family Council was very pleased to work with our friends in the legislature to secure passage of Act 973. We appreciate lawmakers’ continued dedication to upholding the sanctity and dignity of human life, and we appreciate Gov. Sanders signing this good law.

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

Governor Sanders Signs Law to Give Students a Window into the Womb

On Monday Governor Sanders signed a good law to help teach public school students about unborn children.

S.B. 450 by Sen. Breanne Davis (R — Russellville) and Rep. Kendra Moore (R — Lincoln) lets public school students see a recording of a high-definition ultrasound video as part of human fetal growth and development education courses.

The law also makes it possible for students to learn important facts about how unborn children develop in the womb.

Similar legislation reportedly has passed in North Dakota, Tennessee, Idaho, and Kansas.

With the governor’s signature, S.B. 450 is now Act 915 of 2025. Act 915 received overwhelming support in the Arkansas Senate and House of Representatives, and we want to recognize the legislature for supporting this good law and Governor Sanders for signing it on Monday.

Very few medical advancements have done more to change hearts and minds on abortion than ultrasound technology. In fact, research has shown that some women are less likely to have an abortion if they see an ultrasound image of their unborn child. Act 915 will help students understand that unborn children are human beings.

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