Arkansas Legislature Passes Bill That Will Help Protect Victims of Botched Abortions

Abortion,
Rep. Bentley presents S.B. 527 to the Arkansas House of Representatives.

On Monday the Arkansas House of Representatives passed S.B. 527. The bill previously passed the Arkansas Senate with overwhelming support.

This good bill by Sen. Ben Gilmore (R – Crossett) and Rep. Mary Bentley (R – Perryville) requires abortion facilities to have transfer agreements with hospitals, and it fixes a flawed definition in a pro-life law passed in 2019.

S.B. 527 is similar to a Kentucky law that survived a legal challenge.

This is a good bill that will help protect women who are victims of botched abortions. Abortion carries a number of serious risks — including risk of laceration, hemorrhaging, and death.

Legislation like S.B. 527 helps protect women in the event of complications from a dangerous abortion procedure.

The bill now goes to the governor to become law.

Voted FOR S.B. 527

  • Barker
  • Beatty Jr.
  • Beck
  • Bentley
  • S. Berry
  • M. Berry
  • Boyd
  • Bragg
  • Breaux
  • Brooks
  • Brown
  • Bryant
  • Carr
  • Cavenaugh
  • Christiansen
  • Cloud
  • Coleman
  • C. Cooper
  • Cozart
  • Crawford
  • Dalby
  • M. Davis
  • Deffenbaugh
  • Dotson
  • Eaves
  • Eubanks
  • Evans
  • C. Fite
  • L. Fite
  • Fortner
  • Gazaway
  • Gonzales
  • Haak
  • Hawks
  • Hillman
  • Holcomb
  • Hollowell
  • Jean
  • Jett
  • L. Johnson
  • Lowery
  • Lundstrum
  • Lynch
  • Maddox
  • J. Mayberry
  • McClure
  • McCollum
  • M. McElroy
  • McGrew
  • McKenzie
  • McNair
  • S. Meeks
  • Miller
  • Milligan
  • Payton
  • Penzo
  • Pilkington
  • Ray
  • Richmond
  • Rye
  • Slape
  • B. Smith
  • S. Smith
  • Speaks
  • Tollett
  • Tosh
  • Underwood
  • Vaught
  • Wardlaw
  • Warren
  • Watson
  • Wing
  • Womack
  • Wooten

Voted AGAINST S.B. 527

  • F. Allen
  • Clowney
  • A. Collins
  • Ennett
  • D. Ferguson
  • V. Flowers
  • D. Garner
  • Godfrey
  • M. Hodges
  • Hudson
  • McCullough
  • Murdock
  • Scott
  • Springer
  • D. Whitaker

Voted “Present”

  • M. Gray
  • Love

Did Not Vote

  • K. Ferguson
  • Fielding
  • Furman
  • Ladyman
  • Magie
  • Nicks
  • Perry
  • Richardson
  • Shepherd

READ MORE

House Public Health Committee Passes Two Pro-Life Bills

Abortion, , , ,

On Thursday the House Public Health Committee passed two good, pro-life bills.

The first was S.B. 463. This good bill by Sen. Blake Johnson (R – Corning) and Rep. Tony Furman (R – Benton) requires the State of Arkansas to report abortion data to the federal Centers for Disease Control.

It also tightens Arkansas law concerning abortion facility inspections, and it requires abortionists to file certain documentation when the woman is a victim of rape or incest.

The second was S.B. 527. This good bill by Sen. Ben Gilmore (R – Crossett) and Rep. Mary Bentley (R – Perryville) requires abortion facilities to have transfer agreements with hospitals, and it fixes a flawed definition in a pro-life law passed in 2019.

Both bills passed with solid support from pro-life legislators.

Planned Parenthood has issued statements opposing each of these good measures.

S.B. 527 and S.B. 463 now go to the entire Arkansas House of Representatives for consideration.

READ MORE

Bad Comprehensive Sex-Education Bill Filed in Little Rock

Abortion, ,

On Wednesday Sen. Greg Leding (D – Fayetteville) and Rep. Megan Godfrey (D – Springdale) filed S.B. 655.

This bad bill implements comprehensive sex-education in public schools in Arkansas. Comprehensive sex-education generally promotes contraceptives over and above abstinence.

The comprehensive sex-education programs outlined in S.B. 655 are similar to the ineffective programs promoted by Planned Parenthood and the Obama Administration.

We know from experience that these programs aren’t effective at preventing teen pregnancy and teen abortion.

In the 1980s and 1990s liberals in Arkansas promoted sex-education programs like the ones that S.B. 655 would implement.

From 1991 to 1997 Arkansas’ teen birthrate decreased by 11% and Arkansas teen abortion rate decreased by 18%.

In 1997 the Arkansas Legislature and the Huckabee Administration began promoting abstinence education in Arkansas.

From 1997 to 2005, Arkansas’ teen birthrate decreased 17%, but Arkansas’ teen abortion rate plummeted a staggering 48%.

Governor Huckabee’s abstinence education model was so successful in Arkansas that it drew national recognition.

In 2016 — while President Barack Obama was still in office — the federal Centers for Disease Control released a 208-page report concluding teenagers who practice abstinence are healthier in nearly every way than teenagers who are sexually active.

The CDC’s report looked at everything from seatbelt and bike helmet use to substance abuse, diet, exercise, and even tanning bed use.

Their conclusion was that sexually-active teens were less healthy and engaged in riskier behavior.

Unfortunately, legislation like S.B. 655 encourages teenagers to be sexually-active — which is linked to other unhealthy decisions.

Simply put, if the state is serious about promoting teen health and decreasing abortion and teen birthrates, then history and data both prove that abstinence education is the right way to go.

Below is a table showing teen birthrate and teen abortion rate numbers for Arkansas from 1990 – 2017, the most recent year for which we have calculated figures on abortion rates in Arkansas.

YearArkansas Teen BirthrateArkansas Teen Abortion Rate
199080.118.29
199179.518.12
199274.815.09
199372.814.00
199474.816.26
199571.915.61
199673.515.79
199770.814.78
199869.714.49
199966.112.73
200066.211.40
200162.711.69
200260.49.85
200359.39.96
200460.38.64
200558.67.68
200660.89.41
200760.18.60
200859.88.46
200957.87.65
201052.57.26
201150.76.02
201245.75.38
201343.54.57
201439.54.95
2015384.09
201634.63.50
201732.83.50

READ MORE