By John Lyon and Rob Moritz
Arkansas News Bureau
LITTLE ROCK — Cyberbullying would become a crime in Arkansas under a bill that received final passage in the House on today.
Also, the Senate approved a bill that would take the authority to set the amounts of lottery-funded scholarships out of the Legislature’s hands.
The House voted 68-19 to approve Senate Bill 214 by Sen. Linda Chesterfield, D-Little Rock, which would make cyberbullying a Class B misdemeanor. The bill goes to the governor.
Rep. Darrin Williams, D-Little Rock, who presented the bill for Chesterfield, told House members that “we all know stories around the country and even some here in Arkansas where some kids have attempted to commit suicide and some have even been successful in committing suicide once they have been bullied over the Internet.”
Rep. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, spoke against the bill, which he said does not distinguish between adults and teenagers.
Williams said the bill intentionally does not make that distinction. He cited an incident in which a Missouri girl committed suicide after being bullied on the Internet by the parent of another young person.
The House also approved SB 892 by Sen. David Johnson, D-Little Rock, which would direct the school board of every school district to adopt a policy to prevent bullying. The bill passed 69-18 and goes to the governor.
The House voted 67-19 to approve SB 65 by Sen. Jimmy Jeffress, which would streamline enrollment in the ARKids First children’s health insurance program and would ensure continuous coverage for one year, provided federal Medicaid and Medicare officials approve and funds are available.
Rep. Uvalde Lindsey, D-Fayetteville, who presented the bill for Jeffress, said it seeks to reverse the trend of about 20,000 children dropping off the ARKids First rolls each year. The bill goes to the governor.
With a 54-26 vote, the House approved SB 268 by Johnson, which would allow parents of multiple-birth siblings to request that their children be placed in the same or separate classrooms. A school could choose not to grant the request if it determines that doing so would be disruptive to the classroom or detrimental to one or more of the children’s education.
Rep. Les “Skip” Carnine, R-Rogers, spoke against the bill, which he said would create “a special category for twins.”
Rep. Charlie Collins, R-Fayetteville, countered, “We’re not creating a special category called ‘twins.’ God did.”
The bill goes to the governor.
SB 1004 by Sen. Percy Malone, D-Arkadelphia, cleared the House in a 55-28 vote and goes to the governor. The bill would ban smoking in a vehicle if a child under 14 is present.
Current law bans smoking in a vehicle if a child under 6 is present.
With a 92-0 vote, the House approved House Bill 2103 by Rep. Bryan King, R-Green Forest, which would provide a tax credit to an employer who hires a person who has been receiving unemployment benefits for at least eight consecutive weeks.
The credit would be equal to $250 per quarter that the worker is employed by the recipient, up to a maximum of $1,000 if the worker is employed for a full year. The bill goes to the Senate.
SB 1000 by Sen. Johnny Key, R-Mountain Home, cleared the House in a 67-12 vote and goes to the governor. The bill would allow a person accused of violating a protective order to argue as a defense that he or she was invited to go to the home or place of employment of the person who obtained the protective order.
With a 55-27 vote, the House approved and sent to the Senate HB 2135 by Rep. Bobby Pierce, D-Sheridan, which would allow cities to issue one-year permits allowing open consumption of alcohol in entertainment districts.
The Senate passed SB 909 by Sen. Johnny Key, R-Mountain Home, which would authorize the Department of Higher Education to set the amounts of lottery-funded according to a formula proposed in the bill. The Legislature currently sets the scholarship amounts.
The bill passed 21-7. The Senate voted later on the bill’s emergency clause and it passed 28-2.
The Senate also passed SB 1415 by Rep. Henry “Hank” Wilkins IV, D-Pine Bluff, which would change the law to prohibit Level 3 and Level 4 sex offenders from working at a day care center when children are present.
The bill passed 35-0. It must go back to the House to concur on a Senate amendment that added sponsors.
The Senate also passed, 29-1, HB 1898 by Rep. Keith Ingram, D-West Memphis, which would allow cities and counties to hold elections for an economic development tax and then use the expected revenue as an incentive to attract businesses and industry.
The bill stipulates that the tax revenue can only be spent on infrastructure for new industry or businesses. The new economic development must be valued at $10 million or more, and it must bring at least 50 new jobs to the community.
The bill now goes to the governor for his signature.
Also approved by the Senate was SB 339 by Sen. Jack Crumbly, D-Widener, which would establish a regional educational career alternative school system for juvenile offenders.
The measure passed 32-2 and now goes to the House.
