Vetoed earlier this week, an effort to strengthen individuals' publicity rights hit a wall on the last day of the session and failed to make it to the House floor.
Sponsored by Sen. Jon Woods, Senate Bill 965, an amended version of SB79 that cleared both legislative chambers only to be vetoed by Gov. Asa Hutchinson, was voted down in the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday morning.
During the committee hearing, the bill's House sponsor, Rep. Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville, told the committee that the changes made in the bill's current form, which passed the Senate on Wednesday, had Hutchinson's approval.
Apparently, that wasn't enough.
"We felt like this was an even better piece of policy than the first bill but obviously [some] still had some concerns," Leding said. "To our knowledge, everyone was accepting of this format. ... I'm not sure [why it failed in committee]. I honestly don't know."
The intent of the bill originated after Woods, R-Springdale, was approached by the family of former Arkansas football Coach and Athletic Director Frank Broyles. They were concerned that some merchandisers were profiting off Broyles' image without their consent.
SB79 sought to prevent commercial enterprises from using a person's name, likeness, voice or image without permission.
Supporters of the bill said there are about 27 states with some sort of "right to publicity" law and that individuals have a right to the persona they have cultivated.
The bill also included "fair use" exemptions for media and other artistic outlets.
Hutchinson first vetoed the bill, saying it was "overbroad" and could restrict free speech.
The new version, SB965, included language that was agreed on by some officials from photography groups and the motion picture industry, who were among the main opponents of SB79 when it first cleared the House and Senate.
Metro on 04/03/2015