LITTLE ROCK — With no debate, the House voted 80-10 on Thursday to ban most abortions in Arkansas after 20 weeks. The bill goes to Gov. Mike Beebe’s desk.
Within an hour, the House also voted 68-20 to approve a bill that would ban most abortions at 12 weeks. That bill returns to the Senate for final consideration.
Also Thursday, the governor announced he will take no action on a bill to exempt information about holders of concealed-weapon permits from the Freedom of Information Act, the House voted to let women use deadly force to protect their fetuses, and a committee backed an income tax break for volunteer firefighters. It was the 39th day of the 89th General Assembly.
House Bill 1037 by Rep. Andy Mayberry, R-Hensley, bans abortion at 20 weeks except in cases of rape or incest, or to save the mother’s life or prevent catastrophic injury to her health or major bodily functions. The proposal prohibits abortions even if the fetus has catastrophic health problems.
“That’s the stage where research has shown that a child feels pain, and this addresses those who are most weak, innocent and vulnerable among us; and it would protect them from a very painful, excruciating death,” Mayberry told lawmakers. “I believe that these children one day would like to come and personally thank you for your vote.”
The U.S. Supreme Court in its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision said states can restrict abortions once the fetus is viable, or can survive outside the womb. That has traditionally been at 24-26 weeks of gestation.
Gestation is calculated under Arkansas law from the first day of the woman’s last period. Mayberry’s bill counts weeks since conception, or when a sperm and ovum merge.
The 10 “no” votes were all Democrats. Nine of the nonvoting members were Democrats. Following tradition, House Speaker Davy Carter, R-Cabot, did not vote but told reporters afterward he would have voted in favor of the bill.
Mayberry’s bill would affect a small number of abortions in Arkansas. In 2011, 48 of the 4,033 abortions in Arkansas took place at or after 20 weeks, according to the Arkansas Department of Health.
The House spent longer debating Senate Bill 134 by Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Bigelow. It would require women seeking an abortion after 12 weeks to first get an abdominal ultrasound to determine whether the fetus has a heartbeat. Rapert amended the original bill to allow abortions in cases of rape or incest, or when the fetus has a “highly lethal fetal disorder” and likely won’t survive long after birth.
House sponsor Rep. Ann Clemmer, R-Benton, said the bill is a good compromise between those who want choice and those who want to ban abortion.
“This is a decent line to be drawn,” she said. “For 12 weeks you can continue to have an elective abortion.”
Opponents of the legislation have said both bills, if they become law, would violate federal court precedent outlining when and how states can restrict abortion, and the ACLU has threatened to sue.
Rep. Homer Lenderman, D-Brookland, argued that the bill is unconstitutional.
“I believe it will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars for us to defend that, and I think we will lose,” Lenderman said.
Lawyer and Rep. Bob Ballinger, R-Hindsville, said sometimes states have to challenge federal law, pointing to slavery and segregation. He offered to represent the state for free if the law is challenged.
“Sometimes law is wrong, and if it is, if you are pro-life, you have to support this bill,” Ballinger said. “If you believe it is life, you have no choice but to challenge law.”
Bettina Brownstein, an attorney representing the Arkansas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said the ACLU may take a while to challenge Mayberry’s 20 week ban, but promised swift litigation if Rapert’s bill becomes law.
“Definitely. Right away,” she said after the vote.
Beebe said he has made a decision about whether to veto the bills but doesn’t plan to make it public until he’s ready to take action.
“What weighs on [his decision] is it constitutional or not, and I have most of the information gathered that I need to make a decision on that and I’ll make that announcement when it hits my desk or when I act, one way or the other,” Beebe said. “It’s not my job to try to provide anybody any cover on how they vote.”
Once he receives the bill, Beebe has five days to either sign or veto it. If he takes no action, it becomes law automatically.
It takes a majority vote in both chambers to override a governor’s veto. Republicans hold majorities in both chambers, and the bills have broad support.
BIG RIVER STEEL MILL
The Legislature has 20 business days to complete its own review of a $1.1 billion steel mill project in northeast Arkansas. State officials, including the governor, want lawmakers to authorize $125 million in bonds. Otherwise, the plant will likely go elsewhere.
The Arkansas Economic Development Commission has delivered a letter of commitment signed by both the state and Big River Steel to the Senate president pro tempore and the House speaker, according to a commission spokesman.
Amendment 82, passed by voters in 2004, allows the Legislature to authorize general obligation bonds to finance infrastructure or other needs to attract large economic-development projects.
Lawmakers must complete a study or review of the proposed project before they approve the bonds. This is the first time Amendment 82 has been used.
Carter said the Legislature is seeking bids from four consulting firms to do the review. They hope to have a response by this afternoon
Carter said lawmakers seem to support approving the bonds.
“Unless there’s some red flag that pops up that nobody is aware of at this point, I believe it would be awfully hard to not do the project,” Carter said.
Of the $125 million in state backed bonds to help pay for construction of the mill, $70 million would be a grant, $50 million would be a loan repaid by the company, and $5 million would cover the cost of selling the bonds.
SCHOOL CHOICE BILL
The House voted 89-1-2 to approve a bill that would allow students who transferred under the Public School Choice Act of 1989 to remain in their nonresident schools if the act is later ruled unconstitutional or is repealed.
The act was struck down by U.S. District Judge Robert Dawson in June. That decision is on hold and has been appealed. A panel of federal judges is deciding whether transfers between districts can be restricted on the basis of race.
House Bill 1294, proposed by Rep. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, also would allow a sibling of a nonresident student to enroll at the same school for the duration of their secondary education.
PREGNANT FORCE
The House voted 93-0 to give women the right to use deadly force if they feel their fetus is threatened.
Under current state law, a woman is justified in using physical force or deadly physical force to protect herself if she reasonably believes she is being threatened by illegal physical or deadly physical force.
Under Senate Bill 170 by Sen. Gary Stubblefield, R-Branch, a pregnant woman would be justified in using such force to protect her fetus if she reasonably believed the fetus was threatened.
CONCEALED WEAPONS
The governor announced he will not veto a bill that would make secret the list of concealed handgun licensees and their ZIP codes. Senate Bill 131 by Sen. Bruce Holland, R-Greenwood, will become law Monday.
Beebe said he saw no need to exempt the information from the Freedom of Information Act and opposed the bill as it moved through the Legislature. The governor said he did not veto it because it had so much support and he could find no constitutional problems.
The legislation passed 84-3 in the House and 24-9 in the Senate.
MILITARY CHILDREN
The House voted 95-0 to make it easier for children of military families to transfer to Arkansas schools.
Senate Bill 15 by Sen. Eddie Joe Williams, would add Arkansas to a 43-state compact that waives state-specific academic requirements for the children of active-duty military members who have met similar requirements in other states.
Beebe has publicly supported the bill.
FIREFIGHTER TAX CREDIT
The House Revenue and Taxation Committee endorsed a bill to make volunteer firefighters eligible for an income tax deduction of up to $1,000 a year.
House Bill 1399, sponsored by Rep. Joe Farrer, R-Austin, would allow volunteer firefighters to deduct the cost of firefighting equipment that they buy, plus the value of any personal property that is damaged or destroyed during their firefighting duties. The bill defines a volunteer firefighter as one who receives less than $5,000 in total compensation during the tax year from a volunteer fire department or firefighting unit.
John Theis, an assistant revenue commissioner for the state, said about 11,500 volunteer firefighters would be eligible for the tax deduction. The state projects the bill would reduce state revenues by about $48,700 a year, he said.
Front Section, Pages 1 on 02/22/2013