State Capitol briefs

Rep. Mark McElroy, D-Tillar, presents House Bill 1002 to the House on Thursday. The bill would require that certain school buses be equipped with seat belts. HB1002 passed 65-18.
Rep. Mark McElroy, D-Tillar, presents House Bill 1002 to the House on Thursday. The bill would require that certain school buses be equipped with seat belts. HB1002 passed 65-18.

Senate OKs wider park-officer role

The Senate voted 24-3 Thursday to approve legislation to extend the jurisdiction of the Department of Parks and Tourism law enforcement officers statewide.






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The bill is Senate Bill 172 by Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View.

Irvin said the department's law enforcement officers now have jurisdiction inside the boundaries of state parks. The legislation would help out across the state during emergencies. Parks and tourism officers won't set up speed traps across the state, she assured senators.

Representatives from the department told lawmakers Wednesday that they would conduct "a huge training session" with officers to explain their roles within the expanded jurisdiction, and that Arkansans would not see much of a difference.

-- Michael R. Wickline

'Stolen Valor' bill sent to full House

A House panel endorsed a "Stolen Valor Act," a bill that would make it a crime to pretend to be active or former military personnel with the purpose of obtaining the available benefits.

House Bill 1466 would make it a Class C misdemeanor to do any of the following: impersonate a member of any military branch; present a false military ID or medal; pretend to have been a prisoner of war or have mental effects of war.

Class C misdemeanors are punishable by up to 30 days in jail and/or a fine up to $500. A second offense is a Class B misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to 90 days in jail and/or up to a $1,000 fine.

Any fines collected from offenders of the act would be sent to the veterans nursing home in North Little Rock, according to the bill.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Trevor Drown, R-Dover, passed the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday on a voice vote. The bill heads to the full House.

-- John Moritz

Domestic-violence measure advances

A bill to create a new funding mechanism for Arkansas' domestic-violence shelters was endorsed Thursday by a House panel.

The Domestic Violence Shelter Act, or House Bill 1420, would assess an additional $25 court cost to anyone convicted of domestic battery or who has a permanent order of protection placed against him. The collections would then be placed in a Domestic Shelter Violence Fund.

The bill says the money from the fund can then be appropriated to shelters through the Arkansas Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

The sponsor of the bill, Rep. Charlene Fite, R-Van Buren, said she did not have an estimate for how much money the added court costs would raise for shelters.

The House Judiciary Committee voted 9-8 for the measure, sending it to the full House.

-- John Moritz

Senate backs bill on maternity leave

The Senate approved legislation Thursday that would allow state employees to be granted up to four consecutive weeks of maternity leave with pay financed out of the state's catastrophic-leave bank.

In a 31-0 vote, the Senate sent Senate Bill 125 by Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View, to the House for further consideration. The catastrophic-leave bank is a pool of accrued annual and sick leave donated by state employees.

"I am really thrilled we are able to provide paid maternity leave up to four weeks without costing taxpayers a dime," Irvin told senators.

Under existing state law, maternity leave for state employees is required to be "treated as any other leave for sickness or disability." Accumulated sick leave and annual leave, if requested by the employee, "shall be granted for maternity use, after which leave without pay may be used," according to state law.

-- Michael R. Wickline

A Section on 02/10/2017

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