Bill limits regulation of child care homes
The Arkansas House Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee on Thursday endorsed a bill that would require local governments to treat a child care family home as residential property use in the application of local regulations.
Rep. Mary Bentley, R-Perryville, said House Bill 1155 would not force people who have residential daycare operations for young children "to do things that a commercial business would have to do as far as increasing sprinklers and all those things."
"Fire marshals have come in and added unnecessary regulations to these folks, making it impossible for them to operate," Bentley said. "We are just saying that a residential home is a residential home and you can't add extra regulations for them to operate as a child daycare."
The bill would define a child care family home as a child care setting in which the caregiver provides child care in a family residence or a residence with a homelike environment. The Division of Childcare and Early Childhood Education shall require any child care facility seeking licensure to comply with applicable zoning and land use development regulations of the city and county where the facility is located.
Under the bill, local governments are barred from imposing on a child care family home any additional regulations that do not also apply to other residential properties, or stricter requirements than those in the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code. The bill does not restrict a local governing authority from, on a case-by-case basis, managing the flow of traffic and parking related to adjacent child care family homes. The Division of Childcare and Early Childhood Education may promulgate rules related to adequate fire protection and prevention in a child care family home under the bill.
-- Michael R. Wickline
Surrogate care bill clears House panel
The House Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee on Thursday approved a bill allowing a surrogate of certain individuals to apply for public benefits such as Medicare and Medicaid for the principal, subject to any federal restrictions or requirements, and have access to information regarding the principal's income, assets and banking and financial records to the extent required to make an application.
The authority authorized under Senate Bill 74 by Sen. Justin Boyd, R-Fort Smith, includes the ability to assist with, submit and execute applications for benefits, redetermination of eligibility and other ongoing related communications. But the authority of the bill would terminate when revoked by the principal who no longer lacks the capacity to make decisions, upon appointment or availability of a power of attorney or guardian with such authority, or upon the death of the principal. A surrogate would be required to meet all federal requirements to act as an authorized representative, including confidentiality provisions.
Jenna Goldman, representing the Mercy Health System, said "this has become a bigger issue as we have had adults essentially abandoned in the hospitals.
"They either don't have anybody, or their family has left them in the hospital and will not come back to help them get appropriate care," she said. "We have had some that just need long-term care services. We also have some with traumatic brain surgery that are incapacitated and not able to do this themselves, and we can't transfer those patients until they have coverage, and so that's what we are doing today."
Goldman said "our end goal is to get them appropriate care, which has become very challenging."
-- Michael R. Wickline
House panel OKs dental college bill
A bill to specify that the Commission on Dental Accreditation is the accrediting entity for a college of dentistry in Arkansas cleared the House Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee on Thursday.
The House committee sent Senate Bill 93 by Sen. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, to the House.
Rep. Ryan Rose, R-Van Buren, said the bill opens a pathway for a public or private higher education institution to open a college of dentistry in Arkansas. The bill doesn't create or fund a college of dentistry, he noted.
In May, officials announced OneHealth Education Group, a partner in the Institute of Health Sciences endeavor with Lyon College, would purchase downtown Little Rock's Heifer International campus to house the veterinary and dental schools.
-- Michael R. Wickline
House OKs bill on alcohol advertising
The Arkansas House on Thursday endorsed a bill that would clarify restrictions on advertising alcohol for private clubs in dry counties.
House Bill 1177, by Rep. Lee Johnson, R-Greenwood, passed on a 75 to 6 vote. The bill will move to the Senate for further consideration.
While current state law clearly prohibits licensed private clubs in dry counties from advertising the sale of alcohol, Johnson said the term "advertising" in statutes was not well-defined.
"There's been sometimes interpretations that seeing someone drinking an alcoholic beverage through the window has maybe been interpreted as advertising," Johnson said.
In some cases, he said restaurants licensed as private clubs have darkened their windows to avoid violating this interpretation of advertising.
Johnson's bill would clarify that the prohibition on advertising or promoting the consumption of alcoholic beverages "does not require a private club to block visibility through the private club's windows or doors."
Under the amended law, private clubs in dry counties would still be barred from conventional forms of advertising, including displaying neon signs, promoting happy hours or displaying pricing.
Johnson said his bill would not allow people to consume alcohol outside a restaurant. A separate law permits private clubs in dry counties to serve alcohol in outdoor patios if the clubs are part of a locally approved entertainment district.
--Will Langhorne
Bill on sky lanterns passes state House
A bill that would allow cities to issue permits for the use of sky lanterns passed the Arkansas House on Thursday.
House Bill 1258, sponsored by Robin Lundstrum, R-Elm Springs, received a 92-0 vote. The bill will move to the Senate for further action.
The design of sky lanterns has evolved greatly since Arkansas outlawed them roughly 10 years ago, said Rep. Rebecca Burkes, R-Lowell, who presented the bill in the House.
The small hot air balloons are sometimes released during events, including weddings or funerals.
Sky lanterns have become "eco-friendly and biodegradable," Lundstrum told the House Committee on City, County, and Local Affairs on Wednesday.
The bill would allow a city of the first or second class to issue an event permit "for the use of sky lanterns if the event is open to the public."
A city could revoke a sky lantern permit any time before the event if the city's fire department determines the use of the lanterns would be "dangerous due to weather or other conditions." All other sales of sky lanterns would be prohibited under the proposed law.
-- Will Langhorne
Dementia training bill passes in House
A bill that would require licensed caregivers to receive at least four hours of specialized training for dementia passed the Arkansas House on Thursday.
House Bill 1267, sponsored by Rep. Julie Mayberry, R-Hensley, would require that providers dedicate four of the 40 hours training required for in-home caregivers to dementia. Mayberry said the bill does not apply to family members who take care of loved ones.
"We are just making that sure there's a section that deals specifically with Alzheimer disease and dementia," Mayberry said.
The bill passed the House on a 95-0 vote and moves to the Senate for consideration.
-- Neal Earley