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Senate floor
Jan. 19, 2023
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Sen Hester: The Senate will be called order. Are there any requests for leave at this time? Seeing none, Madam secretary, please call the roll.
Madam Secretary: Boyd, Bryant, Caldwell, Chesterfield, Clark, Crowell, Davis, Dees, Dismang, Dotson, English, Flippo, Flowers, Gilmore, Hammer, Hester, Hickey, Hill, Irving, Blake Johnson, Mark Johnson, King, Leding, Love, McKee, Murdock, Payton, Penzo, Petty, Rice, Stone, Stubblefield, Sullivan, Tucker Wallace.
Sen Hester: Senator Irvin requests leave for– Senator Irvin, you’re recognized.
Sen Irvin: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Leave for Senator Flippo.
Sen Hester: Anybody else? Any other leave? Senator Hill, you’re recognized.
Sen Hill: Those on the Insurance and Commerce Committee, we’re going to have off the record real quick meeting, got someone wanting to visit with us in 309, right after session.
Sen Hester: Okay, everyone in the chamber and in the gallery, please rise and remain standing for the Pledge of Allegiance. The Senate will be led in prayer by Senator Jim Petty.
Sen Petty: Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, we want to pause and say thank you for the awesome responsibility and privilege that we all have here to serve our people. And by serving our people, we’re serving you. And we thank you for that and don’t ever want to take that for granted. We ask for an abundance of mercy and long-suffering and forgiveness as we work through some of the issues that we won’t all agree on, and we just thank you in advance for that. We thank you for the wisdom that you’re going to send our way. And we just ask that everything that we would do would bring honor and glory and blessing to you. We ask this in your son’s name. Amen.
Sen Hester: Ladies and gentlemen in the galleries, welcome to the Arkansas Senate. It’s our expectation each of you will exercise proper decorum and govern yourself accordingly during today’s proceedings. Without objection, the rules will be suspended and the Senate will dispense with the reading of the journal. The morning hour has now began. Are there any announcements or introductions at this time? Senator Boyd. Senator Boyd, you are recognized.
Sen Boyd: Thank you. I’d like to make a motion to withdraw Senate Bill 39 from Revenue and Tax for the purpose to withdraw from consideration.
Sen Hester: All in favor say aye. Opposed, say no. Motion carries.
Sen Boyd: I’d like to also make a motion to withdraw Senate Bill 39 from further consideration.
Sen Hester: All in favor say aye. Opposed say no. Motion carries. Are there any announcements or introductions at this time? Madam Secretary, are there items at the desk?
Madam Secretary: Yes, sir. We your Committee on Engrossed Bills to whom was referred Senate Bill 7 by Senator King compared the engrossed copy to the original and find the same correctly engrossed.
Sen Hester: Judiciary.
Madam Secretary: We your Committee on Engrossed Bills to whom was referred Senate Bill 8 by Senator King compared the engrossed copy to the original and find the same correctly engrossed.
Sen Hester: Judiciary.
Madam Secretary: We your Committee on State Agencies to whom was referred House Concurrent Resolution 1002 by Representative Eubanks recommend do pass.
Sen Hester: Calendar.
Madam Secretary: Committee on State Agencies to whom was referred House Concurrent Resolution 1005 by Representative Bentley recommend do pass.
Sen Hester: Calendar.
Madam Secretary: Senate Bill 75 by Joint Budget, An Act for the Department of Education Division of Higher Education appropriation for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. Senate Bill 75.
Sen Hester: Joint Budget.
Madam Secretary: Senate Bill 76 by Joint Budget, An Act for the Department of Education appropriation for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. Senate Bill 76.
Sen Hester: Joint Budget. Senator Murdock, you are recognized for announcement.
Sen Murdock: Thank you, Chair. Colleagues, it is my pleasure this morning to present to you our help for the day, our saviors for the day. Dr. G Edward Bryant, ophthalmologist, and he’s from my district in west Memphis. I would like to welcome him. [applause] And our nurse of the day, our nurse of the day, Miss Sherry Bernard, please welcome her. [applause] Thank you, Sir.
Sen Hester: Madam secretary, are there items at the desk?
Madam Secretary: Yes, sir. Senate Bill 77 by Senator Hickey, To amend the laws of the Arkansas Judicial Retirement System regarding a judge or justice’s ability to serve beyond the age of 70 and maintain his or her rights to retirement benefits. Senate Bill 77.
Sen Hester: Retirement.
Madam Secretary: Senate Bill 78 by Senator Hickey, To remove the requirement for member contributions to the judicial retirement system in the event that a judge or justice has forfeited his or her rights to retirement benefits from the system and declare an emergency. Senate Bill 78.
Sen Hester: Retirement. Is there any further business to come before the body in the morning hour? If not, the morning hour has expired. We will start the business agenda. Senator Dismang, you are recognized.
HB 1052, 1056, 1057, 1058: Appropriation bills
Sen Dismang: Quick statement, then she’s going to read them. But yesterday didn’t quite go as smooth as we’d hoped it would. So we’ve got four bills on again. They’re all promotion boards. We’re going to batch those, again, just to kind of test the machine and even our own processes. So with that–
Madam Secretary: House Bill 1052 by Joint Budget, An act for the Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board appropriation for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. House Bill 1056 by Joint Budget, An act for the Arkansas Corn and Grain Sorghum Promotion Board appropriation for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. House Bill 1057 by Joint Budget, An act for the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board appropriation for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. And House Bill 1058 by Joint Budget, An act for the Arkansas Wheat Promotion Board appropriation for the 2023-2024 fiscal year.
Sen Hester: All right, members– sorry, Senator Dismang, you’re recognized.
Sen Dismang: Members I’m going to read each one of these bill numbers. If there’s one that you’d like to have pulled out from the batch for further discussion or to vote separately, let me know. House Bill 1052. House Bill 1056. House Bill 1057. House Bill 1058. All right. So this is a batch.
Sen Hester: Any objections to batching? Any objection to rolling the vote? Senator Flowers, you’re recognized.
Sen Flowers: I don’t have an objection to rolling the vote on batching, but I do have a question on HB 1057. I think it is the Rice Research and Promotion Board.
Sen Dismang: Yes, Ma’am.
Sen Flowers: Does that call for increase in the check-off?
Sen Dismang: No, the promotion amount– or they have plenty of appropriation depending on however they choose to move forward. But this would not have an impact on that. I mean, it would prevent there being special language attached to this appropriation, but there wouldn’t change anything as far as the amount.
Sen Hester: Seeing no objection to batching, no objection to calling the roll, Madam secretary please call the roll..
Madam Secretary: Boyd, Bryant, Caldwell, Chesterfield, Clark, Crowell, Davis, Dees, Dismang, Dotson, English, Flippo, Flowers, Gilmore, Hammer, Hester, Hickey, Hill, Irving, Blake Johnson, Mark Johnson, King, Leding, Love, McKee, Murdock, Payton, Penzo, Petty, Rice, Stone, Stubblefield, Sullivan, Tucker, Wallace.
Sen Hester: Would any member like to vote that has not or change their vote? Seeing none, Madam Secretary cast up the ballot. By a vote of 32 yeas, 2 nays, 1 on leave, the bill has passed. Emergency clause adopted. Return to the House. Is there anything else to come before the body today? Any announcements? I do have one announcement. I was wrong yesterday when I went down to the well. When you are recognized to speak is when you hit your button, and then when you’re done speaking, you will hit your button again. But you don’t hit your button to get recognized, okay? Once whoever is in this Chair recognizes you is when you hit your button to speak. Senator Irvin, you’re recognized?
Medicaid redetermination
Sen Irvin: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Members of the Senate, yesterday in the Public Health Committee, we had testimony from DHS, Medicaid regarding the public health emergency and when that’s going to end and then how everyone in Medicaid is going to be determined for eligibility and that process. I’ve asked them for a timeline and then contacts of who to contact within DHS because we most likely will be getting phone calls from constituents regarding that process. So I will work to get as much information for all of you so that you can clearly answer your constituents that might call you during that time period of re-eligibility determination once the public health emergency ends, which I think is April 1 of this year. So I just wanted to let you know that will be forthcoming and I’ll get that to you to help you answer those questions that you’ll be receiving most likely from your constituents. Thank you.
Sen Hester: Senator Payton, you’re recognized.
Sen Payton: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Members, I don’t think it’s on the calendar yet, but Monday morning at 8:30, the Retirement Committee will be meeting. I left my phone at home, so I can’t give you all the details, but it’s 8:30 Monday, and we have a deadline of next Friday for filing any bills that would deal with retirement. That’s next Friday is the deadline to file any of those bills. But the first meeting will be Monday at 8 30 AM. Thank you.
Sen Hester: Senator Penzo, you’re recognized.
Sen Penzo: We will have a Rules meeting upon adjournment of session Monday.
Sen Hester: Any other announcements? Anyone? Senator Rice, you are recognized.
Sen Rice: Thank you Mr. President. Chairman Flippo’s not here. City County Local will meet in 272 on adjournment.
Sen Hester: Does anyone else need to be recognized? Any announcements? Senator Flowers, you’re recognized.
Sen Flowers: I’m having a hard time hearing. I don’t know if that mic is on there or not. But they need to turn up the volume on it or something because I didn’t hear a word that was said here.
Sen Hester: Noted. We will make sure that’s addressed before we get back in on Monday. Anyone need to be recognized? Any announcements? The Senate will adjourn until 1 o’clock on Monday subject to clearing the desk.