Votes at a glance: consumer protections, health measures, education and other bills move through House

The Arkansas House considered and voted on a broad package of bills covering consumer protection, health care, education, public safety and state operations. Many measures passed on near-unanimous votes; a few drew recorded opposition.

The following is a roundup of bills explained on the floor and the recorded vote outcomes as announced by the clerk. Each line lists the bill, a one-sentence description based on floor remarks, the member who explained the measure and the House vote tally that was announced on the floor.

- House Bill 18 20 — Consumer protection (automatic renewal/click-to-cancel rule). Presenter: Representative Brown. Outcome: passed, 94 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 18 26 — Mandated coverage for delivery at licensed birthing centers (insurance). Presenter: Representative Bentley. Outcome: passed, 91 yeas, 1 nay, 2 present. - House Bill 14 26 — Health care contracting simplification amendments. Presenter: Representative Johnson. Outcome: passed, 95 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 17 39 — Adoption of the Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act (electronic legal documents). Presenter: Representative Brown. Outcome: passed, 97 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 13 41 — Amendments affecting Arkansas local police and fire retirement (workers' compensation credit). Presenter: Representative Warren. Outcome: passed, 96 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 13 44 — Corrections to retirement-system employer names and participation; included emergency clause on the board. Presenter: Representative Warren. Outcome: passed with emergency clause, 96 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 18 51 — Sales-tax exemption clarification for food served in public-school and college dining facilities. Presenter: Representative Jean. Outcome: passed, 98 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 16 53 — Licensing and regulation standards for psychiatric residential treatment facilities (PRTFs); emergency clause included. Presenter: Representative Kavanaugh. Outcome: passed, 95 yeas, 0 nays, 2 present. - Motion to expunge the record of Senate Bill 4 43’s failed vote — Presenter/Move: Representative Hawk (motion explained by Representative Hawk and supported by Representative Rose). Outcome: passed, 95 yeas, 1 nay. - House Bill 11 42 — Reproductive Empowerment and Support through Optimal Restoration (RESTORE Act) — Presenter: Representative Brown. Outcome: passed, 79 yeas, 13 nays, 3 present. - House Bill 12 77 — Amend payments for corrective action regarding petroleum storage tanks (deductible adjustments). Presenter: Representative Gramlich. Outcome: passed, 91 yeas, 2 nays, 4 present. - House Bill 18 54 — Exempt previously trained home caregivers from repeat 40-hour training when changing employers. Presenter: Representative Bentley. Outcome: passed, 96 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 11 48 — Arkansas Privacy Act (unmanned aircraft systems and certain image/capture rules). Presenter: Representative Vaught. Outcome: passed, 97 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 18 65 — Enhanced penalties for certain offenses against a child. Presenter: Representative Vaught. Outcome: passed, 95 yeas, 1 nay. - House Bill 18 15 — State jurisdiction and retention of juvenile justice jurisdiction vis-à-vis federal land; filing of reciprocal agreements. Presenter: Representative Perry. Outcome: passed, 97 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 18 24 — "Daisy’s Law" (authorizes temporary securing of a dog or cat by law enforcement in defined emergency circumstances). Presenter: Representative Duffield. Floor debate included detailed questions about standards for seizure, duration of temporary custody, and owner notice; sponsor said the bill was prompted by a local animal-cruelty case and by law enforcement and prosecutors in the district. Outcome as announced on the floor: passed (vote tally as announced on the floor was garbled in the transcript; consult official roll for precise numbers). - House Bill 17 52 — Exempt certain savings and retirement accounts from execution of judgments (clarifies protections). Presenter: Representative Maddox. Outcome: passed, 94 yeas, 2 nays, 1 present. - House Bill 17 63 — Amendments to Human Trafficking Act and unlawful use of communication device during trafficking. Presenter: Representative Underwood. Outcome: passed, 95 yeas, 1 nay. - House Bill 18 33 — Clarify admissions slots and rules for University of Arkansas College of Medicine. Presenter: Representative Shepherd. Outcome: passed, 97 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 18 12 — Amend Arkansas Support and Accountability Act to allow GED tester exception to attendance and adjust GED scoring; allows GED testing while enrolled to reduce dropouts. Presenter: Representative Gramlich. Outcome: passed, 96 yeas, 0 nays, 1 present. - House Bill 18 89 — Allow dispensaries to operate drive-through windows, deliver preordered medical marijuana and modify certain access rules for dispensaries. Presenter: Representative Pilkington. Outcome: passed, 51 yeas, 31 nays, 7 present (first recorded substantive opposition among bills on this calendar). - House Bill 14 98 — Modernize law governing military exchanges for Arkansas National Guard (align with federal practices). Presenter: Representative Painter. Outcome: passed, 96 yeas, 0 nays. - House Bill 15 15 — Updates authority to order Arkansas National Guard into state service; addresses staffing shortages and activation for domestic responses. Presenter: Representative Painter. Outcome: passed, 96 yeas, 0 nays, 1 present. - House Bill 15 26 — Authorize Department of Military Affairs to enter public-private partnerships and clarify gift reporting thresholds. Presenter: Representative Painter. Outcome: passed, 87 yeas, 1 nay, 6 present. - House Bill 16 38 — Update statutory references to include U.S. Space Force across state code. Presenter: Representative Painter. Outcome: passed, 95 yeas, 0 nays. - Senate Bill 3 67 — Repeal of a small-business revolving loan fund for pollution control; reallocation plan described. Presenter: Representative Gramlich. Outcome: passed, 91 yeas, 0 nays, 2 present. - Senate Bill 3 23 — Amend the Horizontal Property Act (condominium/horizontal property regime updates). Presenter: Representative McCollum. Outcome: passed, 93 yeas, 1 nay, 1 present. - Senate Bill 104 — Amend pharmacy benefits manager licensure to protect patient access and regulate PBMs; emergency clause included. Presenter: Representative Bluntstrom. Outcome: passed with emergency clause, 96 yeas, 0 nays. - Senate Bill 4 11 — Amend vehicle height rules and create offense for operation with a modified bumper that dramatically alters bumper heights. Presenter: Representative Holcomb. Outcome: passed, 79 yeas, 8 nays, 8 present. - Senate Bill 4 16 — Repeal of EV infrastructure fund set up in earlier law because federal funds went elsewhere; sponsor said the program has not been funded. Presenter: Representative Shepherd. Outcome: passed, 92 yeas, 0 nays, 5 present. - Senate Bill 257 — Extend Medicaid provider appeal period and require better notice of adverse decisions. Presenter: Representative Lundstrom. Outcome: passed, 95 yeas, 0 nays. - Senate Bill 100 — Recognize physician assistants as eligible primary-care providers under Arkansas Medicaid (does not change PA scope). Presenter: Representative Gramlich. Outcome: passed, 90 yeas, 0 nays, 5 present. - Senate Bill 264 — Establish a Primary Care Payment Improvement Working Group to study insurance spending on primary care. Presenter: Representative Johnson. Outcome: passed, 83 yeas, 7 nays, 6 present. - Senate Bill 391 — Create a robotics competition grant program for eligible student teams; bill authorship noted from students and sponsors. Presenter: Representative Eaves. Outcome: passed, 97 yeas, 0 nays, 1 present. - Senate Bill 365 — Amend small-brewery law to allow three taprooms for a license holder (clarifies taproom purpose is not additional bar). Presenter: Representative McKenzie. Outcome: passed, 54 yeas, 28 nays, 10 present. - Senate Bill 305 — Require testing of processed marijuana products as final products and clarify testing standards and distinctions between products and paraphernalia. Presenter: Representative Pilkington. Outcome: passed, 77 yeas, 4 nays, 8 present.

Context and process notes: floor presenters generally closed debate after offering explanations; many bills passed unanimously or with strong margins. Several bills carried emergency clauses on the floor (examples: SB 104 and SB 3 92 in separate actions). Where the transcript included garbled or inconsistent roll-call numbers (see House Bill 18 24), reporters and record-keepers should rely on the official enrolled bill history and the House clerk’s final roll for authoritative tallies.

Ending: The House adjourned with committee meeting notices and returned to the budget calendar; a number of appropriations and budget items remained active on the yellow calendar for follow-up votes.