Committee reports SB 169 do pass; Beatty pulls HB 1511 for member discussion

Representative Jimmy Gazzaway, R-31, told the committee that Senate Bill 169 makes technical grammatical and punctuation corrections to Amendment 51, Section 19 of the Arkansas Constitution, including replacing certain conjunctions and changing periods to semicolons.

Gazzaway said sections 1–3 each make minor grammar and punctuation edits. “That's what the bill does. I'm happy to answer any questions,” he said. No committee members offered questions about the substance, and the committee voted to report the bill do pass by voice vote; the transcript records the chair announcing, “The ayes have it.”

Separately, Rep. Beatty asked to withdraw House Bill 1511 from the day's agenda, saying several members raised concerns and he wished to give members an opportunity to communicate with him. Beatty asked members to contact him one-on-one with concerns; the chair allowed the request without objection and said the bill may be scheduled for next Thursday as time permits. The transcript does not record the bill's subject matter or any debate on HB 1511.

The committee ended the session with housekeeping about upcoming bills to be considered at the next meeting. The transcript does not include roll-call tallies for the SB 169 voice vote and does not show public testimony for either bill at this meeting.