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House passes bill removing certain fiscal-impact and filing requirements for health benefit bills
Summary
The House passed House Bill 1080 to repeal a statutory requirement for fiscal impact statements and a bill-filing deadline for measures affecting state health benefit plans; sponsor said the change was recommended by consultants and will be handled via joint rules and the Employee Benefits Division.
The Arkansas House passed House Bill 1080, which repeals a statutory requirement that certain bills related to health benefit plans carry a fiscal impact statement and removes a filing deadline that had applied to bills affecting state health benefit plans.
Representative Danny Eubanks, sponsor of the bill, said the change was recommended by Segal, the consultant hired to assist the legislature on Employee Benefits Division (EBD) matters, because the requirement had produced unintended consequences such as repeatedly requiring fiscal impacts for institutions of higher education. Eubanks said the bureau advised the requirement belongs in joint rules rather than statute because “one legislature cannot bind another legislature.”
Representative Leonard Lundstrom asked how the House would continue to obtain fiscal-impact information. Eubanks replied that the fiscal impact would still be provided through Segal and that EBD impacts — including effects on state employee and teacher premiums — would be known during budget consideration. The House reported a recorded tally of 97 yays, 0 nays and 0 present, and the bill passed.
The bill removes the statutory filing requirement and delegates processes for fiscal-impact review to joint rules and to the Employee Benefits Division as explained on the floor.
