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Votes at a glance: key Judiciary Committee actions
Summary
The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced several technical and procedural bills by voice votes but did not advance SB 591 (parole consideration for 19–20 year olds) or HB 1896 (add 'asleep' to sexual‑assault law). The list below summarizes motions and outcomes recorded in committee.
Little Rock — During a packed hearing the Senate Judiciary Committee recorded the following actions by voice vote or committee announcement:
- SB 676 (Wallace): Passed by committee (voice vote). Sponsor framed the bill as victim‑focused; committee carried the motion.
- SB 591 (Lelling): Motion to pass failed after extended testimony (committee voice vote; outcome: failed).
- HB 1696 (Crawford): Do‑pass motion passed; bill advances to the next step. The bill authorizes fingerprinting/photography at point of offense for certain misdemeanors and was amended from 'shall' to 'may.'
- SB 652 (Lelling): Do‑pass motion carried; described as cleanup to clarify retroactivity of Act 539 (2017) for non‑homicide juvenile offenders.
- SB 678 (Stubblefield): Do‑pass motion carried; requires background checks (including fingerprints) for new firefighter applicants, with funding sources identified to cover costs.
- SB 698 (Ballinger): Do‑pass motion carried (technical bail‑bonds cleanup).
- HB 1554 (Penzo): As amended to narrow enumerated offenses, do‑pass motion carried. The bill establishes an affirmative defense for trafficking victims in certain listed offenses to encourage testimony against traffickers.
- HB 1896 (Lowry): Committee took no action; the clerk announced the bill failed to advance after extended debate about the scope of 'asleep' as a non‑consent state.
Notes on votes: Most measures were decided by voice vote; the transcript records outcomes but not roll‑call tallies for each measure.
