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Committee advances school‑health and accessibility bills, including Healthy Active and facility‑access planning
Summary
The committee passed a package of bills aimed at school health and accessibility: a Healthy Active Arkansas encouragement bill, a modest school‑nursing professional development requirement, and a facilities‑access planning measure to help districts address ADA barriers.
Representative Bentley presented HB 1848 (Healthy Active Arkansas), which asks the Department of Education and the Department of Health to develop non‑mandatory model guidance for schools on increased physical activity, farm‑to‑school reimbursement, school gardens grants, and breastfeeding supports. Dr. Joe Thompson of the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement described the volunteer Healthy Active Arkansas coalition and urged the committee to support model practices rather than mandates.
Representative Julie Mayberry presented a separate bill to ensure at least one registered nurse per campus completes school‑nursing‑focused continuing education during a licensure period; Rhonda Wagner, president‑elect of the Arkansas School Nurse Association, said the two‑ to three‑hour training would be available online and free of charge from state agencies.
Mayberry also sponsored HB 1863 (transcribed in the record as 18‑60‑3), asking the state to provide tools and an online video to help districts identify Americans with Disabilities Act access issues when preparing facilities master plans. Pamela Garner and her daughter Carissa gave personal testimony about inaccessible doors and bathrooms and urged a planning approach rather than immediate costly mandates.
Committee members questioned scheduling and mandate scope; sponsors said the measures were permissive and intended to support local innovations, with grant reimbursement language for farm‑to‑school reimbursements (10 cents per meal) noted in the Healthy Active discussion. Each bill was moved and passed by the committee.
