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Committee hears hours of testimony on school‑quarantine and testing measures; one sponsor’s local‑control bill fails while a broader testing/immunity bill wins
Summary
Lawmakers debated competing approaches to quarantine rules, testing and exemptions — including shifting quarantine authority to local school boards, establishing proof‑of‑immunity exemptions, and setting state reimbursement rules for testing — with agency witnesses warning of costs and operational issues; one sponsor’s local‑control quarantine bill failed for lack of a motion, while a related, more comprehensive bill was later passed out as amended.
The committee’s longest discussion centered on several interconnected proposals about school quarantine standards, testing, proof of immunity and state support for required testing.
Local‑control proposal (sponsor identified in transcript as the sponsor of 7‑33): The sponsor urged moving quarantine authority from a top‑down Department of Health/Department of Education approach to local school boards, arguing that students have missed critical instruction and local boards better reflect parental preferences. "If we trust the school board so much for so many different issues... why don't we take down this top down Little Rock approach and instead empower each school board to know what's best for them and their children," the sponsor said.
Public testimony: Parents described children missing…
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