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Committee hears bills to restrict 'moral turpitude' exclusions and create review process for licensing denials
Summary
Sen. Garner's SB264 would require licensing boards to list job-relevant felonies, create a five-year limit on using nonviolent convictions to deny licenses, and allow applicants to petition boards for preapproval; state police expressed resource and public-safety concerns and the sponsor agreed to draft amendments.
Senator Garner presented Senate Bill 264, a broad occupational-licensing reform aimed at replacing vague disqualifying standards such as "moral turpitude" with board-level lists of specific felonies that are directly relevant to each occupation. "First, it requires a licensed entity, a board, a commission, or whoever give an occupational license out, to produce rules that list specific felonies that can preclude someone from getting an occupational license," Garner said.
The bill has three primary elements: specificity (boards must list directly related convictions), a five-year timeliness provision after which nonviolent/nonsexual convictions generally cannot be used to deny licensure, and a predetermination process allowing applicants to petition boards in advance to determine eligibility. Supporters framed the proposal as a reentry and workforce measure: Nick Staley of the Opportunity Solutions Project testified that removing licensing barriers would help formerly incarcerated Arkansans find work and reduce recidivism.
Mary Claire McLaren of the Arkansas State Police said the agency supports removing vague language and the pre-review idea, but warned the bill shifts the burden of proof when denying licenses to the agency (raising it from "substantial evidence" to "clear and convincing") and could create untenable investigative workloads. "We deny 2 to 300 applications a year based on their prior felony convictions," McLaren said, and the agency lacks the resources and investigative authority to assemble the evidence the bill would require for each denial.
Committee members raised specific public-safety questions—how to prevent those with repeated breaking-and-entering convictions from receiving security or alarm-related licenses, and whether director-level discretion to approve applicants would be curtailed. Garner said boards would have 120 days to list relevant felonies and that applicants can seek court review of board determinations; he also said he would work with state police and others on amendments and would not seek a vote today.
The sponsor emphasized the bill is intended to preserve employers' and private businesses' hiring discretion while preventing government from permanently barring people from occupations through vague statutory terms. Garner said he would bring amendments addressing the State Police's concerns and return the measure to committee once stakeholders have conferred. No committee vote was taken.
