Senate News

The Senate approved legislation to improve maternal health care in Arkansas, especially in areas where existing medical services are lacking.

The Senate voted to provide all public school children with free breakfast, regardless of their income, beginning in the 2025-2026 school year.

The Senate passed legislation to prohibit discrimination and preferential treatment in state government, public schools and state-supported institutions of higher education.

The Arkansas Senate quickly approved legislation to protect the rights of more than 500 victims of child sex abuse who have already won civil cases and are waiting for their settlements to become official.

The 2025 legislative session got off to a fast start. By the end of the session’s third day more than 200 bills had been introduced.

A $17 million federal grant to improve maternal health care was formally announced a few days before the beginning of the 2025 legislative session.

The legislature’s list of accomplishments in 2024 was highlighted by a $438 reduction in income taxes for Arkansas families and businesses.

The financial health of the state Teacher Retirement System has been steadily improving over the past decade.

Arkansas won a long and hard-fought legal battle against large pharmaceutical manufacturers when the United States Supreme Court let stand a lower court ruling in the state’s favor. The decision means that Act 1103 of 2021 is constitutional and remains in effect.

The state Department of Correction has been in the news recently because of its efforts to build additional prison space, in order to improve public safety. Much less public attention has been paid to the Department’s agency that supervises parolees and people on probation, even though Arkansas has many more offenders out of prison than inside. The number of parolees and probationers is more than triple the number of inmates inside prison walls.