Weekly Updates

The legislature has approved a broad reform of the laws governing water providers, a measure that sponsors have been working on for the past four years.

The legislature voted to extend the 2021 session until April 30, and then to recess for an extended period rather than to adjourn.

The Senate has approved legislation to grant to certified nurse practitioners full and independent practice authority. The nurses would need about three years, or 6,240 hours, of practice under a collaborative agreement with a physician in order to earn the right to practice independently.

The Senate passed a new version of the Medicaid expansion program, which is one of the most important bills of this year’s session because of the number of people it benefits and the amount of money that it generates in Arkansas.

Both chambers of the legislature have approved a bill that prohibits abortions, except if necessary to save the mother’s life in a medical emergency.

The legislature has approved a broad tax relief measure for businesses that were affected by the pandemic.

House Bill 1361 exempts income that people and businesses received through numerous disaster relief programs, such as the popular Paycheck Protection Program.

he deadline for legislators to file proposed constitutional amendments has passed, and the Senate and House Committees on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs will begin narrowing the list that will be placed on the next general election ballot.

Businesses would not be penalized by state regulators for violating Covid-19 restrictions because of the behavior of their customers, under legislation passed by the Arkansas Senate.

The Senate has voted to exempt last year’s unemployment benefits from state income taxes, to help people who lost their jobs because of the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

A Senate committee advanced legislation that protects the rights of people with disabilities who need an organ transplant. Senate Bill 155 also is known as Lila’s Law, after a girl with Down syndrome who in 2018 was denied a potential heart transplant.