Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed Tuesday (March 9) a bill that prohibits abortions except in cases involving the health of the mother. The pro-life measure does not have an allowance for abortions in the case of rape or incest.
The bill, SB 6 (now Act 309), sailed through the supermajority Republican state Legislature. With 78 Republicans in the House and 27 in the Senate, the bill met little resistance in either chamber.
Though litigation is expected over the law, without court intervention it would go into effect in Arkansas on Aug. 3, 2021.
Hutchinson had voiced concerns about the measure due to the lack of a provision for rape or incest. In signing the bill, he acknowledged that concern, but it did not stop him from making the bill state law.
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Although the Arkansas General Assembly didn’t meet last week because of severe winter weather, House Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, still commends
Credit Sarah Kellogg
Although the Arkansas General Assembly didn’t meet last week because of severe winter weather, House Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, still commends the amount of progress that the legislature made this week.
While he says the amount of bills that have been filed is down compared to other sessions, he expects those numbers to pick up despite some members contracting the coronavirus earlier in the session.
Even in the midst of working in the House where we have 100 members on the floor every single day, we’ve been very fortunate, Shepherd said. A number of our members are falling into those categories from an age perspective being over 70 or 65, and they’re taking steps to obtain the vaccination. I feel like we’re only going to be in a better position as we move forward.