State lawmakers OK tax cut; social media and transgender pronoun rules for minors

A $124 million tax cut and new requirements for parental approval involving social media sites and transgender pronouns for minors were approved by state lawmakers in Little Rock Wednesday.

Associated Press reporter ANDREW DeMILLO turns his focus to these stories from the Arkansas State Capitol:

Arkansas lawmakers approve $124 million income tax cut plan

Arkansas lawmakers on Wednesday approved a plan by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and legislative leaders to cut individual and corporate income taxes by $124 million a year.

The majority-Republican House approved the legislation that calls for cutting the top individual income tax rate to 4.7% from 4.9%. The bill, which now heads to Sanders’ desk, also cuts the top corporate income tax rate to 5.1% from 5.3%.

The tax cut is poised to take effect as Arkansas’ revenues have come in higher than expected in recent years. The state ended last fiscal year with a record $1.6 billion surplus. The state’s revenue for the fiscal year so far has come in $306 million higher than expected.

“As you know we’re building a sizable surplus, so that’s what that will do, eat into that a bit,” Republican Rep. Les Eaves, the bill’s House sponsor, said before the vote.

State finance officials said that under the proposal, 1.1 million taxpayers who make more than $24,300 a year would receive a cut. Sanders, who took office in January, has called for phasing out the state’s income tax. Over the past several years, Sanders’ Republican predecessor, former Gov. Asa Hutchinson, and the majority-GOP Legislature enacted a series of cuts.

But opponents of the tax cut have said it will disproportionately benefit wealthier taxpayers and comes as other needs in the state have been underfunded in recent years.

“We’re on a reckless path of shifting our tax burden to everyday Arkansans,” said Democratic Rep. Tippi McCullough, the House minority leader. “The more we cut income taxes, the heavier the burden to keep our government up and running.”

The tax cut would cost $186 million in its first year because it will take effect this year, the Department of Finance and Administration said.

Arkansas House OKs social media age verification requirement

Arkansas children would need their parents’ OK to access social media sites under a bill Arkansas lawmakers advanced Wednesday, moving the state closer toward becoming the second to enact restrictions that critics say raise privacy and enforcement concerns.

The majority-Republican House approved by an 82-10 vote the restrictions, which have the support of GOP Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders. The proposal goes back to the Senate, which approved an earlier version of the bill, for one more vote before it can head to Sanders’ desk.

“It is a bill designed to create a level of protection for our young people,” Republican Rep. Jon Eubanks, the bill’s House sponsor, said before representatives approved the measure without any debate.

The proposal is similar to a first-in-the-nation law that Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed last month. Several other states are considering similar measures, touted by supporters as a way to protect children.

Sanders last month announced her support for the Arkansas bill, which would require age verification and parental consent for users under the age of 18. The measure would require social media companies to contract with a third-party vendor for age verification.

The proposals come as parents and lawmakers are growing increasingly concerned about kids and teenagers’ social media use and how platforms affect youth mental health.

“This is just common sense. One ill-advised moment online can mean a lifetime of pain offline,” Sanders said at a news conference announcing the legislation. “Kids are not prepared for that kind of responsibility, and they’re certainly not prepared for the world of dangerous content that big tech companies make readily available.”

The restrictions would only apply to social media platforms that generate more than $100 million in annual revenue. If Sanders signs the measure, it would take effect in September.

Opponents of such restrictions have said the measures raise privacy concerns, noting that it would require any user to verify their age.

“People in Arkansas should not have to hand over their driver’s license just to access free websites,” the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s said Jason Kelley in a statement. “By forcing people to do so, the law essentially stops people in the state from accessing vast parts of the web unless the government approves it.”

Critics have also questioned whether the legislation could have unintended consequences, especially for youth already facing a mental health crisis.

“There are far better ways to solve this problem than legislating the government-mandated collection of sensitive personal information, which could unintentionally limit access to online communities that provide health and education resources and increase opportunities for fraudulent actors to seek sensitive data from consumers,” Ruthie Barko, executive director for the central U.S. for TechNet, a group of technology CEOs and senior executives, said in a statement.

Arkansas Lawmakers OK parental approval for trans student pronouns

A bill that would require parental approval for Arkansas teachers to address transgender students by the pronouns and names that they use was approved by lawmakers Wednesday and is now headed to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk.

The bill was approved by the majority-Republican Senate on a 19-5 vote. It requires parental approval for teachers at public schools, including colleges and universities, to use a minor student’s pronoun that is “inconsistent” with the student’s biological sex or a name that’s not listed on the student’s birth certificate. It also would prohibit schools from requiring teachers to use the pronouns or name a student uses.

The bill is among a wave of bills being considered in statehouses that would formally allow or require schools to deadname transgender students or out them to their parents without consent. Transgender students, who already are at high risk of bullying and depression, have said the measures would make schools feel even more unsafe.

Supporters of the legislation portrayed it as an effort to protect teachers from losing their jobs if they don’t want to use a name or pronoun a student uses.

“What it really comes down to is a teacher protection act,” Republican Sen. Mark Johnson, the bill’s Senate sponsor, said before the vote.

Opponents of the measure, however, said it puts even more of a burden on teachers. Democratic Sen. Linda Chesterfield, a retired teacher, said the restriction removes the “spontaneity” of teaching by making teachers worried about the consequences if they don’t use the name on a student’s birth certificate.

“Birth certificates are not passed around to teachers,” Chesterfield said. “Why would they be? It’s none of my business.”

North Dakota lawmakers failed to override Republican Gov. Doug Burgum’s veto of a similar proposal Monday. Burgum said teaching was a hard enough profession without government “forcing teachers to take on the role of pronoun police.”

Several hundred bills restricting transgender people’s rights have been filed at statehouses this year, and Arkansas has enacted other measures. They include a law signed by Sanders intended to reinstate Arkansas’ blocked ban on gender-affirming care for children by making it easier to sue providers of such care for malpractice.

Sanders has also signed legislation prohibiting transgender people at public schools from using the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity.

Lizz Garbett, of Little Rock, said her 16-year-old son’s teachers have been using the pronouns and name he has used since he came out as transgender in eighth grade. Garbett said teachers using the names and pronouns a student goes by help create a welcoming environment and send a strong message to students.

“It sends a message of ‘You are safe here at school, we love you, now let’s call you whatever you want to be called and get about the business of learning, which is why we’re here,’” Garbett said.

Associated Press