Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee- House

so we're going to get right into the agenda here of without objection I am gonna dress SB one first because some the the presenter has to leave so we're gonna make that adjustment on the agenda. So we're gonna hear SB one first and then we'll go to HB one oh three and in order. So first item we're going to consider is S. B. one representative Wardlaw you're recognized to present your bill thank you Mr same bills yesterday I'd be happy to take any new questions. Single questions your clothes for your bill make a motion do pass. I have a motion to do pass. The discussion on the motion. Second. Seeing no discussion all in favor signify by saying aye. Those opposed nay. Okay here's thank you Mr chair and thank you for the adjustment on the engine. All right committee we're gonna move on and to HB one thousand and four. Representative McCollum. Worse yet. Others. Representative Michael you're recognized to present your bill. Thank you Mr chairman committee is okay if we bring a couple of people up here with us. Yes okay like to ask Dr young in superintendent better come up please. Representative garner dire here today president you just move the bill would please introduce yourself so that we know who your. Hi my name is Dr heather yes skews me. Dr heather young I am a pediatric infectious disease doctor at the masters and control of infectious diseases and I am here representing myself. And I'm going to enter on the superintendent schools in Marion. You're representing the patrons the main school district. Representive you would please introduce yourself this'll. Tippi McCullough representative district thirty three. Denise Garner District eighty four. Thank you representative go you're recognized thank you Mr chair we're here to present HB one thousand four which would simply give local school districts opportunity to determine what's best for their children in their districts I am not a medical expert but I do know that if myself or my family is sick I trust my district doctors a local personal doctor Arkansas children's hospital doctors UAMS another local hospitals and medical experts and I trust them during this pandemic we have world class experts and hospitals in Arkansas and I couldn't tell you whether my personal doctors or Republicans or Democrats. And I don't ask them and I don't think it matters everything I've heard from them tells me that master won the best tools to present to prevent the spread of code and its variants they've been here before us time after time to pass on the data and best practices and I'm grateful for their exhausting work which I think they feel they're called to do. I'm not a medical expert added teaching English and the coach basketball for about thirty three years so I'm here advocating for my school district but also for years to have this flexibility all of our districts are different I'm not advocating that your district do anything but that all just have the option to do what's best for children I know the kids are resilient and adept much better than we do most of the time none of this has been easy on them but I still feel we should default to best medical practices incredible research determining guide the best ways to keep them safe. This is about parents and their children schools and public health the name of this committee is public health not individual health and I don't say that was sarcasm or irony this committees about public health policy and often what is best for us collectively. This is about local control in this is about Arkansas having the fastest codes for the nation because of new delta variant the bottom line is changed since the mass prohibition was passed in the Delta variants growing like wildfire and new school years about start simply not an option right now for children under twelve to get vaccinated we sent a Canary in the coal mine in the form of the Merion school district let's not look back and see that we failed to recognize this warning we're operating under different reality now than we were even four months ago. Hospital capacities over loaded with multiple major hospital shutting down voluntarily I mean voluntary procedures because they're stretched to the Max before school even started especially at children's hospital people are being flown out of state waiting for ambulances are waiting in AR's unattended it's it will get worse somewhat less we listen to our front line medical workers. Parents are concerned summer scared some are have children their health compromised in some way if we can use everything we know that's evidence base to keep kids safe that seems to be the best way to go forward to keep our schools open and now turn it over to a representative Garner. Thank you recognized thank you Mr chairman. most of you I think you know probably that I'm a retired nurse practitioner and because of of that long history I believe in the efficacy of masks however I am not here as a nurse practitioner I'm here as an advocate for District eighty fours six school districts Springdale cable Prairie Grove Elkins West Fork and Greenland. I'm not sure they could be any more diverse than they are culturally economically even physically with some having all grade levels on one campus and some schools spread all over the county. I'm blessed to represent thirty seven thousand northwest Arkansas children with eighteen thousand under twelve. Springdale has twenty two thousand students eleven thousand under twelve Greenland has seven hundred and fifty students with three hundred and seventy five hundred twelve. We've got a large diversity in free and reduced lunch and also special ed students who have of multiple requirements that could. Could be detrimental to that the virus could be detrimental to them. So the thing that they do have in common is that they all know that most students do better when they are in the classroom that they thrive on consistency and the parents need schools to be open to provide that economic stability to their families. This bill allows each individual school district to act independently for the best interest of their students parents and staff. As the pandemic conditions have changed so drastically since we passed this bill. School districts need the flexibility to make these decisions quickly for the health and safety of each of their students. I'm asking that you think about each one of these diverse school districts think about them their communities and let them make the decisions they need to make to make sure that their children their students their staff their families the community is all safe thank you. And I believe our superintendent Dr may have some some updates from yesterday or maybe want to add a couple of things. Mr chairman just wanted to bring you up to speed yesterday when we spoke we had six hundred and seventy one students in quarantine. today we have eight hundred and thirty nine. fairly significant change has been a consistent. Rate of expansion since day one. And all the points that we made yesterday we won't bore you with those again. We're simply asking for whatever tools can be provided to us so that we can keep our students safe and in school. And our past experience indicates that our success in doing so was significantly impacted last year about the utilization of masks we know that makes a difference in our situation. As a man makes a difference and everybody else's but we know that is a key component to us keeping our kids in school and keeping them safe. Chairman and committee members and I don't really actually have much to say after yesterday I am simply here to say again that mass work masker say mass will help keep children in school and in person schooling as long as possible and whatever tools that we can allow school districts to make that decision for themselves using talk with the parents the teachers the superintendent the school board to set your having a conversation on that level we just I'm just asking that barriers be taken away and I'm available people have questions about COVID or mask it's after. Represent the read for questions. The thank you. any questions I've got one here. Representative Gonzalez you're recognized for a question a Mister my questions for the superintendent of the how would I know. It's not about extracurricular activities. Although this is not an affiliated that's about the the the quarantines see you have some or a two hundred new new quarantine so many new cases and how many of those quarantines of the new and existing a work under for twelve and under. Of the ratios been running roughly a third of our students being twelve and under I don't have the latest percentage but that's percentage the about that but it's State hovering around since we started I don't expect that is changed of that's an increase in seven Students testing positive and. Three for staff testing positive in the problem with that whole process is if you follow the protocol for the quarantine it takes doesn't take a large number of cases to generate a significant number of quarantines. And we're simply again following the guidelines from the department of education and health and how we quarantine of students follows yes you read on the guidelines what we're hearing that this is a more contagious version so head of the number of. Contacts that have to be quarantine has that changed or house of those guidelines changed at all from. I guess the previous school year to to the school year that are causing more to go into quarantine no not that I'm aware of okay. Okay thank you. Representative Alan you're recognized. Thank you Mr chairman I have a comment and then I will follow up with a question. Nine years ago. I made a decision to go to the council treatment centers of America. And after. Each one of my treatments and I've been doing it now for nine years ago that I once a month almost nine years coming up on my one hundredth visit. So I have actually been wearing a mask. For nine years. And after my treatment after chemotherapy radiation and the treatment that I have the doctors will tell you this we can do all we can. To help you stay alive here. But there are some things that you don't have to do yourself. And one of the things that you don't have to do is make sure that you wear a mask on the airplane well mass for the next two or three days because your new system is down and I asked my doctor also will will mask make a difference. He's a friend. The mass that you wear. Will be the difference between you live in. And that. So I made a decision that I was gonna wear a mask and I can remember getting on the plane. You will look at me as if I had leprosy or something. Now if you get on a plane. You don't have a masco you get the same look that I was getting several years ago so. Mask is not. Of any of the people. A mass should be considered a tool of the people something that our kids can use. To protect them if we can protect counsel patients it can protect our kids would you agree. If you are asking me for my medical opinion yes I completely agree. Thank you. Senate Ferguson you're recognized yeah I have a motion Mr chairman we heard like three and a half hours of testimony yesterday so I guess my motion would be to allow people who did not have an opportunity to testify yesterday to go first so if you testified yesterday if you would like let all these new testimony scope first that would be my motion. The smelling motion. Sir discussion here. The discussion on the motion. Representative pain you're recognized thank you Mr chair it sounds like a good idea with one cabbie out I'd like to clarify that is. As long as we can still go with a for and against. You know alternate between the for and against because we may run into one side or the other that has testimony from yesterday or the other side still his first testimony so. Thank you yeah we'll try to stay to that simply. No that's fine. Sure these people's for three and four. Okay any other discussion on the motion. Seeing none all in favor signify by saying aye. All opposed nay. Hi seven motion carries. So we'll start with those folks and did not speak yesterday as best we can tell by the signage thank you will thank you. So. All right folks I tell you what I want to do Representative Ferguson made a good suggestion I'm going to start at the top of the list I'm going to call your name if you spoke yesterday please be honest and tell me that you did and then we'll pass over come back to you so first on the list against the bill doctor bill Smith. You would come to order. Dr Smith if you would introduce yourself and who you represent. Doctor bill Smith a chiropractor in the Fort Smith and I'm area of practice for fifteen years I started in Chicago on moved to five Fayetteville and then recently just opened up and I'm I got my bachelor's degree at the university of Illinois at Chicago now my doctor at the national university of health sciences and a. Hi as your record or something you're recognized speak. So. We're here debating whether or not we should keep our children safe I think we can all agree on that we want our children to be safe. And we've heard a lot about whether or not the mass work. Do they work do they not work we're hearing it from both sides I know there's a lot of confusion about whether or not mass working yeah we can come up here all day and then hear both sides and you guys will just get a little bit more confused so I'm going to bypass the effectiveness of the mass on the going to some statistics are as to the deadliness of this disease in our population. So since the beginning of the corona virus pandemic in Arkansas this was for directly from the CDC's website or Kansans have died at a rate of two hundred and two per one hundred thousand individuals. Now can anyone tell me what death rate that is. Very very small the survival rate is actually ninety nine point seven nine eight percent. Now for the last seven days with this delta variant that's been around you would expectations to be up and that would be followed by increases in deaths. I currently according to the CDC our death rate in Arkansas is eighteen per one hundred thousand. Currently we have a survival rate of ninety nine point nine eight two percent that's for the general population. No children Arkansas different story and that's what we're here to talk about. So how many children have died in Arkansas from covid. Does anyone know. Short answers to. Three updated three. Three children anyone know how many children there are in the state of Arkansas. And I'm not saying three is up please keep your romance now and let the let the gentleman speak go ahead Sir. So three out of six rotary about seven hundred thousand children in the state of Arkansas. The survival rate for children if the contract covid currently is that ninety nine point nine nine nine seven percent. Is this something we should be worried about. That's my question if we were worried about everything that had a ninety nine point nine nine nine percent survival rate where would be be. The data just tells us that sure children die we don't want any children to die well to what extent do we affect the rest of the children in the population and their mental and physical health. I have a study to present from Germany they actually did a study on children and the effects that the mass how will the mental and physical and emotional well being of children and this was an enormous study the study twenty six thousand children in Germany and doctors reporting to a database they had parents reporting to a database and the effects of wearing the mask or shocking. I will go over those percentages here. So some of the symptoms that children were getting in the study of twenty six thousand children. Fifty three point three percent were experiencing headaches forty nine point five percent were experiencing concentration difficulties. Forty two point one percent were experiencing discomfort thirty eight percent were experiencing impairment and learning. Thirty six point five percent we're experiencing drowsiness and tiredness. Thirty five point six percent were experiencing tightness under the mass. Twenty nine point seven percent we're experiencing a feeling of shortness of breath. Twenty six point four percent we're experiencing dizziness. Eighty two point seven percent we're experiencing drying that. Seventeen point ninety four percent were experiencing an unwillingness to move an unwillingness to play. Seventeen point one percent were experiencing itching in the nose. Sixteen point nine percent we're experiencing nausea. Fourteen point seven percent we're experiencing a feeling of weakness thirteen point five percent were experiencing abdominal pain. Twelve point two percent were experiencing accelerated respiration. Nine point seven percent were experiencing a feeling of having a disease. Eight percent were experiencing tightness in the chest seven point eight percent were experiencing flickering in the eyes. Five point six percent were experiencing tachycardia and stumbling heart. Four point five percent we're experiencing noise in the years. Two point two percent were expressing short term impairment of consciousness or fading spells. One point nine percent we're complaining of vomiting. And parents were asked if they notice changes in their children these are responses from the parents point of view. Sixty point four percent of parents said their child was more often irritated than usual. Forty nine point three percent said the child is less cheerful. Forty four percent said child no longer wants to go to school. Twenty nine point two percent so the child is more restless than usual thirty one point one percent so the child sleeps worse than usual. Twenty five point three percent so the child has developed new fears. Twenty five percent said the child sleeps more than usual. Fifteen point five percent said the child plays less. An eight point six percent so the child has a greater urge to move than usual. Now we're here to talk about the safety of children. We have a virus that has a ninety nine point nine nine percent survival rate among children yet we see huge percentages of children who are experiencing health issues and mental and physical health issues. No what's the cost. Sure we want to save every child that we can but what's the long term emotional and mental damage that we are causing to these children back because and wear a mask first four and a half to six hours a day sometimes even longer. We have to consider these factors. The other thing that I want to consider these cases these cases are based on a lot of them are based on PCR test. This PCR test the document was released from the FDA. On how to use the PCR test and other documentation I'll just read directly from them. Rather than trying to. Restate. This is for analytical performance so that they can calibrate the PCR test this is what it says. From the CDC and the FDA since no quantified virus isolates of the two thousand nineteen and co were available for CDC at the use of for use at the time the test was developed in this study conducted assays designed for detection of the two thousand nineteen in cope an army were tested with characterize straw stock of in vitro transcribe full links earning. And you can look this up the virus that they used its engine bay is an international database for viruses the genbank accession number is in an nine zero eight nine four seven point two. Well I looked up. Virus. And would you believe. That is not sars cove to. That virus. Directly from genbank. Is the Wuhan seafood market pneumonia virus. The virus that source close to that the FDA and the CDC could not provide for calibrating the PCR test. Is in CD underscore zero four five five one two. Why did they not calibrate the PCR test. With sars CO two. Why did they calibrated within one seafood market mamanya test. Pneumonia virus excuse me. These are questions that need to be answered because it for testing people for a different virus and sars cove to. Are we making the right decision with these quarantines. First of all. Is this something that we should be as scared of. The other thing that we should consider we should consider making it a parent for every lab. To tell us how many cycles are running on the PCR test. I have a direct quote from Dr Fauci that anything over thirty five cycles in the PCR test is a junk test. So every law needs to be transparent for running over thirty five cycles on every PCR test we're gonna get more than ninety percent false positive or false negative results. We need to know what we're dealing with we need an accurate test. We're gonna have huge case numbers but not followed up with extreme numbers of deaths maybe there's a problem with the test. And in fact. The CDC came out on Jan or July the twenty first two thousand twenty one. And Senate after December thirty first two thousand twenty one the CDC is withdrawing the request to the U. S. FDA for emergency use authorization of the two thousand nineteen novel coronavirus real time PCR diagnostic panel. My question to you. If this test is going to be thrown out at the end of the year. Are we still using it. Can anyone tell me that. And it's the same with the rapid test from a Nova. The rapid test of the emergency use authorization is being revoked. By December thirty first you can no longer use the rapid test. Something's wrong with our testing. We're in the middle pandemic and we don't have an accurate test. This is a problem so all these cases in our schools in our state. How can relate we rely on the results if we're relying on a test that's going to be revoked at the end of the year. Sir yes you get a little off the subject you know we're talking about mass. That the masks the reason why we want to do these massive because we see this great increase in the rising cases is that correct. What we did not have a spike in cases would we be here having this discussion today. Well that's an opinion but it's not an opinion the fact is if we have zero because we would not be having amassed discussion let's go back to the mask please. So to go back to what I was talking about. Children we need to consider children's emotional. In mental health in addition to the physical health. Is the benefit of having children wear masks. It doesn't outweigh the risk to their emotional and mental well being in our schools. And should not decision remain with the parents. Not with the authoritative government who tells our parents what they can and cannot do. In my opinion change the parents still know what's best for their children and I think that's the best majority of our cans in the state we need to trust our parents to make proper healthcare decisions for their children. And if your parents as a parent. You want to have you can't wear a mouse to school by all means have the word N. ninety five masks that which works much better than a cloth masks or surgical masks. Actually the most effective mass would be a forced air respirator. Shall we go to that that that would protect them better than anything. What industry standard sure we sat for masks. Everybody come to school with their own mask. And we can't control children's actions we cannot control whether they put their hand to the face how often they're washing their hands if the folder Mastella cough or sneeze. These are many factors that we have to consider so it's not just about a mask it's about controlling the actions of these children. Are we at that point. Her we're ready to say. We're in charge of these children charging these parents we know what's best we're gonna make the decision for them. I don't think that's place for lawmakers. We need to trust our citizens our parents. We do have a question for you. The representative Alan you're recognized for a question thank you Mr chairman doctor patient to come in appreciate your past you very passionate about what you believe in what you made a statement early on that we only had three this in the State of Arkansas when it comes to kids is that correct that's the data so far okay if we have one which agreement one death is too many. Any child any child who passes away is a tragic event but the question is can we prevent every childhood death that's the question. Okay follow. Yeah you're right you you quoted a study from Germany could you tell me the source of that study yes I have this study right here. Is this from the university of a whipping and Pendek. In Germany. Okay file photo question one more five I wish I was read the article early on from Arkansas on contract associations yes and one of the things that they say it early home is that when the virus wills has subsided and we opened back up and they were encouraging people to wear a mask in the doctor's office. Will you follow that guideline beach did show patients have to come in we'll masco is either yes or no the it you know. We do not enforce any mass mandates within my office none of my patients became sick not and this is for Smith mandates. Deter paces. Wear a mask in office. No after they saw that I did not requirements they do not wear masks and my office okay thank you. All right seeing no more questions thank you for your comments thank you. The is a. Please do not interrupt the Speaker please do not applaud or respond to the Speaker we don't normally allow that in committee room so. Please do not do that. Speaking for the bill. Casey Greene a mispronounce your name there. Okay education Casey okay he would come forward. Thank you. If you would please introduce yourself and who you represent thank you Mr chairman my name is Casey Greene and I represent myself. You're recognized. Thank you. I'm a mother of two boys and they attend Klasky heights elementary in the little rock school district my husband and I were both born and raised in Little Rock. And I wanted to show you two pictures of my voice. In their masks they picked out for this upcoming school year. I also want to show you these pictures. With Michael the closer so we can hear you can you thank you. This is the picture of my first grader. When he was born. He had a collapsed lung when he was born and had to stay in the queue at UAMS. Throughout his life he struggled with his breathing when he gets a cold. His breeding. Struggles and we worry about pneumonia. When he gets allergies he has trouble breathing and we worry about Monia. He uses an inhaler during these times and we have to watching very closely. What we hope this is something that gets better with age. It's a real concern right now the thought of him getting COVID terrified. He attended school in person for three of the four nine weeks last year. He did not have been. His brother did not get covid. He had a great school year he learned how to read with his friends with his teacher in person. Everyone was masked. I credit the success of last school year to our wonderful administrator the teachers and the staff who were able to enforce that masking. Masking works. We currently have a high level of community transmission. And there are three things we learned this past school year. Kids can get sick very sick from covid. Kids can spread over just as effectively as adults can. In masking and social distancing work. Masking works best when everyone is masked not just the people who choose to send their students to school and mass. We do not want to end up back here my family does not. Lots of other families do not. I'm here to respectfully ask you to please let us protect our kids this year. Let us protect all the kids who were similarly situated. That's all I have Mister chairman. Seeing no questions thank you for your comments maybe it's used. Yes. Brock Thompson. You would come board. To speak against the bill. If you would please introduce yourself and who you represent. The server my name is Brock Thompson I represent myself and my family. Goodness thank you. You know it's tough I was here for the first time yesterday as a system of Arkansas born and raised you know most of us work and we leave it up to our legislators to you know do the right things and you know over the last couple years I realized that you know we have to pay attention more and it's our responsibility as citizens to do our fair share and to educate inform ourselves I think it's up to each individual's personal freedom to if they want to mask then they mask if they want to wear a bubble they can wear bubble if they don't they don't we were still in free country I hate that people are sick I hate the people you know we're going to the hospital and I hate that people dot. In two thousand eighteen. I had you know kind of a weird thing happen to me personally and was sick so I went to my doctors and you know we all trust will trust our doctors they went to medical school and you know unfortunately you know some of the doctors got As and some of them you know maybe got these and and so it's our job as you know citizens to figure out you know who got the As and who got the disease and try to figure out what's the best so so back to my story I was sick for two months long story short in the bed for two months nauseated a whole bunch of stuff and I went to about seven different doctors and no one could figure it out and so called my health insurance and they wouldn't allow me to go out of network I mean come back to what I'm saying this if you bear me a little. So I know going to a what what people call functional Dr integrative medicine and you know I got that. and so I went back to my insurance company I said you know I try to follow the rules I try to do everything that you know your network told me to do and I didn't get better and so I had to go outside of the network Hey myself out of pocket and and so the reason I bring that up is within two weeks I was better. The reason I bring that up is every doctor is practicing they're they're practicing they're doing the best job they can that they are god but they they are educated but they don't always get it right and that doesn't mean that they're not trying so with the mask mandate you know like I said was here yesterday I heard a lot of for a lot against and you know I I'm here for freedom of America and I'm free that you know people wear mask I I find it kinda interesting that kind of the mask people it's got a one side the unmasked people got on the other side I didn't know to go talk to the mask people because I didn't because you know I'm not wearing a mask I didn't want to you know insult them and so you know it's it's this slippery slope there were in to say you know I respect I respect you I respect you want to wear masks the the the lady up here obviously her our children have you know been in tough situations and and I I respect that and and I wouldn't want that for anything so I would be the last one to to want to have a mask or not wear a mask that got her kid in fact but I'll tell you to other examples is number one my my kid I have three kids two of them are out one I'm still in public schools or was and last year pulled amount that education was difficult the maschine was headaches and this is great as it is trying to break through that all day and every day we pulled out of school and so for the first time in my life out of all three markets we sat on home school. Never thought never public school all the way including my including myself and so we we put our in home school so this whole debate everything we we made the decision just through this last summer there were a home school again so I pulled her out of public schools my wife and I. And decided what we're going to do what's best for us because wherein amassed last year just it didn't work out of the other example I want to bring up is my sister was in another state and they're masking up she has a six year old that have had a mask well all summer that they're out of school she's been fighting something on the six year old face and then to the dermatologist it's try this cream try this other cream if it's not going away and so obviously it's a mask something that they can't figure out what it is and and so you know I I think back to our liberties and our freedoms and I don't want to tell somebody I want to tell these individuals as smart as they are that they have to not wear a mask. Because I mean I mean that's what I'm saying is they should have their opinions and they should be able to say what they want to say and do what they want to do what's for the best interests of them their family their kids I heard a gentleman yesterday that said family members in my community don't feed their kids and I think that's awful but I think that that community it's got that challenge. Legislators should bring people together and figure out how to help those parents but I can tell you most majority of the parents in the state of Arkansas have a pretty good idea of what's in the best interest for their kid and and I for one representing my kids. To make you feel at. So this so I think that sorry lost my train of thought so ultimately you know I think we should be able to choose I love the fact that our legislators came together and said you know what we're not gonna ask anybody I do own a little small business and we're still up to freedoms were up to choice if they want to wear a mask or not wear a mask it's entirely up to them that's all I have to say I thank you for the opportunity and appreciate time we do have one question the will and answer yes Sir. Representative Alan you're recognized okay thank you Mr you mentioned early on that is up to individuals. Each individual is that correct is a question yes Sir I think it's when it comes to wear a mask I think it's up to the individual parents of the children yes okay do you wear a seatbelt. I do okay do you have car insurance. Your car insurance yes Sir. Yes. I do drive spielen I can't answer the. I mean are you on this. Hi Allen it is zero point. Are you on the subject yeah I I understand you're saying okay yeah you got have insurance guy stay within speed limit you know I hear your journey of ten years I applaud you for that effort and and you got to do what's best for you I see that you're not wearing a mask right now and right here to you know to speak to you what. Well I I appreciate that and and I'm glad that you have that right to be able to do that. Thank you yes Sir all right saying no more questions thanks for your comments thank you Sir. Eight a Jennifer Womack. I can't read the last name yes okay if you would come forward please. To speak for the bill. They are trying to. Okay. And please introduce yourself and who you represent I'm sure you can get a much better job than I am so thank you Sir I'm Jennifer way back to Standard for I'm an attorney and with the long history of practice I practice and Buttonville now and I own my own business there in my former employment I've had the pleasure to serve this body M. and it's a pleasure to be here for you and in my personal capacity to speak on behalf of this bill I do want to note I'm I have signed up to speak for both this bill and representative maybe Arie's bill I'm not gonna ask to speak twice I think my comments are appropriate for both and I just want you to know that that would this will be my time for both I don't want to keep you here longer than recognized thank you. So this is my son with he's six years old he is a healthcare right now we at we had a rough week last week where and he was running a fever we went to two doctors visits we had negative COVID test negative flu test we kept him home we kept him off the poll we kept him away from adventure club which is his Public School Ryan summer care program and and we were clear to go back to school this morning he he does have an ear infection and this morning we got school we realized he was he clocked in at ninety ninety nine excuse me so less than half a degree greater than our normal temperature and as you all know anyone who's had kids knows hard play can do that ear infections do that we've actually been to a doctor who's told us what's doing that but he was not admitted into the program this morning and and because of that I cancel my day and I work in my husband works and we love our teachers and we love our school system and we love what they do for education purposes but I don't think it's fair to ignore the child care requirements that that we need and there is a child care aspect that is I think appropriate public policy for schools and now to Bentonville schools credit when we emailed an appeal that of course it went up the chain and the administration that was involved with adventure club said bring him on we understand should have been turned away but at that point I don't I cancel my day and because I couldn't work I thought it was a great day to come down and talk to you. M. I believe the schools and hospitals to stay open I just do and I think that that is a really valid job for our government to be involved in I I need you to help us to keep them open because I work and my husband works and when he's not at school and he's with me I'm not making money and that means we're not going to restaurants we're not by local we're not spending our money where we need to be spending that because we're decreasing the cash flow comes in our house you need to be driving your economy and I need you to help me do that. When we're talking about masks it is the most minimally intrusive request you can make of parents and students to slow the spread of the virus and the variance we are not asking for mandatory vaccinations we are not asking for shut downs I'm begging you not to shut whatever you do all we are asking you and I'm not asking for this to be permanent in fact if you came to me and offered me a bill that mandated mask for everyone in our community I would lose my mind would be up there screaming about it because I don't think that's the job of the General Assembly for me. What what I am looking for from you is I just need you to allow my local school board to look at the numbers in my community look at outbreaks when they come up and be able to respond in a way that keeps him in school. Because people are scared whether it's valid or not valid there are normal people at the door taking the temperatures of these kids and they're nervous and they have a lot riding on this I don't blame the woman that said that he couldn't come in this morning she's worried about her job and she's worried about the health and safety of the other kids I understand the difficulty that their end but the problem is that the law as it exists now with the prohibition on the mass is tying the school district hands behind their backs and it's preventing them from appropriately and in a very limited way responding to health and safety issues that they see and when that happens they over react and that's what I need to avoid I need us to find a measured middle of the ground approach to how we handle what's going on in. That that doesn't mandate anything for anyone that just gives our local school boards to understand this the control to be able to to assess problems and respond to. And so I I am speaking on behalf of both of the bills of hobbyists late and I think I like leaving local control with local control I would hope that we would not have them. any it is as few restrictions on their ability to make these decisions and determinations themselves because the the worst case scenario for me is the scenario that I'm concerned about where perhaps with every very enter every change to what's going on now we have to call a special session and bring all you guys back so that we can adjust the law and and figure out what fits that point so I would like for our school boards have full local control over this that being said if you need restrictions on it if you need it to say it's because I can only do it when it's this many people and in this community if that's what you need to get it passed and be comfortable with that so be it I I understand that this this is about compromise and finding a place in the middle not whether we're right or wrong it's how do we protect everyone. and and in that I just thought my plea to you is that you help me to keep this kid where he needs to be in school. So thank you if you have any questions I'm happy to take them. US seeing no questions thank you very much for your comments thank you. Emily brown to speak against the bill would comport. Please introduce yourself the represent hi there my name is Emily brown how are you I represent myself and my family you're recognized thank you okay. I'm a parent of two kids I'm a former special education teacher and have my masters in special education I became an advocate for dyslexia after my children became curriculum casualties due to Arkansas schools not teaching them to read and dismissing their dyslexia diagnosis from my experience in the horrific literacy data the Arkansas school system has constantly felt many children in this state. Pre that our scores are completely pathetic and then it just got horribly worse after that. Masking children with learning disability puts kids at a double disadvantage to learn to read one in five children have dyslexia which is twenty percent the population and then another twenty to twenty five percent have other disabilities. As applicants we have worked countless hours to pass new literacy laws and I'm sure you off all work with this and I thank you for that. These new literacy laws included a sound board in the classroom where teachers messy the child's face the teacher must move her mouth or his now as a child is learning the same way they cannot learn to read when their faces are good when their faces are covered children cannot learn to read that way that is why we pass a new literacy law. How do you expect them to learn to read when they can't understand the sounds that the teacher is making. School boards deciding to enforce masking and being in charge of our children's health is a civil rights lawsuit in the making not to mention violating the Americans with disabilities act if your school board mandates my disabled child to wear a mask I'm going to hold you liable for the physical abuse the physical abuse and educational regression forcing children to mass can cause lung issues such as asthma or as being chronic migraines we saw this data from the floor to study they all talked about forever yesterday. I also know this first hand because my child's been her mast year in the nurse's office with chronic migraines along with other health issues which have turned it in turn have been traumatizing it expensive to treat. Just like see a mask and limited oxygen is dangerous to the developing brain we can't reverse this long term psychological damage we're doing to these children not to mention teenage suicide is on all time high. Kids deserve to breathe fresh air using their god given immune system there is no scientific evidence that proves masks actually work parents should be in charge of these decisions not school boards it is unconstitutional to allow parents to be in charge of their child's health and freedom to breathe I'm sorry it is unconstitutional to not allow parents to be in charge of their child's freedom and breathing. I'm advocating for all children to be mass free in the school year okay I want to leave you with this. We did this for your parents that for a year we are no longer complying we are not going to comply I have a teenager were not they're not going to comply to these mass mandates okay so let me ask you this. Before covid and our two thousand eighteen two thousand nineteen statewide reading rates. We're so pathetic third grade in LRSD sixty one percent of kids can't read on and they're great. Okay so you get to tenth grade in that district sixty seven percent of kids not on reading level. Okay so that's just before covered. Hello Mister brown. North Little Rock. Sixty eight percent of the entire school is not on reading grade level. I mean I don't know about y'all that that's a pandemic to me and let's go over to pine bluff. Eighty six percent of third graders cannot read. So. We started off in terror in the in the bottom of the intent with literacy we put in the new laws signs of reading. Now we're covering the faces of these children and they cannot comprehend or understand anything that's going on a classroom. After covid. Twenty twenty to twenty twenty one ACT aspire statewide reading rates you all know this already. Our third graders are at sixty nine percent not reading. So we're going we're getting worse. We're getting worse. Okay let me go back to another district before I the firm done. North Little Rock after Kevin seventy five percent of kids are not reading on grade level. Sure you all have kids in the schools should be very concerned districtwide for PC SST seventy three percent are not reading. After covered. Eighty seven percent of our children are not reading. So we're going to go back and mask on these kids. In you're gonna end up at zero percent. You're in a busy row do you would do we really want to stop kids from learning to read because clearly we've been doing it for years and we're not going anywhere. The backwards. Mask should be up to the parents not up to the school boards the school boards can't even get the reading done. Do you have any questions for me I do have one question yes Sir representative Ferguson recognized for a question well I'm I might just ask I think cause and effect are not always what you're suggesting don't you think that maybe the reduction in reading scores or more due to virtual learning in kits not being in school than wearing a mask I think it all in all matters I mean I think the numbers that are you can't argue with this data well I know but it's about kids missing school and if we're having a quarantine like Marion eight hundred kids there if they're not in school they're not real learning either. Well they're definitely not learning now. K. Singh no other questions thank you for your comments thank you Sir. Sonya. That the silly and I'm sure is that up if you would please come forward. To speak for the bill. And if you would please introduce yourself and who you represent. So you're fine to sell or represent myself. You're recognized can you hear me OK with my full Mike little closer if you can. Thank you. So like I said my name Sonia on a sale on here today is a very pregnant. Concerned mother of children that are in eligible for the vaccine. and attend public school. I grew up in and then the current resident of Greene County Arkansas my children are going to start school Greene County tech in just over a week. I'm an attorney by profession and grateful to live in the United States and in Arkansas as the daughter of Cuban immigrants who fled communism I say that to express my sincere gratitude for the ability to be here and expressed my concerns and in the granted my gratitude to this body for reconsidering the current prohibitions on schools to make a decision at the local level. My father is also robust acted physician in Greene County who I go to for advice on how to protect my children and my unborn child. From this current pandemic. His professional medical advice to me. And to others in my family and friends is to make sure that my children were mask in school. My children more than last year. And they didn't complain or protest. Did they want to know do I want them to have preferred that they didn't have to. But was it a big deal no it wasn't. And. That I've spoken to so far are concerned and they want the local district that they have their local school board that they've elected to have the authority to follow the advice of professionals in their own community and the and other experts. I respectfully ask this body to return local control to our school districts. I've reached out to my local school board to express my concerns but their hands are tied right now. I respectfully ask you to listen to the medical professionals see the writing on the wall with how this pandemic is already affecting Merion school district which isn't very far from Greene County. And return local control to the school districts. If you don't I fear for my children. I fear that they're going to spend more time out of school. And I fear for my unborn baby girl. You may be unnecessarily subjected to covid because of other students around my children. It also just like to add that my son and my son is dyslexic also and he requires intervention that he receives through the school district. And not having that in person intervention with his teachers in the school district is what is going to be detrimental to him. He's doing very good now I'm really proud of him but. Those are the type of kids that need to be in school. And the teachers have the teachers and the students are modifying things to be able to get it done as best they can. Given back to local control they need to do what they need to do to protect all of our kids thank you. Thank you for your comments. Pamela burnt you would come forward speak against the bill. Please introduce yourself and who you represent yes hello my name is Pam burns I'm a registered nurse here in the state of Arkansas I'm also a mother a wife and a grandmother and I'm speaking on behalf of myself and my family you're recognized as you probably can tell from how I speak I'm I'm not a native our cans and but I have lived here for over twenty years I love the natural state and I love the people here. So I just wanted you to know that. I am here to speak against a mask mandate because I don't believe that. The people who sat on school boards have the ability to. Make the decision on children's health and you've heard other people testify especially the the doctor. All regarding how masking children can affect their growth development and their psychological well being. So. I am vehemently against this bill. And I would like to reinforce of also what we said earlier about the CDC document that lays out the fact that the. COVID virus has never been isolated or purified. Which is step one in developing a vaccine. Because unless you isolate the organism and you purify it and you subjected to a test call cokes postulants. You have no basis on which to develop a vaccine and I want to take you back to pre covid these. When we were having you know thousands of cases of seasonal flu. Now think to when the COVID epidemic started all of a sudden the there were no cases of seasonal flu how could that happen. To me that makes no sense. So all I'm saying is that I think in all of our dialogue and I respect everyone who's spoken. I think we need to go back to the drawing board and ask ourselves the question. Where is the proof that COVID nineteen exist and if you read that document that the doctor slated for you. You will see that the PCR test was not based on a real world I select. It was based on a computer generated model. So what I think we need to do and what I respectfully ask you to do is to. Request that the Arkansas office secretary of health provide the evidence of the existence of this covid. Nineteen virus and perhaps then we could move on and make an informed decision of where we need to go. But I'd like to reiterate I am very much. Against masking our children I think it's violence against the children. Thank you. I do have one question represented Ferguson recognized. Yes I'm right here where right right in front of you at the front of the right of you all yes I mean at I mean I'm sorry that you've been fed misinformation everything you and the doctor had to say it is absolutely debunked not scientific information I'm pretty from the CDC site right now it says the COVID to the stars CoV two virus that causes COVID nineteen was isolated in the laboratory and is available for research and scientific and medical community of codes was laboratory was growing the virus in the sale culture is ensuring that is widely available for research and scientific and medical community and all the masking promotion that has been devoted to it is absolutely just I don't know if you're getting it from the internet but it's just junk science. Well I appreciate I appreciate what you're saying but I disagree. And to my comments were based on hours of research. So again I'm telling you it is not scientifically valid I don't know where you're getting the information but this is just the internet junk science it's being regurgitate it over and over again to all these people and it is I'm reading from the CDC site it is not true I would be happy to share that link that I have so that you can look at the document that I decided is it from a pub med scientific data source or is it from the internet the link directly off the CDC site at well I'm just rage out the CD site site and it said it is grown in the lab and available for its I don't I don't want to argue because that's not why I am here but perhaps we're looking at two different documents and maybe if we each looked at the other we might come to some sort of meeting of the minds I'd be happy to do that. Thank you thank you for your comments. A. Your motion. Many in. We representative Gonzalez you're recognized thank you Mr we've heard hours of testimony on these masking a don't think that we're hearing a whole lot of anything new thank those like we're just going over the same stuff of like to make a motion to to end debate. Representative Gonzalez I respect that but I don't think it will take the motion we get too many people signed up. So we're gonna we're gonna move on. Christians snark mispronounce that. Speak for the bill. Good. Good afternoon my name is Kristen Stewart. Yes I'm representing myself you're recognized thank you thank you for allowing me to testify today I am the mother of two boys in the little rock school district my son will begins middle school this year and my son been is going into the second grade. Dated virtual all that six weeks last year. I felt okay to send them the last final weeks with a mask mandate in place and community cases dropping due to the vaccinations. I'm a single parent and it was very hard to oversee virtual school for two boys while working full time. But I made every sacrifice possible thinking it was the best interest of not only my boys and my family but also our community. I also believe that it would only be one year at most. The world may be different now for adults who can get vaccinated. But it is much worse for kids under the age of twelve now than it has ever been so far in this pandemic. There are more cases the virus is affecting more kids and it's affecting kids more severely and the school boards do not have authority to issue mass mandates and protect the kids that are too young to be vaccinated. The last statistic I heard was that Arkansas children's hospital has seventeen kids admitted to the hospital with COVID with seven in the ICU and five on ventilators that's just right across the street from where we are. Just yesterday an eleven year old girl and West Memphis died from complications of COVID nineteen. That's the same age as my oldest son. Not only do I worry about kids contracting co but in our schools and bringing it home to vulnerable family members. I worry about these children having long haul COVID issues. I know our health care system is exhausted and nearing capacity. To not only care for those who contracted COVID but those who need other lifesaving care. I've heard heartbreaking stories from friends about not being able to get a better in a hospital or experiencing much longer wait times because of bed shortages. Allowing the local school boards to institute mask mandates helps keep our health care system running by keeping community spread down. Never heard that kids don't know how to properly wear a mask and that's simply not true If they're told the importance of it and how to wear it most do not have a problem. My youngest who is seven. he doesn't understand why people don't want to help other people by wearing a mask and if they don't wear it properly. Kids are resilient but they deserve to be learning in a safe place in person without disruptions. Two years ago twenty three school districts briefly shut down because of flu outbreaks. The Delta strain of COVID is much more transmissible in the common flu. If masks are not allowed to be mandated there will be more shutdowns that will affect families having to stay home to quarantine instead of going into work. We saw that with the Merion school district now over eight hundred and quarantine. My kids are begging to go back to school but right now I do not feel safe letting them go into the public schools without a mask mandate since they are too young to be eligible for the vaccine. Our kids have given up enough this is the third year. That third school year that they have been affected by COVID the science tells us that masks are effective in preventing the spread of covid. If loving your neighbor is as easy as wearing a piece of cloth across your face I don't see why anyone wouldn't want to do that. Thank you for listening and just as a side note my oldest does have dyslexia auditory processing disorder and ADHD and he needs to be in school but he also needs to be safe. Thank you for listening please allow local schools to decide their own mask policies thank you for your comments. Ray Leman. Please come forward speaking against the bill. Please introduce yourself and who you represent. Thank you my name is ray Lehmann my organizations friends of Arkansas you're recognized. I forget the legislators name who was first to speak but she pointed directly to the crux of the problem. What she said was that the children the the kids the students are the children of the schools and the school boards she said it twice we're talking about the schools she said their children. When talking about the school boards she described him as its children I would like to remind our educators respectfully and remind our legislators respectfully they are not your children. They are the parents of children they are the students that you are charged with educating and you're doing a lousy job. Second point. There's a lot of discussion with her some of it today some inflammatory about whether the science was proven or not it reminds me very much of climate change it's not a proven science how much humans attacked climate change but we heard that today. I don't really think or debate should be on the effectiveness of masks or the effectiveness of vaccines or the effectiveness of social distancing all I've been a proponent social distancing my whole life I'm still working anybody anytime anywhere any place. The debate is. Who directs the children. Is it the schools who claimed that they or their children. Or is it the parents that make up their mind about having their children wear a mask wash their hands and be cautious. It is not the legislators decision it is not in my humble opinion it is not the school board's decision it is the parent's decision. Thank you very much for your time. I see no questions thank you for your comments. Stephanie TiVo. To speak for the bill. Please lose yourself in the represent can you hear me OK yes we can hear you my name is Stephanie TiVo maiden name Rep local I'm originally from Jones for Arkansas I now live in little rock and I have two children in the public schools one is ten and one is fourteen you're recognized and I'm representing myself and my family. I a I have long defended my home state of Arkansas but it is getting increasingly difficult as we continue to make national news due to our handling of the COVID pandemic. I wrote an email to each and every person in here but you may not have had the chance to read it so pardon me of some of some of you have read and this might be repetitive. But I Senate very late last night you might not have had the chance. True leadership is not a popularity contest or flexing of political muscle instead state leadership comes with the responsibility of making tough and sometimes unpopular decisions that are truly for the good of our population as a whole. It is time for our state leaders to set aside rhetoric egos and politics and to do what is right for the public health of our citizens. COVID nineteen and especially this new delta variant is killing our citizens at alarming rates. We must protect the most vulnerable among us and those who cannot yet get vaccinated are among those vulnerable that includes school children under twelve and those under eighteen whose parents will not let them be vaccinated. Admittedly a few months ago we all hoped and believed we were moving toward the end of this horrid pandemic but now the game has changed. It is time for us to take care of each other. One preventable death is too many. Much like stopping at red lights or refraining from smoking indoors in public spaces we must agree that one person's freedom of choice ends where it impacts. Another's freedom of choice. Last year like my children those who did not want to or could not risk exposure or forced to have their kids learn from home. This was not an ideal learning environment for many students. Now that it has been scientifically proven that wearing masks combined with physical distancing and proper hand washing can greatly limit the spread of COVID nineteen it would be irresponsible to strip this layer of protection for our students many of whom cannot yet be vaccinated. This is especially true as we see the number of COVID cases rise across Arkansas. It is imperative that the health and rights of students to be safely educated in person be protected. This time. Those who do not want to be inconvenienced by having their children wear masks for school can be the ones to keep their children home. They can have complete freedom from masks while utilizing the online learning academy. Or home school and. If we cannot collectively agree to place public health above an individual's personal freedom to put others in harm's way then at the very very least. The decisions about how to best protect all students' within a given school including requiring face masks as needed should be left up to the school administrators. Thank you for taking the time to listen and truly hear the concerns of a parent desperately trying to protect our children. It is time for true leadership. And I see release I sincerely hope that you will help lead us safely out of this pandemic through thoughtful legislation that serves and protects all Arkansans. Thank you. Thank you for your comments. When the H. P. would come forward to speak against the bill. You spoke yesterday. I'm sorry man I need to pass over you spoke yesterday so let let me get to the new folks first apologize. Tanya yielding. To speak against the bill. You would please come board. Please introduce yourself and who you represent. Turning to press the button you know you're you're on just entities yourself please hi Neil then born and raised Arkansas and just love our state eleven on natural it is. Hey and I'm very passionate parent I'm here representing myself you're recognized thank you. I want to point out that the superintendent of merry on sat right in the seat and I selected the seat on purpose and he told us yesterday while I had my daughter sitting right back here fourteen years old okay she is aware of all that's going on here I wasn't at the age of fourteen we all. She is and it's not that I have made her where god gifted her that way. And she's very against all of this he sat right here in the C. and told all of us that over seven hundred of his students in his district. We're quarantined because forty three students had a case of COVID which now we're all wondering the PCR test is inaccurate so is that even real. But nonetheless. But today I don't know if you'll notice he said six hundred and seventy one cases. We're quarantine yesterday you see a little discrepancy there. I do. I have to wonder how accurate his numbers are and he's also the only school board member or school district that I see represented here. Which I have to wonder there to. Thank you lord for this time. Next issue. Like we talked about the PCR test is not accurate the CDC is has admitted that why are they not immediately pulling it off right now. This is a huge question on my mind. The next thing is. The representative Allen I want to directly address you. As you said your doctor told you and I. I will pray for you every night and I have actually since our conversation on the telephone when you told me that you went once a month down to Texas to take your treatment because my mother in law had to interact and she went to heaven and I know exactly where she is she is so happy right now. But I pray for you every month since our phone call do you remember our phone call okay and I was respectful and you respectful and that was a wonderful conversation. And I appreciated that. But to quote you your doctor told you to wear your mask on the plane coming home and for a few days afterwards. For a few days. And that was because your immune system was compromised from the chemotherapy and radiation that I hate the fact that you have to ensure that. Why are we going to mask our kids for thirty or sixty days. When your. Immune system is compromised. But the general populace is not for the children for the students it makes no sense it makes no sense. Now The. I have two more things I want to say. Number one what the hell is the border open if we're so concerned about this pandemic. And number two are the school districts or the state or anybody else getting money for implementing mass mandates. Would anyone like to answer that. I don't see anybody that's interested Mr knows how to answer that. Well I would I would imagine there's some money because that's what I've always been told in politics follow the money. If anybody has any questions please ask otherwise I will dismiss myself. I don't see any questions thank you very much for you thank you very much for your time. Mellon the chaplain. Chris please come board. To speak for the bill. I'm Melanie check Bankrate's I'm here for myself you're recognized. I'm so I'm a mom of to children in public schools here I'd like to just show this is a picture of my husband he's a full time martial arts instructor and has no underlying medical condition. He's very fit. At Christmas a close family member went to a group event without a mask got COVID and pass it on to my husband. This is a picture of my husband in January. This year shortly before his discharge from Baptist hospital he spent five days there. And thanks to the caring hard working medical team he's still alive. But it was a struggle and it was the most traumatic experience that he and I and my children have ever lived through. Before he went to the hospital he continued to work we didn't know he was COVID positive at the time despite working in close proximity to hundreds of adults and children teaching martial arts every week only one other person at our martial arts school got covid and we can thank masks for that. We required masks for all training our students including all the children do strenuous martial arts drills with masks on the whole time. Other than their faces being a little bit warmer than they would be otherwise there are no problems with training this way. Children with the inconvenience of wearing masks the same way they put up with wearing shoes or keeping their pants on. In January I was grateful that children in our community we're not getting sick the way my husband did. But with the Delta variant that's starting to happen now. I know that everyone in here loves children the way I do and I really appreciate your sitting through all this to you yes testimony to take care of our children. But when legislators tell me that schools can not mandate masks when COVID is benefit and my particular area. They're telling me that it's okay for some children to experience preventable trauma. And that they are okay for some children and parents to die preventable death. It's not okay. Masks to work please restore my school district's ability to protect our children and families thank you. Thank you for your comments. For marine Richmond. Against the bill you would please come for. Please introduce yourself and who you represent. Good afternoon. Are in Richmond. Native our cans and president of Little Rock representing myself you're recognized thank you I do appreciate your patience and your attention. There's several comments that I would like to make some of which respond to previous presentations and some of my own creation this afternoon about twelve thirty I looked at the legislative website and I looked at the version of SB one zero zero four that was posted at that time and I read through it it's possible it's been changed since then so if if it has been changed then my comments would be irrelevant I apologize for that or the version that I saw. I look at section two which establishes an argument to validate the Emergency Clause claim particularly lines twenty three and twenty four which says that. The date of the emergency. Is necessary or not and should be proclaimed because the Delta variant is more contagious. I agree that it's more contagious. Or at least I can say that's what the authorities tell us. But the two parameters that determine danger. Not just the degree of infectivity OR transmissibility. But also the degree of leaf vality and it is not established. That the delta variant is more lethal as a matter of fact what's being said. Bye virologists and epidemiologists. Is that every subsequent iteration. Of a virus. Is a weakened. Version of that virus. Every subsequent iteration or mutation and that's what the Delta variant is it's a subsequent iteration or variation. So if what they're telling us is true then. Half of the justification for the emergency clause is missing is a flawed argument you only got half of what you need there to substantiate the argument for establishing an emergency. Also I would like to respond to the discussion the road a little bit earlier about The compromise of the immune system following chemotherapy and the necessity of wearing a mask in that situation I agree that makes absolutely good sense when a person's immune system is completely devastated that they should indeed wear a mask for the period of time the authority says so but as somebody else is already pointed out. The immune systems of young people in particular the age group that we're talking about here today or not devastated there are as a matter of fact in top form. They're able to. Deflect and deal with any number of infectious conditions in viral conditions so until we have full and my in a much more information on the exact behavior of the delta very and I don't think that there's a sufficient argument for the establishment emergency. That's all I need to say thank you so kindly. Thank you for your comments. Renee Harding to speak. For the bill. Please introduce yourself and who you represent. Hi number nee Harding I'm here to speak for or myself and my family you're recognized thank you. I'm I'm the mother of two children I'm married to a husband and I M. and rolling my youngest I have two children have one that's twenty here of course is vaccinated because he was able to make that choice from cell I have a younger son who is ten who cannot yet have a vaccine. he is I'm having to enroll him in a private school because in public schools I cannot Guarantee that he will be protected with our current law in place. My child needs to be in school has a social pragmatic language display. So we need services in private in a private school admitted I have enrolled him in I can ensure that those services will be in place. I'm. He's also describe check so we need services for that any services for math he's making up for services that were not provided in a previous school so leaving him at home or home schooling him is not an option. we have. he will wear masks willingly. Because everyone he understands the importance he's asked me why others don't understand that this is important he's aware that this law is in place and he wants to know what the problem with the wants to put this in place or. He doesn't understand why adults think this way he doesn't understand why the adults are just as willing to protect the other children. Because he understands that any child who dies is one too many but not just that he understands that this in the entire point of masks isn't just to protect deaths is to protect. Infection because the Hey earlier in July. The US government. Issued a letter. Referring to Long Kopet it is now a protected condition under the Americans with disabilities act is now a condition that's protected under IDA. We know that there are long term effects of just from being infected with COVID. We don't have the right to risk that for children who cannot protect themselves it's no longer an issue of simply saying it's up to the parent to do it because I can choose to say that my child will wear a mask and send him to school. But other parents are choosing not to put masks on their children so it's the exact same thing as me sending my child in with the wheels that is unacceptable we have to allow. The people that are in those districts to make decisions based on the information that they are given by the public health officials that I understand the science if we shot that decision off and shut it away from them there is no way that anyone that is capable of understanding the science. Can make those decisions we tie their hands that isn't fair. For us to simply say that the government is the only one that can make those decisions is to say that there is no reason for us to have set the government at the way that we have. We have a local control state so how is it that in this one case. We can mandate the choices at the top and in every other case such as in education we say that those choices are made locally. That isn't fair I do not want to see a single child harmed. My younger child doesn't have as much my older child we had to put him on medications at a level high enough to keep that child from growing. Just to keep him breathing if he were to catch covid he would have been one of the children on a ventilator. There would have been no doubt in my mind at the rate that we are going in this country we will hit one million deaths before we are done. The way that we are number ring these variants that will continue to get stronger not weaker as the last person said. They continue to get their mutating they're doing things differently viruses learn. They don't get weaker they learn they learn to become more either more contagious or they learn to become more deadly that's the entire point of mutating they do something different we are up to delta we are doing this we're numbering them by the Greek alphabet we're up to delta the next one is Absalon what do you think it's going to do we don't yet know I personally don't want to find out but the more we allow people to become infected the more likely we will find out. So if we don't allow our local. Districts to start mandating things like masks we will find out faster. So please allow them to protect our children because we've already demonstrated allowing the parents to choose to protect their only child their own children. Doesn't do enough because they only choose what to do with their own child they don't do what helps to protect all children. I want to protect every child not just money. So if you'll help me protect all children I will do everything I can to protect yours to. Please help me do that. I will give out masks I will do I will educate I will do what I can't but you have to help me instead of tying my hands and right now my hands are tied and so or at the hands of every other parent. Out there. Please help pass. Thank you for your comments. Stacey still to speak against the bill. Please introduce yourself and who you represent. Thanks to everyone I'm here for myself or for my children you're recognized okay so I just wanna start with What a school day looks like in my private school in the course of last year in a first grade teacher. Start time seven fifteen in a mask learning seven fifteen eight fifteen an announcmenet recess eight fifteen eight thirty in a mask. Learning eight thirty to nine thirty in a mask. Snack at your desk nine thirty nine forty if you didn't bring a snack you didn't take your mask off. Ten minute mass reggae your desk only if you were eating. Learning nine forty to ten forty in a mask lunch at a desk ten forty two eleven ten mask back on as soon as you're done eating we were monitored closely. Recess eleven ten to eleven thirty in a mask even on a day when it was ninety eight degrees outside in which I had students throw up in their mask. Learning eleven thirty to one fifteen in a mask snack at your desk one fifteen to one twenty five he didn't have a snack you didn't take your mask off. Learning to one twenty five at three o'clock in a mask pick up three o'clock to three fifteen in a mask. Seven hours a day five days a week my students are at school for a hundred and seventy eight days hundred seventy eight times eight hours is thousand four hundred eighty four hours and seventy eight times seven that we were massed up is a thousand two hundred forty six thousand one hundred forty six. Every student was in a mask. That means that my students all my face for a hundred and seventy eight hours of the entire school year that means I only saw my students face four hundred and seventy eight hours of the entire school year these are six year olds. Learning cannot take place like that and be effective. It can't before we ever reached lunch these kids are lethargic and they're tired and. They're laid out on their desk. After three minutes of wearing a mask the concentration of carbon dioxide is six times higher than the safe level will I mean in a basic biology class you're taught that you you breathe in oxygen and you expel what carbon dioxide which is toxins. But if you're messed up for that long that's seven out of eight hours a day as a child. They're believing in their own carbon dioxide all day long. And I think it. For my dad or my. Mom or anyone else who was not in a school setting all day long. You know they tell me well you know they just put a mask on to go to the grocery store but that but you can come home and take your mask off we weren't we're not afforded that school I'm fifty years old diabetes high blood pressure I don't get to take the mask off one lunch break a week. One. I did every single recess duty. I didn't get a single pull up class because they all came to my class I had nowhere to go. It is a lot it's a lot. As an educator I became an educator because I care about the children. I'm not a doctor I what I'm not here to take care of them in their health reasons I'm here to educate them but when I can't educate them to my fullest ability or that's why it's hard for me many nights I cried. I've got two children one who is about to start her first year of teaching. And she has asthma and the mask makes her as no worse. She doesn't want to wear the mask it makes it very difficult for her to breathe she has to use her inhaler more when she has the mask on. My son was born with a pneumothorax he lived in I see you for five six days. I don't want him in the mask I want to be able to breathe freely I don't want to ever have to worry about anything inhibiting his breathing because he had a pneumothorax because we had that when he was young. Children in my classroom last year experienced headaches excessive fatigue excessive well flushed faces shortness of breath panic attacks and some even threw up in their mask some the ones that have sensory issues they struggled it was a quote that I can't keep their hands off their face I have some that don't like the buttons to touch their scans. So you can imagine a face up a mask on their face they can keep their mask on so when all they're doing is fidgeting to worry about the master they're not learning they're not they can't concentrate on that because they're too worried about the mask. My students have had either issues they increased I struggle to learning how to deal with emotions because they can't read face. Children's needs and their mask they suck their mask and thanks sector mask in their mouth and it's what. They touch their mouths they spit in their mask all of that creates a bacterial haven for infection. While they want us to think that the mask is protecting us from infection common sense tells you that bringing it breeding in your own carbon dioxide for that many hours in a day. In a marshy to comply with the things mentioned above is actually putting people at an increased risk of infection. Demoniac meningitis legionnaires disease diphtheria sepsis line disease gingivitis cavities how ptosis gum disease. Who is going to be responsible for all the adverse health effects that happen because of the mass. Who is going to be held for the responsible should be held responsible for the lack of learning and insufficient levels of actual education that the students are not able to get due to the forcing of wearing a mask. Who's going to pay the teachers health bills because I'm fifty years old I have diabetes I have high blood pressure I'm a single mother within zero help from that. Who's going to pay my bills because I don't want to wear a mask but I'm forced to wear a mask in order to keep my job. Actually the job that I resigned from yesterday because of this. Who's going to pay for therapy for all of the mental issues that come out. My kids who had. Senate speech issues coming in the first grade my do their six. They regressed. They can't see my face. I teach first grade we that's how we learn is by reading I think there's people today and yesterday that talked about I'm certified in connections and in rice training which is what Arkansas uses to teach without reading I can't do that effectively okay I cried I was crying at pretty much every day because I can't do what I need to do behind the mask because they can't see me. And I'm I can't vouch for the older kids I can vouch for what I see in the day in question in the first grade. It is a lot. It's a lot I'm not saying that. In this is not be talking about COVID ice cream to think at the top of my lungs all year long that at some point we have to quit looking at the C. word and looking at just COVID because the underlying effects in the long term effects are going to come from this is going to be horrendous it is. Children between the ages of two and six they learn about emotions by watching and observing your face. But if everyone is wearing a mask around them don't you think that's going to be a struggle for them and it's going to foster delay in their developing a learning that's a fact. Do I need to ask do I need to answer questions for you for a finish I don't see any questions for you okay thank you very much for your. Okay Jennifer it's just one thing you're going. So. When I became a teacher like I said I made a vow I didn't make it out to be a doctor I didn't make it out to you to do any of those things are made out to be a teacher to the one hundred percent of the best of my ability. But I can't do that. So as a single mom with no help from the data have. One in high school. I just I it was best for me to resign from my position yesterday so I'm just going to read you my resignation and then I'm all finished. I've been doing this for over twenty years this is hard. I'm writing to inform you of my decision to resign from my first grade position I am thankful for the opportunities that I've been affordable teaching here it was a place that I could call home when I needed a place to call home. I can no longer work in an environment where I cannot make my own health decisions. I can also no longer participate in the masking of of children. As the health concerns that come from that might outweigh some of the COVID concerned that opposed. The pressure of getting a shot for something that isn't E. eighty eight U. eight. And the bullying of the mask way too much for me. We have a god given right to read freely and no man should ever think that they can take that away from us. God is moving me in a different direction and I hope that you wish me luck again thank you for the blessings and the lessons. Your kindness will not be forgotten. My principal while she was sad. That I resigned. She also gave me a hug. And she told me that she was proud of me. She didn't say what that meant. So I've been left to try to figure that out that's something that I'm praying to god to trying to figure out. I don't know what is right and all this I know that there's a lot of misinformation everywhere I know that they're therapeutics there are things that can help but I know that and I did home I didn't virtual learning the year before. That's not the right answer either they need to be in school one hundred percent they need to be in the classroom. But it's hard. It's hard. Thank you for let me speak thank you for your comments. Jared beavers you come forward to speak for the bill. Please enter seventy represent being many years. There is now it is I do Mr beavers a physician a pediatrician and associate professor of pediatrics I'm here representing myself and my family. You're recognized thank you and thank you Mr chairman I'm assessed can speak today more of a necessity of of kind of explaining what has been seen in the community and what we will likely see in the community over these next couple days I am the product of two teachers that both of whom practice that for thirty years the Arkansas school system so I am certainly biased toward education and I feel like I should click disclose that I also apologize for my tire came straight from work and I would nearly would to try to be more professionally dressed and with regards to a tire I was raised in the Ozarks and being the the son of two teachers I was taught many things one of which was that that there was a certain dress code to be appreciated for. when I went to school I was when I was at home I was in my in my skivvies had a piece of a hose wrap around myself to look like Rambo until I was about five years of age and I remember very clearly having a conversation with my parents about why that was not appropriate address for school I think that in regards to our our at our school systems giving local districts control over dress code has something that we've all experienced in throughout our careers and I think that this more than anything highlights the importance of of having a certain dress code that helps facilitate not only a distraction but also safety. If you ask any pediatrician around the state what have masks done with the pediatric population in Arkansas throughout the course of this pandemic they'll tell you I'm a bit sick visits throughout the pandemic plummeted when we have masks by mass mandate the number of sick children coming into pediatric offices was actually much much lower on any given day it was because of massive away we know that is because after vaccines were I've made available we continue to see that that account Wayne in six visits and it was only after the appeal of mass mandates that we started to now see the surge of viral infections that we have experienced as of late with your influenza RSV and now covid. I would encourage this body to certainly enable school districts I'm also Vice I have to elementary school children who are in eligible for the vaccine at this time I worry about their safety every day I worry about them I'm going to school and carrying a virus that I could potentially bring home from my place of work to their classmates and that made our decision last year to home school that much harder I do want my children to be back in school and I agree as a pediatrician that it is much better for them to be in that classroom with their peers learning and having that effective teaching that are our teachers provide. there are several things that were mentioned in previous I'm I'm statements and a lot of facts that could be checked I'm not going to bore you with a lot of those details but certainly if you have specific questions with regard to some of those I'll be happy to answer those. I would like to say though that deaths are not the only bad thing that we see in relation to this virus three children Arkansas died in that is absolutely to committee that is three to committee many children have been heard about this virus we have several children currently delayed in the Arkansas children's hospital that we have had kids on ECMO recently and it's just it's it's tragic to see those families going through those struggles knowing that there is a measure of prevention that can happen and I can tell you from personal experience as heartbreaking as a physician to look around communities and the C. the push back and and certainly understand the arguments for freedom for libertine and those sorts of things but this isn't this isn't about freedom or liberty this is about doing what is helpful what is right to help protect our neighbors and so it really is I think again just just very very saddening to to many of us in the medical community to see such resistance to such push back for what could be a very successful campaign to help curb this pandemic. with regards to the study how I know there was uh another person I think character earlier to this afternoon and talked about the story in Germany on that city has been invalidated on that study was a retrospective survey it was a phone call to a parent asking how their kid did with a mask and school if you have served my house from when my kindergartners or school she had stomach aches a lot of the time she wasn't mask in the first part of the school year there are a lot of things that parents report and I certainly appreciate you know that they can you know masks can be uncomfortable at times I wear a mask ten hours a day and I don't have any carbon dioxide poisoning and I don't have any hypoxemia that I'm aware of. but I think that there are certain I'm precautions should be taken such as you know keeping mass clean changing masking their doors will children are dirty we all know that children are our little Petri dishes we all know that but I think at the end of the day the masks are very very useful tool in helping us mitigate the spread of this virus in addition to getting as many or Kansas as we can vaccinated as quickly as possible and last closing statement of the the the situation we're in right now is very dire we have as very severe burden of disease in the state of cases you have still still going up across the state and we're about to start school and as I said before children spread things very very easily going back to school without the protections of a masked without at least enabling schools to make those decisions to help protect the students and the families that they go home to by instituting masks in those very very endemic areas. I think it could lead to an absolute disaster not just with COVID you have to understand that there's all cause mortality if the beds are full in the hospitals there's no where for anyone else to go we have twenty five ICU beds available in the entire state of Arkansas right now our hospitals are overrun with patients if you have a heart attack you have to wait for a bed if you have a stroke you have to wait for a bed we are we are triaging as much as we can and that is before school starts if we go back to school with this current situation and we start having outbreaks like the one that we're starting to see in Merion. We are facing a potential public health crisis disaster whatever you wanna call it it's going to be bad people will will certain people die and so I think that it's very very important for this body to realize our schools need the ability they need the flexibility if if another variant comes along there's a lander and heard someone much as Law there's only under very improve that showing vaccine resistance if that variant reaches the United States and is more transmissible and is much more deadly thank you then delta. Well this body reconvene quickly enough to help mitigate again the the spread of the virus so we need the flexibility we don't need to have to reconvene session each time to give schools that flexibility in order to enact an act protections to protect our students that's why I'm here. Happy to answer any questions. Representative first you're recognized. Yes I'm right here yes yeah if you could sort of clarify since earlier information it said that the PCR test was inaccurate I it's my understanding that the emergency use authorization for the PCR test by the CDC was removed because there's a new better tests that does it just check for PC are that the just check for COVID but tests for flu in implants as well can you address the accuracy of the test yes ma'am that is that's correct the the I think you referenced tests that very brought up earlier is a CDC only test on that has been used widespread in in institutions around the country most laboratories across the country had developed their panel of tests and then have them validated by a CDC guidelines and so the test that we use you M. S. children's and other hospitals across the state or not not at all that PCR test we actually use a complete battery big panel of respiratory pathogens that to is of course CDC approved. You raise my curiosity a little bit when you talk about the variance. And you say that. There is a variant that has been identified that is resistant to the vaccine. Yes we're in a world yes in Peru they've they've identified the land of area which in laboratory tests is showing some vaccine resistance yes Sir so that's very very serious yes Sir so would you be in favor of shutting down all of our borders and flights in the year because it is brought in. We have nothing to do I certainly you as a physician would you be willing to support that I certainly support you know stringent measures to help screening and prevent you know transmission from other countries I'm not a politician so I cannot speak as to you know Clause offices yes Sir I I I don't I don't know that shutting our borders down you know and less we isolated crew you know where they've discovered this very I think what we've seen from closing borders from China and and early on in the pandemic we saw that it wasn't really effective at helping control the pandemic so I don't know that it would be highly effective in this case either. Thank you for your comments yes Sir. A Paul Calvert. You would come for speak against the bill. Please introduce yourself and he represents. but it's called Calvert I don't represent anyone other than myself you're recognized thank you. So first off I think I want to say that if you have a child who is very vulnerable I strongly recommend that you home schooled him. Public schools extremely vulnerable environment when it comes Payton disease this is been true for ever you get a whole bunch of kids together especially for five six seven year olds they're gonna spread stuff that's just what happens our mass effective I don't know something who knows I mean maybe they are maybe not some of compared master building a chain link fence runner yard to keep mosquitoes out I mean I don't know if that's a fair comparison or not because viruses are very very tiny. Social isolation is probably one of the most effective methods of preventing the spread of disease. But socialize social isolation is also pretty well out of the way it's been our lives. Most of us are very willing to accept risks as we drive down the highways because we place a high value on socializing with others. Let's just be respectful of the decisions of parents some parents feel very strongly that wearing masks is very important. Other parents believe is harmful for the children to wear masks I think the most respectful approach to this issue is for parents to be allowed to make the education decisions for their own children. Parents want their children to wear a mask and school fine if parents want to want their children to refrain from wearing a mask and school that's fine too if parents want to pull their children out of school and keep them at home that's just fine. In fact home schooling is undoubtedly one of the best ways to keep your children safe. It also has the added benefit of giving you a chance to form a more functional relationship with your children. I suggest that although these bills down and wait for Alan Clark bill that gives school boards the ability to impose masks and also gives parents more freedom to pull their children out of school and take that funding with them to pay for private school or for home schooling. Thank you for your time. Thank you for your comments. Anna Morris seeker. Machida. To speak for the bill. Please introduce yourself and you represent yes my name is on a more steady and I'm here to represent myself and my family. You're recognized thank you. I'm I'm here as a mother and a concerned citizen I have two children miles who is eight and going into the third grade. And Molly six in going into the first grade. Both of my children are not eligible for the vaccine and there's only one tool to keep them safe and the school year and that is masking. My job as a parent is to keep my children safe and I look toward the medical professionals scientists and make government. To help guide me on how to keep my children safe. My children attended private school that's decided that the safest course of action is to require universal masking this year. ACT Teno two gives private schools access to a tool at their public school counterparts do not have available. Under the current legislation private school children will be safer than public school children. Under the current legislation private school children we'll have more days of in school learning and public school children. Under the current legislation private school parents will have more days at work and public school parents. And in less than two weeks we will witness an educational inequity that's created by this legislation. But unlike other inequities that we have seen over the past year and a half this one has an easy fix. We're surrounded by inequities that have very difficult and costly solutions most of them we can't even have a course of action to solve. But luckily for all of you today this problem does have an easy solution and not just any solution but one that is backed by the scientific and medical community. I'm asking that you pass this bill and that you give our elected school boards the opportunity to continue to do the work that they were elected to do. And I believe everyone in this room values the life of a child. As you mentioned before Jordan Franklin an eleven year old from West Memphis. Tragically died of COVID on Monday. And children less than half a mile from us are currently on life support because of covid. And if dying children isn't a call to action that I don't know what is. This virus is evolving and changing and we must change with it and continue to correct protect our children. And it's not too late to do the right thing. Thank you. Thank you for your comments. When beach you're recognized to speak against the bill. Please introduce yourself committee represent. I am way image. I'm representing myself you're recognized thank you. Representative Alan of like to ask you questions if you're here. I don't see representative shall. What is your question. When your doctor. Are you there. Dot. Your your determination of where your mask. Univision that airplane with clean unitard was. People in plain determine if they have said anything else. But you worry mass used to wear a mask when you. I'm so that when the group wouldn't matter. Well. Tell us your question. Yes yes I'll are with steel that one will last I wear it every day right. What is your decision nobody else gonna tell you to make that decision whether mask. Or the. Well that's your decision is a decision whether one of them about. I mean that's what it boils down to and and that's to and that's the position that we that we and now. What we were talking about mass you know so. President Ellen me in Mr beach I can't land at I'm sorry I'm sorry I just again make comments about his retirement but committees and I just wanna make a point here that it was in the group that made that decision for anybody. You make your own personal individual decisions. For me say this. Fierer kills more people than any pandemic. Any war. Any of those things. And you all know you look at Russia. You look at China. You look at. Over polling you look the ****. Although was driven by fear. And I listen this morning. I went to Senator Senate committee meeting this morning and I was heart wrenching and listen to several parents backed that are young mothers who came up and they're and they're afraid for their children that are going to catch the virus. I also heard this morning. From people on the other side of the aisle over here. They said they were afraid of losing their liberties. And then I think a little bit. This is people at the top they're afraid to lose power. And then there's another group backed your that really doesn't care and they're uninformed or they're mixed up. Confused. Because they don't know what. And they're afraid. This one of sand was real pandemic here. Is that the fires. Or is it fear. What you think about that just a little bit. What what we fear we fear things that we don't know thank you bye. We fear. Because we have the entrance we have these inconsistencies. Thanks that's what we fear because we don't know if they're true. This have studies I would recommend. That if you to pass this bill that you keep the data we should ban keeping data analyst in the first place. Much better data. We all know that that viruses have a bell shaped curve you have the and you know what to say no everyone of you and and every scientist knows that there's a bill ship care Kerr said the associated with ever fires and reinfection. You also he'll go up and go back down is not linear it's not it's not an exponential curve except bill Carter you have reached a maximum did you on on ridge to reach Mandy and that starts to fall down. I still want to reiterate that we have an open valve at the border. And you're not going to stop anything into you shut off the valve. You're still going to get in. Problems here and we've got people being dropped off all over the United States when asked the governor after the meeting characters news copter asking. As a governor said I hope that you because your leadership your you heard the head of the government association here in the United States. That you. And the rest as sociais Asian will go to the president Intel motion to Porter down because we have if the people that are coming up here and being dropped off and we don't even know who's here the last how many people do we have from there you will be sent I'm sure there I'm sure testing down her. If your mouth is fall in open right now in disbelief when our own governor doesn't know if they're being tested down there. Mr starshine may. I want you to understand. I'm I'm concerned. I am really concerned about this. I don't think you can stop the kids from getting infected with anything. Thank you to also look at the numbers this one thing. We've listened to the numbers we listen survivability numbers. And then I've heard other people say is running rampant. Question right. So I have to say and I just wanna let's will bring that to you and now we're just member fear has killed more people in this world. And everything all those other things put together. Thank you do have a couple of questions yes representative Alan you're recognized I don't thank you madam chair and I appreciate your question whether means is answered for you. one of the things that my doctor told me. There were there were a a team of doctors. And experts. And the re research reveal that after your a medium system has been compromised. One of the best things for you to do to make it to remain safe is to wear a mask. And not only that I worry for two or three days but sometimes I worry so what we can a time because I knew my amend system. Was compromised so what impact my new system. Sir would not impact you was because she was stronger so what I have to do I have to listen to the signs and I listen to the experts because they were the ones with the knowledge. And when you are in a life and death situation or in a crisis. You want to listen to people that are very knowledgeable and I think that's what we are in our society today we are in a crisis. And we need to listen to the experts. Respond. Can respond. Your doctors you said you had several doctors that want their. Those doctors go to on that airline that you ordered I make everybody else wear masks. Mr chairman I don't want to give it to a back and forth and and and let me say this It wasn't my doctor's responsibility to go to the airline to make sure those other people wearing the mask. It was my. Fred Allen. Immune system that have been compromised now let me get let me take a stir there was also another young lady on the plane that was wearing a mask and she had been wearing them for quite some time. And she was trying to teach me. How to wear my mask. She had been receiving her treatment at St Jude house bill her father came down to the cancer treatment centers of America for his treatment. So she went down with him and on the way back she had her masco. And she was trying to educate me on why I should wear my mask and why I should keep my nasco a gentleman list thank you let's move on representative Johnson you're recognized for a question thank you Mr chair Mr chairman we've we've a. Been sitting here for a couple hours listening to a lot of testimony would be begun here folks on the same subject we heard from for three hours yesterday or over three hours I just make a motion that we end debate. K. as well a motion. Available. Non debatable. Non debatable. All in favor signify by saying aye. All opposed nay. Motion carries debate is ended thank you John appreciate a representative may call you ready to close for your bill. Thank you Mr chair. You committee turn Michael on there. Yours is on. Is it okay go ahead. Thank you Mr chair. A committee thank you for further listening so long to all the testimony and I will be short and sweet but I do want to for a moment put on my nurse practitioner hat. A after listening to the testimony yesterday and today I really feel the need to remind everyone why we wear masks. Mass do protect the individual and if that was its only purpose then I would absolutely be for Accepting individual rights. However mask or worn to protect others especially from being infected by representative sorry to interrupt you here but if we end debate there is no closing statement okay so I apologize for being wrong on that so. All right we have a motion of do pass. By representative Ferguson any discussion on the motion. Seeing none all in favor signify by saying aye. Those opposed nay. The nose haven't sorry bills fail. A committee will move on to the next item on the agenda. That is. H. B. one oh three. Representative Mayberry. Should government. The representative may very you're recognized to present your bill thank you members as we discussed for many hours yesterday there were some suggestions that I listen to and as promised I came back with an amendment and all explain what those two basic amendments are one is that instead of the sixty day timeline as the maximum of how long you could have a mass mandate we moved it to twenty one days so three weeks so represent maybe you're speaking on the amount of I'm speaking on the amendment I'm sound like to suppress that out. yes yes I'm sorry. Okay it's been a long day you know. So yes we're talking on Amendment. I'll give you a second. The other skimmer by a few minutes look at it. All right and I think we're ready. You may go ahead okay so as I mentions instead of sixty day maximum it would be twenty one days that the school district's could have the mass requirement and that it would make them have to come back if they want to keep it if they were still in the proper amount of infection in the area they could renew it but they would have to renew it everyone twenty one days to kind of control how long her kids are having to wear the masks the other part of it is that we move to the threshold from fifty cases for a fourteen day period per ten thousand people in the school district to thirty it was brought up yesterday that that might have been something that I needed to fix as well so I I heard those comments I asked if there were any other suggestions and those from pretty much it that I could still fit within the wording of the call and I would appreciate being allowed to at least add this to the bill so we can vote on the bill with the suggested amendments by some members of this committee so that those members can have their wishes put into this bill. I'm a for the adoption amendments I have a motion to adopt the amendment any discussion on the motion. Senate. Seeing none all in favor signify by saying aye. Those opposed nay. Nose haven't. You may present your bill unamended that's okay. I'm close to you all of heard everything I don't think there's anything else I can say here today so I would just appreciate a really good vote I appreciate the opportunity. Everybody who's here who's come forward and talked we need more discussion on big important issues thank you. What will the committee. I have a motion to adopt the bill the discussion on the motion. Represent Ferguson you're recognized for discussion yes I mean this really really bothers me I mean. Society all the time. Makes modest sacrifices for the common good in this is not about I don't want my child to wear a mask this is about all children wearing a mask to protect other children it's about schools protecting everyone in the school it It is unconscionable to me that would allow the department of corrections to requirements for prisoners to protect prisoners but we won't have amassed mandate to protect kids I I just I don't understand why you would not vote for this. Any other discussion. Seeing none all in favor signify by saying aye. Those opposed nay. NO seven are you bills fail. Thank you before we close I want to thank everyone that came today and sitting through this and all comments we are measure it Betty better educated because