Senate Convenes

To do that again. Any announcements before we call the roll to request please let him. It's not objection. Not object. Ballinger. Beckham. Bledsoe. Caldwell. Chesterfield. Clark. Davis Dismang. Eads. Elliott. English. Flowers. Garner. Gilmore. Hammer. Hendren. Hester. Keiki. Health. Ingram. Irvine. Blake Johnson. Mark Johnson. Leding. Page. Rapert. Rice. Sample. Stubblefield. Sturch. Sullivan. Teague. Tucker. Wallace. Join in prayer please have a father we come before you and we thank you that you are the god of grace mercy love compassion and all the other qualities that we seek to have as individuals we pray that we would display that to our deliberation over the next few days and that father we who know you as our savior would do all things in the manner which you would hold us accountable for one day in your presence we ask god's blessing upon those that are sick conflicted in every capacity of the covert vaccine is getting the front attention but we still got people fighting cancer Fite heart attacks just dealing with the day to day challenges of life so we ask your blessing upon each and everyone of them thank you are for those that provides protection while we're here conducting your business from the troopers and just everybody else around us for medical staff to provide sure needs help us always father in a day and age where we can sometimes internalize our intentions that we always express our appreciation to those that are are helping us do our job Page bless our staff and we just thank you lord for loving us we thank you lord for business to they were going to conduct may we do it with your watch fly over us we ask all these things and crisis savior in August people said. and. One. Indivisible with raw. Thank you Mr president I have had drafted a concurrent resolution. I had drafted concurrent resolution that honors our our cans and we're so proud of this Kaylee Browning who won the silver medal in trap shooting at the Tokyo Olympics and I'm inviting her to hopefully join us tomorrow's presentation any senators wish because sponsor please let me know or let to Marty Garrity know and we will have you on there thank you thank you Mr president. Yes yes members well I'll notify the house in the governor's that were governor that were organized for business. That's all. Please read. State of Arkansas and second apartment proclamation to all to whom these presents shall come greetings whereas an extraordinary occasion has arisen making it necessary to convene the ninety third General Assembly into extraordinary session and were as the Delta variant of COVID nineteen has infected thousands of our Kansans in recent months the Verint this variance has infected a higher rate of school age children and it is more contagious than previous variants of the virus and whereas a COVID nineteen back saying is not yet available for children under the age of twelve years old and for as Arkansas public schools will begin in person instruction in August and the safety of children attending school is critical and for as all efforts should be made to preserve the safety of these children while maintaining the ability for them to attend in person instruction. And for a school boards need the flexibility to require mass in congregate settings to protect the safety of children and press at ten oh two of twenty twenty one prohibits public school boards from utilizing mass to mitigate the spread of COVID nineteen therefore there is an urgent need to an active exceptions to act ten oh two of twenty twenty one so that public school boards have the flexibility necessary to utilize my **** to mitigate the spread of COVID nineteen and schools and whereas a full economic recovery from the impact of COVID nineteen requires a robust work force and whereas as a result of extraordinary federal unemployment benefit programs and relief programs Arkansas employers are unable to fill thousands of job vacancies in the state and where is the unemployment rate in Arkansas is currently below the national unemployment rate and consistent with the hands historical unemployment level preceding the onset of COVID nineteen pandemic therefore there is no longer a need within the Arkansas state of Arkansas for the extraordinary federal unemployment benefit programs provided for under title of. nine subject a subtitle a part one of the American rescue plan active twenty twenty one now therefore I Asa Hutchinson governor of the State of Arkansas by virtue of the power and authority vested in me by article six section nineteen of the Arkansas constitution do hereby call an extraordinary session of the General Assembly to convene in Little Rock on August for twenty twenty one at ten AM and I do hereby specify that the General Assembly is convened in such cession to consider and if so advised enact laws for the following purposes one to allow public school boards and open enrollment charter schools to implement masking protocols to protect children under the age of twelve in the school building school bus or other convert educational setting during times dedicated for academic purposes to to a affirm the decision of the director of workforce services to terminate the State of Arkansas's participation in extra ordinary federal unemployment benefit programs related to cavity nineteen three to affirm that the reduction and prevention of unemployment in Arkansas takes precedent over the receipt of any federal fund programs related to unemployment and that the director of workforce services may exercise discretion in the decision to participate to ease participation in any voluntary optional special or emergency program benefits offered by the federal government to address exceptional unemployment conditions for to confirm gubernatorial appointees as required by Arkansas Code ten to one thirteen and five to provide for the payment of expenses and per diem of the house of representatives and the Senate for this extraordinary session and testimony there. I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Arkansas to be affixed this second day of August in the year of the lord twenty twenty one signed Asa Hutchinson governor. Senate bill one column two in three by Senator Dismang and representative Wardlaw to clarify the law concerning the state's participation in certain federally funded unemployment programs to terminate the state's participation in certain federal unemployment programs and to declare an emergency. This is. Hi Thank you Sir ladies and gentleman the public health committee will meet today at one o'clock in room. One seventy one thank you.