A new bill filed Monday in the Arkansas General Assembly seeks to immediately end the face mask requirement in Arkansas.
Sen. Trent Garner (R-El Dorado) filed Senate Bill 590 to end the face covering requirement, with the bill stating that the mandate is “no longer necessary.” If passed, this bill would end all mask requirements imposed by Gov. Asa Hutchinson and the Arkansas Department of Health.
Hutchinson first announced the face mask mandate on July 16, 2020 and signed an executive order, giving it the force of law in the state. Under the mask mandate, individuals have been required to wear face coverings when exposed to non-household members and where social distancing of six feet or more cannot be guaranteed.
In February 2021, Hutchinson announced that the mask mandate could be lifted at the end of March. The current public emergency is set to expire on March 31, and the mask mandate would become a guideline.
This Sunday, Hutchinson appeared on CNN’s ‘State of the Union,’ where he said that he expects the mask mandate to be lifted at the end of March.
Garner’s bill states that it would supersede any directives issued by Hutchinson or the Department of Health in regards to face masks, if passed. The bill also includes an emergency clause that would put it into effect immediately, citing a need for the “preservation of the public peace, health and safety…”
The bill was filed on Monday, March 22 at 1:30 p.m. and has been referred to the Arkansas Senate’s Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Labor.
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