Celebrating the great outdoors

Sen. John Boozman

June is recognized as Great Outdoors Month. First celebrated as a week-long event in 1998, there is so much beauty in our backyard it deserved an entire month. As Arkansans, we are well acquainted with Mother Nature’s offerings. The Natural State provides numerous opportunities for locals and visitors to enjoy the great outdoors. These resources make Arkansas a destination for people from across the country and the globe. They help drive the economy in communities across our state by supporting area businesses, spurring critical development and fueling commerce. The recreation and tourism industry accounts for more than 39,000 jobs and contributes $3.5 billion to our state’s GDP. Ensuring we remain an attractive location to vacation and connect with the outdoors is a priority at all levels of government.

As the nation’s top rice producer, thousands of acres of flooded fields after harvesting create an ideal habitat for migrating ducks, making Arkansas the duck hunting capital of the world. Estimates by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) indicate hunters contribute nearly $1 million each day of duck hunting season.

Outdoor enthusiasts have an interest in preserving the fish and wildlife habitat so they can continue to enjoy their favorite pastimes. In the Senate, I’m contributing to those efforts by championing the “Recovering America’s Wildlife (RAWA) Act,” legislation that supports investments in conservation work in Arkansas and throughout the country to restore habitat to endangered and threatened wildlife.

In addition to the wildlife offerings, folks are flocking to our state to enjoy the growing system of bike trails. Outside magazine recently named Arkansas Monument Trails the best mountain biking trails in the country. This network, part of the state parks apparatus, challenges the most experienced riders while highlighting the landscape of our state.

We’re also working to improve popular destinations managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers by allowing these sites to retain the money they collect to reinvest funds in facilities in need of repairs. Some of Arkansans’ favorite summer recreation locations like Bull Shoals, Beaver, Ouachita, Greers Ferry and Norfork Lakes are managed by the Corps and could benefit from this policy update.

We all want what’s best for our public lands, and we all want to be able to utilize these national treasures for years to come. Recently Congress has made significant investments in the conservation and preservation of public lands with passage of legislation including “America’s Conservation Enhancement (ACE) Act.”

This law advances and expands programs to safeguard wildlife and ecosystems. AGFC Chairman Bobby Martin has been a leader in state and national conservation work, including helping Congress pass the landmark ACE Act. He was instrumental in building the coalitions critical to advancing this legislation and protecting our natural resources. His commitment to environmental education and outreach programs has fostered a sense of stewardship among Arkansans of all ages. As his tenure as Chairman comes to an end, we celebrate his contributions to preserve our landscape and wildlife. We can be proud of the numerous conservation efforts throughout our state. Our ancestors had the vision to set aside lands we use today and we will continue to honor that legacy by expanding on that mission and creating opportunities for more people to connect with Arkansas’s outdoors.

In Arkansas, an estimated 58,000 Arkansans aged 65 and older were living with Alzheimer’s in 2020. This number is expected to climb to 67,000 by 2025.

Nationwide, more than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s dementia and that number is expected to grow to as many as 14 million by the year 2050.

June is Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month. It is an opportunity to hold a conversation about the brain and share the fact that Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias are major public health issues.

In 2021, the Arkansas General Assembly passed legislation creating the Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Advisory Council. The council examines the needs of individuals living with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias, services available in the state for patients and their family caregivers, and the ability of healthcare providers and facilities to meet current and future needs.

Last year the council issued an update to the Alzheimer’s State Plan and made several recommendations to the General Assembly. The 94th General Assembly passed several pieces of legislation as a result of those recommendations.

Act 202 requires the Arkansas Commission on Law Enforcement Standards and Training to train new officers on the topic of interacting with persons who are affected by Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias.

The General Assembly also passed Act 335 which sets minimum dementia training requirements for staff members who are employed by an assisted living facility and requires the Department of Human Services to adopt rules regarding the training requirements.

In addition, the legislature passed ACT 682 and Act 70. Act 682 creates the fulltime position of Dementia Services Coordinator within the Division of Aging, Adult, and Behavioral Services of the Department of Human Services. ACT 70 requires at least four hours of dementia training for home caregivers.

Act 102 adds additional members from the assisted living and home-based care industry to the Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Advisory Council. The council will continue researching ways to improve care in Arkansas and make future recommendations.

In 2021 the legislature approved Act 626, making Arkansas the first state in the nation to prohibit physicians from performing gender transition procedures on minors.

Since then at least 19 other states have enacted similar laws to prohibit procedures such as hormone therapy and surgery for adolescents under 18 who wish to change their genders.

Legal challenges were quickly filed against Act 626, and on June 20 a federal judge struck the law as unconstitutional. His ruling received national media attention and it probably will be referenced in the legal challenges filed in others states against their laws that seek to prohibit gender transition procedures for minors.

The law is called the Safe Act, which stands for the Arkansas Save Adolescents from Experimentation Act. It passed the Senate by a vote of 28-to-7 and the House of Representatives by a vote of 70-to-22. The governor at the time vetoed it, saying it went too far by denying care to adolescents who were already receiving medical treatment. The legislature overrode his veto.

Since the Safe Act was passed in 2021, Arkansas has elected a new governor and a new attorney general. The current governor criticized the federal judge’s ruling and the current attorney general said that the state would appeal it.

The federal judge ruled that Act 626 violates the equal protection clause of the Constitution because transgender adolescents would be denied medical care recommended by their physicians after consultation with their parents.

Every parent has the right to seek medical care for their children, the judge ruled, adding that the state’s evidence was insufficient to support its claims that the procedures banned by Act 626 are more dangerous than other medical procedures that are allowed for children.

The parents of adolescents who have received gender transition medical treatment testified that it helped their children. The state did not rebut their testimony. Several physicians and expert witnesses testified about the positive effect of gender transition medical treatment, and the state presented no evidence to dispute them.

The state presented only one expert witness who has experience treating adolescents with gender issues. The judge said he was a credible witness. However the witness’s testimony revealed a conflict between his scientific knowledge and his faith.

Another expert witness for the state is a sociologist. The judge did not credit his testimony because he lacked relevant experience and his evidence did not support his conclusions.

The judge said that another expert witness for the state, a physician who does plastic surgery, was not qualified to offer opinions in the case.

The state’s expert witnesses cited public health guidelines in the United Kingdom, Sweden and Finland to defend Act 626. However, the judge ruled that evidence shows that those countries do not prohibit gender transition care for minors.

“Most of the state’s expert witnesses … were unqualified to offer relevant expert testimony and offered unreliable testimony,” the judge said in his ruling. On the other hand, the expert witnesses presented by the plaintiffs all showed deep knowledge of the subject matter, and provided credible testimony relevant to the case.

The judge said on numerous occasions in his 80-page ruling that testimony presented by the state was lacking, or insufficient or irrelevant.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Act 626 would prohibit medical procedures that benefit adolescents, the judge ruled. His order prevents the state from enforcing it.

Chris

Chris Bruce, age 64, of Plunketville, Oklahoma, died Monday, June 12, 2023, at his home. He was born on Tuesday, April 21, 1959, to Elva Bruce and Roberta Wilson in Mena, Arkansas.

Bruce Bruce. Chris is survived by three brothers and sister-in-law, Giles and Dorothy Bruce of Mena, Ray Bruce of Plunketville, Oklahoma, and Ronald Bruce of Plunketville, Oklahoma; two sisters and brother-in-law, Dorie and Jerry Smith of Plunketville, Oklahoma, and Normie Curry of Smithville, Oklahoma; numerous nephews and nieces and a host of other relatives and good friends.

Chris was a funny, generous, and reliable man who touched the lives of many. He resided in Plunketville, Oklahoma, where he was known as a successful logger and a completely self-made businessman. Throughout his life, Chris worked hard to develop a successful business in the timber industry and was admired by his community for his unwavering dedication and perseverance.

Chris’s love for the outdoors extended far beyond his work in logging. He enjoyed traveling for work, working on vehicles, and listening to old country western music. A man of many talents, Chris was a top-notch mechanic, always ready to lend a helping hand to friends and family in need. Every Sunday morning, he enjoyed listening to gospel music on the radio. He was well-liked within his community and never hesitated to share his warmth, humor, and kindness with those around him. Above all, what mattered most to Chris was his late wife, Karla Bruce, whom he cherished deeply.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Elva and Roberta Bruce; three brothers, Eugene Bruce, Harvey Bruce, and Harold Bruce; and three sisters, June Daly, Doreen Bruce-Youngblood, and Bertie Jean