Grandparent-visits bill fails in Arkansas Senate

The Senate failed to pass a bill Monday that would expand the rights of grandparents who want to visit their grandchildren when a parent objects.

House Bill 1773 by Rep. Laurie Rushing, R-Hot Springs, would shift the burden of proof so parents would need to show that a grandparent does not have a "significant and viable relationship" and that visitation "is not in the best interest of a child." HB1773 failed in a 14-10 vote, four votes short of the 18 it needed to pass. The vote was later expunged to make way for a future vote.

"Parents still have the right to raise their kids," said Sen. Gary Stubblefield, R-Branch, who presented the bill. "But if they drop them off at their grandparents and leave them five years and come back, scoop them up, and say you can never see them again, that's not right."

President Pro Tempore Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, who argued against the bill, said it could create harmful situations for children.

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"Every bill that we pass, without exception, has a winner and a loser, and it's because these circumstances are so unique, to put something and place the burden on that parent, I think, changes the scale in this situation," he said. "We're going to have some instances and outcomes that are not intended."

Current law already allows grandparents to petition a court for grandchild visitation, but the burden is on them to show that it's in the best interest of the child. Parents would be expected to show that grandparent visitation would be harmful to a child under the bill.

A Section on 03/28/2017

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