Governor receives hate crimes bill

LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas lawmakers on Monday approved a strippeddown alternative to hate crimes legislation that longtime supporters of such laws have criticized as not providing true protections following a succession of new measures restricting the rights of transgender people.

The majority-Republican House voted 65-26 in favor of the measure, called a "class protection" bill, sending it to Gov. Asa Hutchinson's desk. The Republican, who has made enacting a hate crimes law a priority this year, said he plans to sign the bill into law.

Arkansas is one of three states without a hate crimes law, along with South Carolina and Wyoming. Hate crimes legislation is also advancing in South Carolina's Legislature.

The bill requires offenders to serve at least 80% of their sentence if they committed a serious violent felony against someone because of their "mental, physical, biological, cultural, political, or religious beliefs or characteristics." Unlike an earlier hate crimes bill Hutchinson had advocated, the bill doesn't refer to specific categories such as race, sexual orientation or gender identity.

"I believe we have a bill that can develop and garner the necessary consensus, that can send a strong message, that can be comprehensive in its coverage and can be substantial in its punishment," Republican House Speaker Matthew Shepherd said before the vote.

The measure has the backing of business groups in the state, with the state Chamber of Commerce and Springdale-based Tyson Foods endorsing it. The bill, however, was heavily opposed by longtime advocates for hate crimes legislation.