A state agency is giving Arkansas taxpayer money to an organization that lobbies against conservative legislation. Last year the organization:

1. Lobbied AGAINST legislation to protect children from being subjected to sex change procedures (including such procedures as chemical castration and chemicals to prevent the child from going through puberty). The legislation passed but the organization continues to fight for transgender procedures on minors by joining a lawsuit to try to strike down the new law. [i]
2. Lobbied AGAINST legislation to protect the conscience and religious freedom rights of healthcare workers. [ii] The organization wants to force healthcare workers to perform procedures that violate their conscience or religion. The two most discussed procedures healthcare workers wanted protection from were having to participate in abortions and transgender procedures. The organization would rather force a healthcare worker to violate his or her conscience or religion instead of simply letting another healthcare worker handle the procedure.
3. Lobbied AGAINST legislation that would have protected some unvaccinated workers from employer COVID-19 vaccine mandates. [iii] How have such mandates worked out? Some hospitals in other states fired unvaccinated healthcare professionals and then had such a staff shortage the hospitals had to call back workers who were actually positive for the COVID-19 virus. [iv]

If that is not enough, the organization continually lobbies for state spending and give aways to big corporations which keeps taxes high on small business and individuals.

Who is this organization lobbying against conservative legislation? It is the State Chamber of Commerce.

The State Chamber of Commerce claims conservative legislation is bad for business. If that were true, businesses wouldn’t be leaving California and moving to Florida, Texas, and other conservative states. It would be the other way around.

The State Chamber of Commerce is now fully aligned with WOKE corporations pushing a radical left social agenda.

It is time for conservative business owners to act if they don’t want their organization to be a permanent arm of the radical left.

An example of taxpayer funds going to the State Chamber of Commerce was highlighted by Robert Steinbuch who is a law professor at the UALR law school and a Republican candidate for the Arkansas House of Representatives, District 73. On his Facebook page Steinbuch showed an example, a $25,000 payment from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC) to the State Chamber of Commerce for an awards program.

It is time to stop the flow of taxpayer money to organizations who then spend money to lobby state government.

[i] Companies join to fight state on transgender law, Arkansas Democrat Gazette, 1/20/2021

[ii] Panel’s vote stops bill to let providers decline health care, Arkansas Democrat Gazette, 2/26/ 2021

[iii] Legislators look at blocking employer vaccine mandates, Arkansas Democrat Gazette, 8/11/2021

[iv] https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/staff-shortages-forcing-covid-positive-healthcare-workers-back-faster/ar-AASZuR2 and https://www.businessinsider.com/nurses-with-covid-say-they-are-being-told-to-work-2022-1