Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
 State of Arkansas
 94th General Assembly                        A Bill
 Regular Session, 2023                                                             SENATE BILL 587
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 By: Senator J. Dismang
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                                   For An Act To Be Entitled
                AN ACT TO PROHIBIT PUBLIC ENTITIES FROM CONTRACTING
                WITH COMPANIES THAT BENEFIT FROM UYGHUR FORCED LABOR;
                TO REQUIRE A CERTIFICATION IN PUBLIC CONTRACTS; AND
                FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
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                                               Subtitle
                         TO PROHIBIT PUBLIC ENTITIES FROM
                         CONTRACTING WITH COMPANIES THAT BENEFIT
                         FROM UYGHUR FORCED LABOR; AND TO REQUIRE
                         A CERTIFICATION IN PUBLIC CONTRACTS.
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 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
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        SECTION 1.        DO NOT CODIFY. Legislative findings and intent.
        (a)    The General Assembly finds that:
                (1)      There is currently a cultural and ethnic genocide occurring
 in Xinjiang, China hidden under the thin cover of “reeducation camps,” as
 documented through countless investigations, including credible investigative
 journalism outlets, congressional findings, formal reports issued by the
 United States Department of State, the United States Department of Homeland
 Security and other agencies, leaked Chinese government documents and files,
 and first-hand witness accounts;
                (2)      Outside the internment camps and prisons, the Xinjiang
 government is implementing an apartheid-like system of persecution of
 ordinary people, including forced sterilization, forced birth control, forced
 abortion, forced marriage, forced labor, and other atrocity crimes;
                (3)      These camps and the system of total control target citizens
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 on the basis of their religious and ethnic identity, especially Uyghurs,
 Kazakhs, and Kyrgyz, and other Turkic majority-Muslim peoples.
            (4)    Those who identify with these groups are being placed into
 camps without cause, tortured, politically indoctrinated, sexually abused,
 sterilized, and subjected to state-imposed forced labor in factories that
 they are unable to leave;
            (5)    Within the camps, detainees are required to memorize
 Communist propaganda, repeat the anthems of the Chinese Communist Party, and
 are forbidden from expressing any form of their religion including without
 limitation praying, abstaining from haram foods, owning religious books,
 having a beard, or wearing the hijab;
            (6)    First-hand accounts of these atrocity crimes detail the
 horrors occurring, as illustrated in the following account from a book by
 Gulbahar Haitiwaji and Rozenn Morgat: “Their mouths were gagged, just like
 mine. Beyond the forest of barbed wire around Baijiantan, the “reeducation”
 of Uyghurs was proceeding apace. Whether or not they locked us up, China
 reserved one fate and one fate alone for us all: 'reeducation' through fear,
 coercion, and censorship. Without distinction, they ground us all underfoot
 in the open-air prison that Xinjiang had become”;
            (7)    Uyghurs under China’s constant surveillance systems are
 unable to speak publicly without risking immediate detention, international
 observers must provide a voice for the voiceless by ensuring by law that
 international business operations do not lend support and assistance to the
 atrocity crimes detailed above;
            (8)    In the United States Declaration of Independence, it is
 stated that all men are created equal and endowed with certain unalienable
 rights and it is the role of the government to protect and secure the rights
 of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all people;
            (9)    In Article 2, Section 25 of the Arkansas Constitution, it is
 stated that “the General Assembly shall enact suitable laws to protect every
 religious denomination”;
            (10)   The United States Department of State, United States
 Department of the Treasury, United States Department of Commerce, United
 States Department of Labor, and United States Department of Homeland Security
 have condemned the Chinese government’s repression of Uyghurs and have twice,
 in July 2020 and July 2021, warned American businesses that there is a “high
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                                                                                SB587
 risk” of complicity, and of violating federal laws, unless they conduct a
 detailed analysis of their global supply chains;
            (11)     In December of 2021, the United States led a diplomatic
 boycott of the Winter Olympics held in Beijing, China, because of the human
 rights abuses of the country; and
            (12)     Horizon Advisory, in cooperation with Victims of Communism
 Memorial Foundation, have documented global business complicity and called on
 companies in the United States to reassess their role in facilitating China’s
 abusive domestic and international policies;
            (13)     Under Secretary of State Keith Krach issued a letter
 confirming that the People's Republic of China is committing some of the most
 serious acts involving mass human rights abuses since World War II. He states
 that “corporate responsibility is social responsibility” and that companies
 should feel obligated to dissociate themselves from the atrocity crimes
 occurring in China;
            (14)     In June of 2021, the Uyghur genocide was condemned by the
 Southern Baptist Convention;
            (15)     Passage of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act on the
 national level is a significant step towards justice for Uyghurs, and state
 governments should take further action to ensure that there is more
 transparency within supply chains;
            (16)     A tremendous amount of companies have been linked to
 benefitting from the forced labor within this region;
            (17)     Various organizations that support the Uyghurs, such as the
 Athenai Institute and the Uyghur Human Rights Project, have modeled and
 support this bill; and
            (18)     This is a cause that many Arkansans support throughout the
 state, as seen through the widespread support of the youth-led End the Uyghur
 Genocide project.
      (b)   It is the intent of the General Assembly that a state entity shall
 not enter into a contract with a company benefiting financially from the use
 of Uyghur forced labor.
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      SECTION 2.     Arkansas Code Title 25, Chapter 1, Subchapter 1, is amended
 to add an additional section to read as follows:
      25-1-126. Prohibition on contracting with entities that use Uyghur
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 forced labor - Definitions.
      (a)   As used in this section:
            (1)   “Company” means a sole proprietorship, organization,
 association, corporation, partnership, joint venture, limited partnership,
 limited liability partnership, limited liability company, or other entity or
 business association, including all wholly owned subsidiaries, majority-owned
 subsidiaries, parent companies, or affiliates of those entities or business
 associations and:
                     (A)   Is directly controlled by the Government of China;
                     (B)   Which the Government of China owns a majority
 interest; or
                     (C)   Contracts with or provides goods, services, or credit
 directly to the Government of China;
            (2)   "Government of China” means:
                     (A)   The government of the People’s Republic of China led
 by the Chinese Communist Party;
                     (B)   Any governmental unit of the People’s Republic of
 China or of a province, region, or other political subdivision of the
 People’s Republic of China; and
                     (C)   Any instrumentality of the People’s Republic of China
 or the Communist Party of China; and
            (3) "State entity" means a state government entity, including a
 department, division, agency, office, commission, board, constitutional
 office, or other government organization.
      (b)   A state entity shall not enter into or renew a contract with a
 company to acquire or dispose of services, supplies with a company benefiting
 financially from the use of Uyghur forced labor.
      (c)   A contract under subsection (b) of this section includes companies
 that provide services or products including without limitation:
            (1)   Technology; and
            (2)   Construction.
      (d)   To enter into a contract with a company, a state entity shall
 require the company provide a certificate stating the company:
            (1)   Is not engaged in a business relationship of any kind with a
 company that benefits from Uyghur forced labor; and
            (2)   Will not enter into a business relationship of any kind with
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 a company that benefits from Uyghur forced labor.
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