Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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State of Arkansas 1
94th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2023 SENATE BILL 587 3
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By: Senator J. Dismang 5
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For An Act To Be Entitled 7
AN ACT TO PROHIBIT PUBLIC ENTI TIES FROM CONTRACTIN G 8
WITH COMPANIES THAT BENEFIT FROM UYGHUR FORCED LABOR; 9
TO REQUIRE A CERTIFI CATION IN PUBLIC CON TRACTS; AND 10
FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 11
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Subtitle 14
TO PROHIBIT PUBLIC ENTITIES FROM 15
CONTRACTING WITH COMPANIES THAT BENEFIT 16
FROM UYGHUR FORCED LABOR; AND TO REQUIRE 17
A CERTIFICATION IN PUBLIC CONTRACTS. 18
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 21
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SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Legislative findings and intent. 23
(a) The General Assembly finds that: 24
(1) There is currently a cultural and ethnic genocide occurring 25
in Xinjiang, China hidden under the thin cover of “reeducation camps,” as 26
documented through countless investigations, including credible investigative 27
journalism outlets, congressional findi ngs, formal reports issued by the 28
United States Department of State, the United States Department of Homeland 29
Security and other agencies, leaked Chinese government documents and files, 30
and first-hand witness accounts; 31
(2) Outside the internment camps and prisons, the Xinjiang 32
government is implementing an apartheid -like system of persecution of 33
ordinary people, including forced sterilization, forced birth control, forced 34
abortion, forced marriage, forced labor, and other atrocity crimes; 35
(3) These camps and the system of total control target citizens 36 SB587
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on the basis of their religious and ethnic identity, especially Uyghurs, 1
Kazakhs, and Kyrgyz, and other Turkic majority -Muslim peoples. 2
(4) Those who identify with these groups are being placed into 3
camps without cause, tortured, politically indoctrinated, sexually abused, 4
sterilized, and subjected to state -imposed forced labor in factories that 5
they are unable to leave; 6
(5) Within the camps, detainees are required to memorize 7
Communist propaganda , repeat the anthems of the Chinese Communist Party, and 8
are forbidden from expressing any form of their religion including without 9
limitation praying, abstaining from haram foods, owning religious books, 10
having a beard, or wearing the hijab; 11
(6) First-hand accounts of these atrocity crimes detail the 12
horrors occurring, as illustrated in the following account from a book by 13
Gulbahar Haitiwaji and Rozenn Morgat: “Their mouths were gagged, just like 14
mine. Beyond the forest of barbed wire around Baijiantan , the “reeducation” 15
of Uyghurs was proceeding apace. Whether or not they locked us up, China 16
reserved one fate and one fate alone for us all: 'reeducation' through fear, 17
coercion, and censorship. Without distinction, they ground us all underfoot 18
in the open-air prison that Xinjiang had become”; 19
(7) Uyghurs under China’s constant surveillance systems are 20
unable to speak publicly without risking immediate detention, international 21
observers must provide a voice for the voiceless by ensuring by law that 22
international business operations do not lend support and assistance to the 23
atrocity crimes detailed above; 24
(8) In the United States Declaration of Independence, it is 25
stated that all men are created equal and endowed with certain unalienable 26
rights and it is the role of the government to protect and secure the rights 27
of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all people; 28
(9) In Article 2, Section 25 of the Arkansas Constitution, it is 29
stated that “the General Assembly shall enact suitable laws to protect every 30
religious denomination”; 31
(10) The United States Department of State, United States 32
Department of the Treasury, United States Department of Commerce, United 33
States Department of Labor, and United States Department of Homeland Security 34
have condemned the Chinese government’s repression of Uyghurs and have twice, 35
in July 2020 and July 2021, warned American businesses that there is a “high 36 SB587
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risk” of complicity, and of violating federal laws, unless they conduct a 1
detailed analysis of their gl obal supply chains; 2
(11) In December of 2021, the United States led a diplomatic 3
boycott of the Winter Olympics held in Beijing, China, because of the human 4
rights abuses of the country; and 5
(12) Horizon Advisory, in cooperation with Victims of Com munism 6
Memorial Foundation, have documented global business complicity and called on 7
companies in the United States to reassess their role in facilitating China’s 8
abusive domestic and international policies; 9
(13) Under Secretary of State Keith Krach is sued a letter 10
confirming that the People's Republic of China is committing some of the most 11
serious acts involving mass human rights abuses since World War II. He states 12
that “corporate responsibility is social responsibility” and that companies 13
should feel obligated to dissociate themselves from the atrocity crimes 14
occurring in China; 15
(14) In June of 2021, the Uyghur genocide was condemned by the 16
Southern Baptist Convention; 17
(15) Passage of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act on the 18
national level is a significant step towards justice for Uyghurs, and state 19
governments should take further action to ensure that there is more 20
transparency within supply chains; 21
(16) A tremendous amount of companies have been linked to 22
benefitting from the forced labor within this region; 23
(17) Various organizations that support the Uyghurs, such as the 24
Athenai Institute and the Uyghur Human Rights Project, have modeled and 25
support this bill; and 26
(18) This is a cause that many Arkansans support throughout the 27
state, as seen through the widespread support of the youth -led End the Uyghur 28
Genocide project. 29
(b) It is the intent of the General Assembly that a state entity shall 30
not enter into a contract with a company benefiting financially from the use 31
of Uyghur forced labor. 32
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SECTION 2. Arkansas Code Title 25, Chapter 1, Subchapter 1, is amended 34
to add an additional section to read as follows: 35
25-1-126. Prohibition on contracting with entities that use Uyghur 36 SB587
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forced labor - Definitions. 1
(a) As used in this section: 2
(1) “Company” means a sole proprietorship, organization, 3
association, corporation, partnership, joint venture, limited partnership, 4
limited liability partnership, limited liability company, or other entity or 5
business association, including all wholly owned subsidiaries, majority -owned 6
subsidiaries, parent companies, or affiliates of those entities or business 7
associations and: 8
(A) Is directly controlled by the Government of China; 9
(B) Which the Government of China owns a majority 10
interest; or 11
(C) Contracts with or provides goods, services, or credit 12
directly to the Government of China; 13
(2) "Government of China” means: 14
(A) The government of the People’s Republic of China led 15
by the Chinese Communist Party; 16
(B) Any governmental unit of the People’s Republic of 17
China or of a province, region, or other political subdivision of the 18
People’s Republic of China; and 19
(C) Any instrumentality of the People’s Republic of China 20
or the Communist Party of China; and 21
(3) "State entity" means a state government entity, including a 22
department, division, agency, office, commission, board, constitutional 23
office, or other government organization. 24
(b) A state entity shall not enter into or renew a contract with a 25
company to acquire or dispose of services, supplies with a company benefiting 26
financially from the use of Uyghur forced labor. 27
(c) A contract under subsection (b) of this section includes companies 28
that provide services or products including without limitation: 29
(1) Technology; and 30
(2) Construction. 31
(d) To enter into a contract with a company, a state entity shall 32
require the company provide a certificate stating the company: 33
(1) Is not engaged in a busine ss relationship of any kind with a 34
company that benefits from Uyghur forced labor; and 35
(2) Will not enter into a business relationship of any kind with 36 SB587
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a company that benefits from Uyghur forced labor. 1
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