The Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce — or more precisely its director Randy Zook as head of the chamber puppet pro-Issue One committee — filed a motion today to intervene in the lawsuit that says the amendment should be removed from the ballot for unconstitutionally offering up four separate amendments rather than a single issue and upending the balance of power of Arkansas government.

A hearing is set on the taxpayer suit Thursday. It says the legislature — with an amendment written by big business, nursing homes and health care industry — is trying to pull a fast one on voters with a mashup of limits on damages for people injured by corporate negligence and malpractice; a limit on attorney fees; transfer of rule-making authority from the Supreme Court to the legislature, and other changes that essentially end of three-part government and a right to jury trial for civil wrongs.

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In short, the chamber says it’s all good and they have a right to be heard as a major mover behind the legislative resolution that put the measure on the ballot and as a major player in the multi-million-dollar campaign to protect chamber members from lawsuits. The committee, Arkansans for Jobs and Justice, reported having raised $1.5 million in its most recent report but it and allied interest groups — nursing homes and health care, particularly — will be spending much, much more.

Here’s their motion to intervene.

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The motion to intervene was filed by two of the state’s biggest law firms, the Friday firm and the Wright firm.

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