Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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State of Arkansas 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1805 3
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By: Representatives Childress, Hawk 5
By: Senator K. Hammer 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO AMEND THE DEFINITION OF "BULLYING" WITH 9
RESPECT TO PUBLIC SCHOOL ANTIBULLYING POLICIES; TO 10
CREATE A PROCESS WHEREBY A PUBLIC SCHOOL MAY CONDUCT 11
MULTIPLE, SIMULTANEOUS INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE SAME 12
ALLEGATION OF BULLYING UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES; 13
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 14
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Subtitle 17
TO AMEND THE DEFINITION OF "BULLYING"; 18
AND TO CREATE A PROCESS WHEREBY A PUBLIC 19
SCHOOL MAY CONDUCT MULTIPLE, 20
SIMULTANEOUS INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE 21
SAME ALLEGATION OF BULLYING UNDER 22
CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES. 23
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 25
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SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-514(b)(2)(A), concerning the 27
definition of "bullying" as it pertains to school antibullying policies, is 28
amended to read as follows: 29
(2)(A) “Bullying” means the intentional harassment, 30
intimidation, humiliation, ridicule, defamation, or threat or incitement of 31
violence by a student against another student or public school employee by a 32
written, verbal, electronic, or physical act that may: 33
(i) May address an attribute of the other student, 34
public school employee, or person with whom the other student or public 35
school employee is associated and that causes or creates actual or reasonably 36 HB1805
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foreseeable:; 1
(ii) Involves an actual or reasonably perceived 2
power imbalance; 3
(iii) Is repeated or has a high likelihood of 4
repetition; and 5
(iv) Causes or creates actual or reasonably 6
foreseeable: 7
(i)(a) Physical harm to a public school 8
employee or student or damage to the public school employee's or student's 9
property; 10
(ii)(b) Substantial interference with a 11
student's education or with a public school employee's role in education; 12
(iii)(c) A hostile educational environment for 13
one (1) or more students or public school employees due to the severity, 14
persistence, or pervasiveness of the act; or 15
(iv)(d) Substantial disruption of the orderly 16
operation of the public school or educational environment. 17
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SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-514, concerning school antibullying 19
policies, is amended to add additional subsections to read as follows: 20
(m) To prevent multiple, simultaneous investigations into the same 21
alleged conduct, if the facts that support an alleged incident of bullying 22
under this section may also constitute a violation of another state law or 23
rule or federal law or regulation, nothing in this section shall be construed 24
to prevent a public school or public school district from investigating and 25
disposing of the alleged incident of bullying in accordance with the other 26
applicable state law or rule or federal law or regulation in lieu of the 27
requirements of this section. 28
(n) A public school or public school district shall complete the 29
manner of process or investigation selected by the public school or public 30
school district under subsection (m) of this section. 31
(o) This section does not excuse a public school or public school 32
district from complying with applicable obligations under federal law or 33
regulations or state law or rules. 34
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