Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
Act 847 of the Regular Session
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State of Arkansas As Engrossed: S4/9/25 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1957 3
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By: Representative S. Meeks 5
By: Senator J. English 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO AMEND THE UNSOLICITED COMMERCIAL AND 9
SEXUALLY EXPLICIT ELECTRONIC MAIL PREVENTION ACT TO 10
INCLUDE UNSOLICITED COMMERCIAL AND SEXUALLY EXPLICIT 11
TEXT MESSAGES; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 12
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Subtitle 15
TO AMEND THE UNSOLICITED COMMERCIAL AND 16
SEXUALLY EXPLICIT ELECTRONIC MAIL 17
PREVENTION ACT TO INCLUDE UNSOLICITED 18
COMMERCIAL AND SEXUALLY EXPLICIT TEXT 19
MESSAGES. 20
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 22
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SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-601 is amended to read as follows: 24
4-88-601. Title. 25
This subchapter may be referred to and cited as the “Unsolicited 26
Commercial and Sexually Explicit Electronic Mail and Text Message Prevention 27
Act”. 28
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SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-602(10)(A)(i), concerning the 30
definition of "preexisting business relationship" under the Unsolicited 31
Commercial and Sexually Explicit Electronic Mail Prevention Act, is amended 32
to read as follows: 33
(10)(A)(i) “Preexisting business relationship” means that there 34
was a business transaction or communication between the sender and the 35
recipient of a commercial electronic mail or text message during the five -36 As Engrossed: S4/9/25 HB1957
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year period preceding the receipt of that message. 1
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SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-602(12), concerning the definition of 3
"unsolicited" under the Unsolicited Commercial and Sexually Explicit 4
Electronic Mail Prevention Act, is amended to read as follows: 5
(12) “Unsolicited” means without the recipient's express 6
permission, except that commercial electronic mail or text message is not 7
unsolicited if the sender has a preexisting business or personal relationship 8
with the recipient. 9
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SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-602, concerning definitions under the 11
Unsolicited Commercial and Sexually Explicit Electronic Mail Prevention Act, 12
is amended to add additional subdivisions to read as follows: 13
(13) "Phone service provider" means a person who: 14
(A) Is an intermediary in the transmission of a text 15
message from the sender to the recipient; or 16
(B) Provides to end users of text message services via a 17
telephone number the ability to send and receive text messages; 18
(14) "Text message" means a message consisting of text, images, 19
sounds, or other information that is transmitted to or from a device that is 20
identified as the receiving or transmitting device by means of a ten (10) 21
digit telephone number; 22
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SECTION 5. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-603 is amended to read as follows: 24
4-88-603. Unsolicited commercial or sexually explicit electronic mail 25
or text message — Requirements. 26
(a) Each person who sends or causes to be sent an unsolicited 27
commercial electronic mail or text message or an unsolicited sexually 28
explicit electronic mail or text message through the intermediary of an 29
electronic mail service provider or to an electronic mail address or phone 30
number held by a resident of the state shall: 31
(1)(A) Conspicuously For a commercial message to an electronic 32
mail address, conspicuously state in the electronic mail the sender's: 33
(A)(i) Legal name; 34
(B)(ii) Correct street address; and 35
(C)(iii) Valid internet domain name; and 36 As Engrossed: S4/9/25 HB1957
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(B) For a commercial text message, conspicuously state 1
the: 2
(i) Person from whom the text message originates; 3
(ii) Purpose of the text message; and 4
(iii) Ability to opt out and method of opting out of 5
receiving further text messages from the person; 6
(2) For a sexually explicit electronic mail, include in the 7
electronic mail a subject line that contains “adv:adult” as the first nine 8
(9) characters; 9
(3) Provide the recipient a convenient, no -cost mechanism to 10
notify the sender not to send any future electronic mail to the recipient, 11
including: 12
(A) Return electronic mail to a valid, functioning return 13
electronic address; and 14
(B) For a sexually explicit electronic mail and if the sender 15
has a toll-free telephone number, the sender's toll -free telephone number; 16
and 17
(4) Conspicuously provide in the text of the electronic mail a 18
notice: 19
(A) That informs the recipient that the recipient may 20
conveniently and at no cost be excluded from future commercial or sexually 21
explicit electronic mail, as the case may be, from the sender; and 22
(B) For sexually explicit electronic mail, if the sender has 23
a toll-free telephone number, that includes the sender's valid, toll -free 24
telephone number that the recipient may call to be excluded from future 25
electronic mail from the sender. 26
(b)(1) A commercial electronic mail or text message is not unsolicited 27
if the sender has a preexisting business or personal relationship with the 28
recipient. 29
(2) The sender of a commercial electronic mail or text message 30
of this nature must still include in the electronic mail message or text 31
message the required disclosures set forth in subdivisions (a)(3) and (4) of 32
this section and shall remove the recipient from future mailings or text 33
messages if requested. 34
(c) A person who sends or causes to be sent an unsolicited commercial 35
electronic mail or an unsolicited sexually explicit electronic mail through 36 As Engrossed: S4/9/25 HB1957
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the intermediary of an electronic mail service provider located in the state 1
or to an electronic mail address held by a resident of the state may shall 2
not: 3
(1) Use a third party's internet domain name in identifying the 4
point of origin or in stating the transmission path of the electronic mail 5
without the third party's consent; 6
(2) Misrepresent any information in identifying the point of 7
origin or the transmission path of the electronic mail; or 8
(3) Fail to include in the electronic mail the information 9
necessary to identify the point of origin of the electronic mail. 10
(d)(1) If the recipient of an unsolicited commercial electronic mail 11
or text message or an unsolicited sexually explicit electronic mail or text 12
message notifies the sender that the recipient does not want to receive 13
future commercial electronic mail or text message or future sexually explicit 14
electronic mail or text message from the sender, the sender may not send that 15
recipient a commercial electronic mail or text message or a sexually explicit 16
electronic mail or text message either directly or through a subsidiary or 17
affiliate. 18
(2) If a recipient has requested to be removed from future 19
mailings or text messages, the sender may recontact the recipient if a 20
preexisting business relationship has been reestablished or if the recipient 21
has expressly requested to receive future mailings or text messages from the 22
sender. 23
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SECTION 6. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-604 is amended to read as follows: 25
4-88-604. Interactive computer service , and electronic mail service 26
provider, and phone service provider authority. 27
(a) An interactive computer service , or electronic mail service 28
provider, or phone service provider may block the receipt or transmission 29
through its service of any bulk electronic mail or text message that it 30
reasonably believes is or will be sent in violation of this subchapter. 31
(b) An interactive computer service , or electronic mail service 32
provider, or phone service provider is not: 33
(1) In violation of this section and the injured party shall not 34
have a cause of action against an interactive computer service , or electronic 35
mail service provider , or phone service provider due to the fact that the 36 As Engrossed: S4/9/25 HB1957
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interactive computer service , or electronic mail service provider , or phone 1
service provider: 2
(A) Is an intermediary between the sender and recipient in 3
the transmission of an electronic mail or text message that violates this 4
section; or 5
(B) Provides transmission of unsolicited commercial 6
electronic mail messages or text messages over the provider's computer 7
network or facilities; or 8
(2) Liable for any action it voluntarily takes in good faith to 9
block the receipt or transmission through its service of any electronic mail 10
or text message advertisements that it believes is or will be sent in 11
violation of this subchapter. 12
(c) An interactive computer service may disconnect or terminate the 13
service of any person who is in violation of this subchapter. 14
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SECTION 7. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-606 is amended to read as follows: 16
4-88-606. Civil action for violation — Election on damages — Costs and 17
attorney's fees — Defense. 18
(a) For any violation of a provision of this subchapter, an action may 19
be brought by: 20
(1) A person who received the unsolicited commercial electronic 21
mail or text message or unsolicited sexually explicit electronic mail or text 22
message that violates this subchapter; or 23
(2) An electronic mail service provider or phone service 24
provider through whose facilities the unsolicited commercial electronic mail 25
or text message or unsolicited sexually explicit electronic mail or text 26
message was transmitted. 27
(b)(1) In each action under subdivision (a)(1) of this section, a 28
recipient or electronic mail service provider or phone service provider may 29
elect, in lieu of actual damages, to recover the lesser of: 30
(A) Ten dollars ($10.00) per unsolicited commercial 31
electronic mail or text message or unsolicited sexually explicit electronic 32
mail or text message sent to a previously opted -out electronic mail address 33
or phone number or transmitted through the electronic mail service provider 34
or phone service provider or otherwise sent in violation of this subchapter; 35
or 36 As Engrossed: S4/9/25 HB1957
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(B) Twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) per day the 1
violation occurs. 2
(2) Each prevailing recipient or electronic mail service 3
provider or phone service provider shall be awarded costs and reasonable 4
attorney's fees. 5
(c) It is an affirmative defense to a violation of this subchapter if 6
a person can demonstrate that the sender at the time of the alleged violation 7
had: 8
(1) Maintained a list of consumers who have notified the person 9
not to send any subsequent commercial electronic messages or text messages; 10
(2) Established and implemented with due care and reasonable 11
practices and procedures to effectively prevent unsolicited commercial 12
electronic mail messages or text messages in violation of this subchapter; 13
(3) Trained the sender's personnel in the requirements of this 14
subchapter; and 15
(4) Maintained records demonstrating compliance with this 16
subchapter. 17
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SECTION 8. Arkansas Code § 4 -88-607(a)(1), concerning the transmission 19
of unsolicited commercial or sexually explicit electronic mail being 20
considered an unfair and deceptive act or practice, is amended to read as 21
follows: 22
(a)(1) Any transmission of unsolicited commercial or sexually explicit 23
electronic mail or text message in violation of this subchapter shall 24
constitute an unfair and deceptive act or practice under § 4 -88-107. 25
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/s/S. Meeks 27
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APPROVED: 4/17/25 30
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