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 SENATE BILL 135 3
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By: Senator J. Boyd 5
By: Representative Gramlich 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO AMEND ELECTION REQUIREMENTS IN THE CASE OF 9
AN UNCHANGED RATE OF AN ANNUAL AD VALOREM PROPERTY 10
TAX LEVIED BY A PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF 11
DIRECTORS; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 12
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Subtitle 15
TO AMEND ELECTION REQUIREMENTS IN THE 16
CASE OF AN UNCHANGED RATE OF AN ANNUAL 17
AD VALOREM PROPERTY TAX LEVIED BY A 18
PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF 19
DIRECTORS. 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 Title 6, Chapter 14, Subchapter 1, is amended 24
to add an additional section to read as follows: 25
6-14-125. Unchanged rate of annual ad valorem property tax — Election 26
requirements. 27
(a) If the rate of an annual ad valorem property tax on the assessed 28
value of taxable real, personal, and utility property levied by a public 29
school district board of directors under Arkansas Constitution, Article 14, § 30
3(c), is unchanged from the previous rate of the annual ad valorem property 31
tax, then, upon request of the public school district board of directors, the 32
county board of election commissioners of the county in which the public 33
school district is situated may: 34
(1) Reduce the number of polling places; 35
(2) Not open any polling places on election day so that the 36 SB135
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election may be conducted only by absentee ballot and early voting; or 1
(3)(A) Hold the election: 2
(i) As part of the election declared to be by 3
candidate only; or 4
(ii)(a) Through the selection of a qualified elector 5
designated by the public school district board of directors to cast a ballot 6
for the previous, unchanged rate of annual ad valorem property tax at a 7
designated time and location on election day or during the period of time 8
that would otherwise be designated for early voting. 9
(b) A public school district board of 10
directors shall notify the county clerk and the county election commission of 11
the county in which the public school district is situated of the individual 12
designated simultaneously when it submits the rate of tax as required by § 6 -13
14-111(i). 14
(b)(1) For elections held in odd -numbered years, the county board of 15
election commissioners of the county in which the public school district is 16
situated shall not open any polling places on election date. 17
(2) For elections held in conjunction with the preferential 18
primary or general election, the county board of election commissioners of 19
the county in which a public school district is situated shall not place the 20
question for the previous, unchanged rate of annual ad valorem property tax 21
on a ballot for a voter other than the individual designated by the public 22
school district board of directors under subdivision (a)(3)(A)(ii) of this 23
section. 24
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