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Arkansas Senate Bill SB453

Arkansas 2025 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SB453 Compare Versions

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11 Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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33 State of Arkansas 1
44 95th General Assembly A Bill 2
55 Regular Session, 2025 SENATE BILL 453 3
66 4
77 By: Senator B. King 5
88 6
99 7
1010 For An Act To Be Entitled 8
1111 AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE DEPARTMENT OF 9
1212 AGRICULTURE; TO TRANSFER CERTAIN DUTIES TO THE 10
1313 SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE; TO AMEND 11
1414 THE APPOINTMENT AND REAPPOINTMENT PROCESS OF THE 12
1515 SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE; TO 13
1616 PROHIBIT CERTAIN POSITIONS WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF 14
1717 AGRICULTURE FROM BEING FILLED AND TO ELIMINATE THOSE 15
1818 POSITIONS; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 16
1919 17
2020 18
2121 Subtitle 19
2222 TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE 20
2323 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 21
2424 22
2525 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 23
2626 24
2727 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 2 -22-101(14), concerning the definition of 25
2828 the State Apiarist related to the regulation of bees and apiaries, is amended 26
2929 to read as follows: 27
3030 (14) “State Apiarist” means the Director of the Division of Plant 28
3131 Industries of the State Plant Board Secretary of the Department of 29
3232 Agriculture. 30
3333 31
3434 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 2 -33-104 is amended to read as follows: 32
3535 2-33-104. Director Duties of the Secretary of the Department of 33
3636 Agriculture. 34
3737 (a)(1) The Director of the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission 35
3838 shall be appointed by the Governor and shall serve at the pleasure of the 36 SB453
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4141 Governor. 1
4242 (2) The director shall report to the Secretary of the Department 2
4343 of Agriculture. 3
4444 (b)(1) The secretary Secretary of the Department of Agriculture may 4
4545 delegate to the director any of the powers or duties required to administer 5
4646 the: 6
4747 (A) Statutory duties of the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry 7
4848 Commission; and 8
4949 (B) Rules, orders, or directives promulgated or issued by 9
5050 the commission. 10
5151 (2) The director secretary may exercise the powers and duties 11
5252 delegated to him or her under subdivision (b)(1) of under this section in the 12
5353 name of the commission and of the Department of Agriculture. 13
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5555 15
5656 SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 2 -40-206(a)(1)(B)(i), concerning the 16
5757 authority of the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission to promulgate an 17
5858 emergency rule related to bovine disease if an emergency is determined, 18
5959 amended to read as follows: 19
6060 (B)(i) However, if the Director of the Arkansas Livestock 20
6161 and Poultry Commission Secretary of the Department of Agriculture determines 21
6262 there is an emergency, the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission may 22
6363 promulgate a rule to temporarily raise the fee set in subdivision (a)(1)(A) 23
6464 of this section after receiving approval of the rule from the Legislative 24
6565 Council or, if the General Assembly is in session, the Joint Budget 25
6666 Committee. 26
6767 27
6868 SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 15 -31-103(b), concerning the State 28
6969 Forester's membership on the Arkansas Forestry Commission, is amended to read 29
7070 as follows: 30
7171 (b) The State Forester Secretary of the Department of Agriculture 31
7272 provided for in § 15 -31-104 shall be an ex officio member of the Arkansas 32
7373 Forestry Commission commission but shall have no vote on matters coming 33
7474 before it. 34
7575 35
7676 SECTION 5. Arkansas Code § 15 -31-104 is amended to read as follows: 36 SB453
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7979 15-31-104. State Forester. 1
8080 (a) The State Forester shall be appointed by the Governor, and shall 2
8181 serve at the pleasure of the Governor. 3
8282 (b) The State Forester shall report to the Secretary of the Department 4
8383 of Agriculture Secretary of the Department of Agriculture shall act as the 5
8484 State Forester. 6
8585 (c)(1)(b)(1) The secretary may delegate to the State Forester any of 7
8686 the powers or duties required to administer the: 8
8787 (A) Statutory duties of the Arkansas Forestry Commission; 9
8888 and 10
8989 (B) Rules, orders, or directives promulgated or issued by 11
9090 the commission. 12
9191 (2) The State Forester secretary may exercise the powers and 13
9292 duties delegated to him or her under subdivision (c)(1)(b)(1) of this section 14
9393 in the name of the commission and the department Department of Agriculture . 15
9494 (3) The commission may delegate to the department any of the 16
9595 powers or duties vested in or imposed upon the commission by law, and these 17
9696 delegated powers or duties may be exercised by the secretary or his or her 18
9797 designee. 19
9898 (d)(c) The State Forester secretary shall: 20
9999 (1) Have earned at a minimum a bachelor's degree in forestry 21
100100 from an accredited four -year program at an institution of higher education; 22
101101 and 23
102102 (2) Have not less than three (3) years' practical administrative 24
103103 and field experience in forestry. 25
104104 26
105105 SECTION 6. Arkansas Code § 15 -31-116(b)(2), concerning liability 27
106106 related to donated fire control or fire rescue equipment, is amended to read 28
107107 as follows: 29
108108 (2) The commission, the State Forester, the Department of 30
109109 Agriculture, the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, and other 31
110110 officers and employees of the department are not liable in civil damages for 32
111111 personal injury, property damage, or death resulting from a defect in 33
112112 equipment sold, loaned, or otherwise made available in good faith by the 34
113113 State Forester secretary under this section unless the act or omission of the 35
114114 commission, the State Forester, the department, the secretary, or the officer 36 SB453
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117117 or employee of the department proximately causing the claim, damage, or loss 1
118118 constitutes malice, gross negligence, recklessness, or intentional 2
119119 misconduct. 3
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121121 SECTION 7. Arkansas Code § 15 -31-201 is amended to read as follows: 5
122122 15-31-201. Administration. 6
123123 The administration of the provisions of this subchapter shall be under 7
124124 the direction of the State Forester Secretary of the Department of 8
125125 Agriculture. 9
126126 10
127127 SECTION 8. The introductory language of Arkansas Code § 15 -31-202(b), 11
128128 concerning the provision of technical assistance to a forest landowner, is 12
129129 amended to read as follows: 13
130130 (b) Upon receipt of a request from a forest landowner for technical 14
131131 forestry assistance or service, the State Forester Secretary of the 15
132132 Department of Agriculture or his or her authorized agent may: 16
133133 17
134134 SECTION 9. Arkansas Code § 15 -31-203 is amended to read as follows: 18
135135 15-31-203. Payment for services — Free services. 19
136136 (a) For designating, measuring, or estimating services, the landowner 20
137137 or his or her agent, upon presentation of a statement, shall pay to the State 21
138138 Forester Secretary of the Department of Agriculture , within thirty (30) days 22
139139 of receipt of the statement, an amount not to exceed five percent (5%) of the 23
140140 sale price or fair market value of the stumpage so designated and measured or 24
141141 estimated. 25
142142 (b) However, for the purpose of further encouraging the use of 26
143143 approved scientific forestry principles on the private forest lands of this 27
144144 state and to permit explanation of the application of principles, the State 28
145145 Forester secretary, where he or she deems it advisable, may designate and 29
146146 measure or estimate without charge the trees of a forest landowner on an area 30
147147 not in excess of eighty (80) acres. 31
148148 32
149149 SECTION 10. Arkansas Code § 15 -31-205 is amended to read as follows: 33
150150 15-31-205. Disposition of revenues. 34
151151 All moneys collected under the provisions of this subchapter shall be 35
152152 deposited with the State Forester Secretary of the Department of Agriculture 36 SB453
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155155 and shall be used by him or her in carrying out the provisions of this 1
156156 subchapter. 2
157157 3
158158 SECTION 11. Arkansas Code § 15 -33-102 is amended to read as follows: 4
159159 15-33-102. State Forester Secretary of the Department of Agriculture as 5
160160 compact administrator. 6
161161 The State Forester Secretary of the Department of Agriculture is 7
162162 designated as the South Central Interstate Forest Fire Protection Compact 8
163163 administrator for this state and shall consult with like officials of the 9
164164 other member states and shall implement cooperation between member states in 10
165165 forest fire prevention and control. 11
166166 12
167167 SECTION 12. Arkansas Code § 15 -57-315(8)(A), concerning authorization 13
168168 for the Division of Environmental Quality's approval of an operator of an 14
169169 open-cut mine's reclamation plan to be based on advice and technical 15
170170 assistance from certain stakeholders, is amended to read as follows: 16
171171 (8)(A) The division's approval of the operator's reclamation 17
172172 plan may be based upon the advice and technical assistance of the Arkansas 18
173173 Natural Resources Commission, the Arkansas State Game and Fish Commission, 19
174174 the State Forester Secretary of the Department of Agriculture , the Office of 20
175175 the State Geologist, and other agencies or persons having experience in 21
176176 foresting and reclaiming open -cut mined lands with forest or agronomic or 22
177177 horticultural species, based upon scientific knowledge from research into 23
178178 reclaiming and utilizing forest and agronomic species on open -cut mined 24
179179 lands. 25
180180 26
181181 SECTION 13. Arkansas Code § 25 -38-202(b)(2), concerning the 27
182182 appointment of the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, is amended to 28
183183 read as follows: 29
184184 (2)(A)(i) The secretary shall be selected by the Governor and 30
185185 confirmed by the Senate. 31
186186 (ii) A committee composed of members of the Senate 32
187187 whose districts have agriculture as the primary industry as determined by the 33
188188 Governor first shall confirm an individual selected as secretary before the 34
189189 individual selected as secretary is confirmed by the Senate. 35
190190 (B)(i) The secretary shall serve at the pleasure of the 36 SB453
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193193 Governor. 1
194194 (ii) The reappointment of the secretary shall follow 2
195195 the process provided under subdivision (b)(2)(A) of this section. 3
196196 4
197197 SECTION 14. DO NOT CODIFY. Elimination of positions. 5
198198 (a) The General Assembly intends with this act for the following 6
199199 positions at the Department of Agriculture and its divisions to be eliminated 7
200200 and not be filled: 8
201201 (1) Deputy Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, position 9
202202 number 22133710, authorized job U072U, authorized grade SE02; 10
203203 (2) Laboratory Director of the Department of Agriculture, 11
204204 position number 22142797, authorized job U057U, authorized grade SE01; 12
205205 (3) Director of the Arkansas Livestock and Poultry Commission, 13
206206 position number 22177528, authorized job U048U, authorized grade SE01; 14
207207 (4) Director of the Natural Resources Division, position number 15
208208 22087699, authorized job U043U, authorized grade SE01; 16
209209 (5) Director of the Plant Industry Division, position number 17
210210 22088003, authorized job U044U, authorized grade SE01; 18
211211 (6) State Forester, position number 22088666, authorized job 19
212212 U003U, authorized grade SE01; and 20
213213 (7) General Counsel of the Department of Agriculture, position 21
214214 number 22181808, authorized job G345C, authorized grade GS15. 22
215215 (b) To the extent a position listed in subdivision (a)(1) of this 23
216216 section is filled at the effective date of this act, the individual filling 24
217217 the position shall be terminated, and the position shall not be filled 25
218218 following the termination. 26
219219 (c) To the extent that an appropriation bill or a substantive bill 27
220220 enacted by the General Assembly conflicts with this bill draft regarding the 28
221221 positions identified in subsection (a) of this section, this bill draft shall 29
222222 supersede the other bill draft as it relates to the positions identified in 30
223223 subsection (a) of this section. 31
224224 32
225225 SECTION 15. DO NOT CODIFY. Reappointment of the Secretary of the 33
226226 Department of Agriculture. 34
227227 The Secretary of the Department of Agriculture who is in the position 35
228228 at the effective date of this act shall be reappointed, including without 36 SB453
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231231 limitation by submittal to the Senate for confirmation under Section 13 of 1
232232 this act within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this act. 2
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