Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
Act 610 of the Regular Session
*KMW014* 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
State of Arkansas As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 SENATE BILL 88 3
4
By: Joint Budget Committee 5
6
7
For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO MAKE AN APPROPRIATION FOR PERSONAL SERVICES 9
AND OPERATING EXPENSES FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF 10
EDUCATION - DIVISION OF HIGHER EDUCATION FOR THE 11
FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2026; AND FOR OTHER 12
PURPOSES. 13
14
15
Subtitle 16
AN ACT FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION - 17
DIVISION OF HIGHER EDUCATION 18
APPROPRIATION FOR THE 2025 -2026 FISCAL 19
YEAR. 20
21
22
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 23
24
SECTION 1. REGULAR SALARIES - GENERAL OPERATIONS. There is hereby 25
established for the Department of Education - Division of Higher Education 26
for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the following maximum number of regular 27
employees. 28
29
Maximum Annual 30
Maximum Salary Rate 31
Item Class No. of Fiscal Year 32
No. Code Title Employees 2025 -2026 33
(1) U024U DHE DIRECTOR 1 GRADE SE05 34
(2) D022N IT SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER 1 GRADE IT09 35
(3) D012C DATABASE SPECIALIST 2 GRADE IT08 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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(4) D007C INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGER 2 GRADE IT08 1
(5) D028C SENIOR SOFTWARE SUPPORT SPECIALIST 1 GRADE IT07 2
(6) D016C SENIOR TECHNOLOGY ANALYST 1 GRADE IT06 3
(7) G281C ADE POLICY & SPECIAL PROJECTS DIRECTOR 1 GRADE GS15 4
(8) N002N DHE SENIOR ASSOC DIRECTOR 1 GRADE GS15 5
(9) N069N ADE SPECIAL ADVISOR 1 GRADE GS14 6
(10) N055N DHE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR 1 GRADE GS14 7
(11) A010C AGENCY CONTROLLER II 1 GRADE GS13 8
(12) N054N DHE CAREER PATHWAYS DIRECTOR 1 GRADE GS13 9
(13) N167N DHS POLICY & RESEARCH DIRECTOR 1 GRADE GS12 10
(14) A027C ACCOUNTING OPERATIONS MANAGER 1 GRADE GS11 11
(15) G058C DHE FEDERAL PROGRAM MANAGER 2 GRADE GS11 12
(16) E061C ACE PROGRAM COORDINATOR 1 GRADE GS10 13
(17) G071C DHE PROGRAM COORDINATOR 6 GRADE GS10 14
(18) E062C ACE PROGRAM ADVISOR 2 GRADE GS09 15
(19) G102C DHE PROGRAM SPECIALIST 18 GRADE GS09 16
(20) G080C NATIONAL & COMMUNITY SVCS EXEC. DIR. 1 GRADE GS09 17
(21) G295C OSTEOPATHIC RURAL MED PROG ADMIN 1 GRADE GS09 18
(22) G147C GRANTS COORDINATOR 1 GRADE GS07 19
(23) G180C GRANTS ANALYST 1 GRADE GS06 20
(24) A084C PROGRAM/FIELD AUDIT SPECIALIST 1 GRADE GS06 21
(25) C056C ADMINISTRATIVE SPECIALIST III 1 GRADE GS04 22
(26) C073C ADMINISTRATIVE SPECIALIST II 1 GRADE GS03 23
MAX. NO. OF EMPLOYEES 52 24
25
SECTION 2. EXTRA HELP - GENERAL OPERATIONS. There is hereby 26
authorized, for the Department of Education - Division of Higher Education 27
for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the following maximum number of part -time or 28
temporary employees, to be known as "Extra Help", payable from funds 29
appropriated herein for such purposes: fifteen (15) temporary or part -time 30
employees, when needed, at rates of pay not to exceed those provided in the 31
Uniform Classification and Compensation Act, or its successor, or this act 32
for the appropriate classification. 33
34
SECTION 3. APPROPRIATION - GENERAL OPERATIONS. There is hereby 35
appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the Division 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
3 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
of Higher Education Fund Account, for personal services and operating 1
expenses of the Department of Education - Division of Higher Education - 2
General Operations for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 3
4
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 5
NO. 2025 -2026 6
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $2,367,990 7
(02) EXTRA HELP 75,000 8
(03) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 777,058 9
(04) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 10
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 909,346 11
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 49,659 12
(C) PROF. FEES 25,000 13
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 50,000 14
(E) DATA PROC. 0 15
(05) STATEWIDE PROMOTION 295,000 16
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $4,549,053 17
18
SECTION 4. EXTRA HELP - STATE BOARD OF PRIVATE CAREER EDUCATION. There 19
is hereby authorized, for the Department of Education - Division of Higher 20
Education - State Board of Private Career Education for the 2025 -2026 fiscal 21
year, the following maximum number of part -time or temporary employees, to be 22
known as "Extra Help", payable from funds appropriated herein for such 23
purposes: two (2) temporary or part -time employees, when needed, at rates of 24
pay not to exceed those provided in the Uniform Classification and 25
Compensation Act, or its successor, or this act for the appropriate 26
classification. 27
28
SECTION 5. APPROPRIATION - STATE BOARD OF PRIVATE CAREER EDUCATION - 29
OPERATIONS. There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to 30
be payable from the Private Career Education Fund, for personal services and 31
operating expenses of the Department of Education - Division of Higher 32
Education - State Board of Private Career Education - Operations for the 33
fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 34
35
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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NO. 2025 -2026 1
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $163,983 2
(02) EXTRA HELP 20,000 3
(03) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 55,427 4
(04) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 5
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 63,000 6
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 4,000 7
(C) PROF. FEES 6,000 8
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 9
(E) DATA PROC. 0 10
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $312,410 11
12
SECTION 6. APPROPRIATION - STUDENT ASSISTANCE GRANTS AND VARIOUS 13
SCHOLARSHIPS. There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, 14
to be payable from the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, for providing 15
student assistance grants and various scholarships as provided by law of the 16
Department of Education - Division of Higher Education - Student Assistance 17
Grants and Various Scholarships for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the 18
following: 19
20
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 21
NO. 2025 -2026 22
(01) ARKANSAS FUTURE GRANTS $5,000,000 23
(02) NATIONAL GUARD TUITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM 4,400,000 24
(03) SINGLE PARENT SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM 175,000 25
(04) STATE TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAM 4,000,000 26
(05) TEACHER OPPORTUNITY PROGRAM 2,500,000 27
(06) AR GEOGRAPHICAL CRITICAL NEEDS 28
MINORITY TEACHER SCHOLARSHIPS 150,000 29
(07) ARKANSAS HEROES SCHOLARSHIP 5,500,000 30
(08) GOVERNOR'S HIGHER EDUCATION 31
TRANSITION SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM 2,000,000 32
(09) SREB MINORITY DOCTORAL SCHOLARS 175,000 33
(10) WASHINGTON CENTER SCHOLARSHIPS 150,000 34
(11) TUITION ADJUSTMENT 350,000 35
(12) AR ACADEMIC CHALLENGE SCHOLARSHIPS 25,000,000 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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(13) AR GOVERNOR'S SCHOLAR 22,000,000 1
(14) STUDENT UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM (SURF) 150,000 2
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $71,550,000 3
4
SECTION 7. APPROPRIATION - TECHNICAL EDUCATION - FEDERAL PROGRAMS. 5
There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable 6
from the federal funds as designated by the Chief Fiscal Officer of the 7
State, for personal services and operating expenses of the Department of 8
Education - Division of Higher Education - Technical Education - Federal 9
Programs for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 10
11
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 12
NO. 2025 -2026 13
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $139,791 14
(02) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 49,594 15
(03) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 16
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 108,271 17
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 80,000 18
(C) PROF. FEES 157,000 19
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 20
(E) DATA PROC. 0 21
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $534,656 22
23
SECTION 8. APPROPRIATION - RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM. There is 24
hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the 25
Research Development Fund, for providing Arkansas Research Development 26
Program Grants to Institutions of Higher Education by the Department of 27
Education - Division of Higher Education - Research Development Program for 28
the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 29
30
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 31
NO. 2025 -2026 32
(01) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM GRANTS $750,000 33
34
SECTION 9. APPROPRIATION - HEALTH EDUCATION GRANTS AND LOANS. There is 35
hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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Higher Education Grants Fund Account, for payments of contracts and loans 1
with participating out -of-state institutions of higher learning in the fields 2
of dentistry, optometry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, and podiatry for 3
the education of Arkansas citizens by the Department of Education - Division 4
of Higher Education - Health Education Grants and Loans for the fiscal year 5
ending June 30, 2026, the following: 6
7
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 8
NO. 2025 -2026 9
(01) CHIROPRACTIC AID $260,000 10
(02) DENTAL AID - GRANTS 2,950,000 11
(03) OPTOMETRY AID - GRANTS 650,000 12
(04) PODIATRY AID 130,400 13
(05) VETERINARY AID FORGIVENESS PROGRAM 1,750,000 14
(06) DENTAL AID - LOANS 987,370 15
(07) OPTOMETRY AID - LOANS 140,000 16
(08) VETERINARY MED. LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM 250,000 17
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $7,117,770 18
19
SECTION 10. APPROPRIATION - CASH. There is hereby appropriated, to the 20
Department of Education, to be payable from the cash fund deposited in the 21
State Treasury as determined by the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State, for 22
operating expenses of the Department of Education - Division of Higher 23
Education - Cash for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 24
25
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 26
NO. 2025 -2026 27
(01) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 28
(A) OPER. EXPENSE $269,233 29
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 32,865 30
(C) PROF. FEES 63,932 31
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 32
(E) DATA PROC. 0 33
(02) SCHOLARSHIPS 50,000 34
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $416,030 35
36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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SECTION 11. APPROPRIATION - PRIVATE CAREER EDUCATION BOARD - CASH. 1
There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable 2
from the cash fund deposited in the State Treasury as determined by the Chief 3
Fiscal Officer of the State, for operating expenses of the Department of 4
Education - Division of Higher Education - Private Career Education Board - 5
Cash for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 6
7
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 8
NO. 2025 -2026 9
(01) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 10
(A) OPER. EXPENSE $9,500 11
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 6,000 12
(C) PROF. FEES 5,000 13
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 14
(E) DATA PROC. 0 15
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $20,500 16
17
SECTION 12. APPROPRIATION - STUDENT PROTECTION TRUST. There is hereby 18
appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the Private 19
Career School Student Protection Trust Fund, for expenses, claims and fees of 20
the Department of Education - Division of Higher Education - State Board of 21
Private Career Education - Student Protection Trust for the fiscal year 22
ending June 30, 2026, the following: 23
24
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 25
NO. 2025 -2026 26
(01) EXPENSES/CLAIMS/FEES $300,000 27
28
SECTION 13. APPROPRIATION - TANF PROGRAM - FEDERAL. There is hereby 29
appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the federal 30
funds as designated by the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State, for personal 31
services, operating expenses, grants and aid by the Department of Education - 32
Division of Higher Education - TANF Program - Federal for the fiscal year 33
ending June 30, 2026, the following: 34
35
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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NO. 2025 -2026 1
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $292,016 2
(02) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 100,134 3
(03) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 4
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 80,000 5
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 60,000 6
(C) PROF. FEES 70,000 7
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 8
(E) DATA PROC. 0 9
(04) SELF SUFFICIENCY/JOB TRAINING GRANTS 6,547,850 10
(05) ENROLLMENT AND EDUCATION 3,000,000 11
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $10,150,000 12
13
SECTION 14. APPROPRIATION - WEB BASED APPLICATIONS. There is hereby 14
appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the Higher 15
Education Grants Fund Account, for personal services and operating expenses 16
associated with web based applications of the Department of Education - 17
Division of Higher Education - Web Based Applications for the fiscal year 18
ending June 30, 2026, the following: 19
20
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 21
NO. 2025 -2026 22
(01) WEB BASED APPLICATIONS PERSONAL 23
SERVICES AND OPERATING EXPENSES $500,000 24
25
SECTION 15. APPROPRIATION - SCHOLARSHIP ADMINISTRATION. There is 26
hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the 27
Higher Education Grants Fund Account, for personal services and operating 28
expenses of the Department of Education - Division of Higher Education - 29
Scholarship Administration for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the 30
following: 31
32
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 33
NO. 2025 -2026 34
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $282,079 35
(02) EXTRA HELP 10,000 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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(03) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 107,174 1
(04) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 2
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 285,000 3
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 0 4
(C) PROF. FEES 30,000 5
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 6
(E) DATA PROC. 0 7
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $714,253 8
9
SECTION 16. APPROPRIATION - WORKFORCE INITIATIVE ACT OF 2015. There is 10
hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the 11
Workforce Initiative Act of 2015 Fund, for workforce education grants, 12
administrative and operating expenses of the Department of Education - 13
Division of Higher Education - Workforce Initiative Act of 2015 for the 14
fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 15
16
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 17
NO. 2025 -2026 18
(01) WORKFORCE INITIATIVE ACT OF 2015 EXPENSES $8,000,000 19
20
SECTION 17. APPROPRIATION - VETERAN'S APPROVING AGENCY - FEDERAL. 21
There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable 22
from the federal funds as designated by the Chief Fiscal Officer of the 23
State, for personal services and operating expenses of the Department of 24
Education - Division of Higher Education - Veteran's Approving Agency - 25
Federal for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 26
27
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 28
NO. 2025 -2026 29
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $239,841 30
(02) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 88,427 31
(03) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 32
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 53,546 33
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 9,623 34
(C) PROF. FEES 0 35
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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(E) DATA PROC. 0 1
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $391,437 2
3
SECTION 18. APPROPRIATION - AMERICORPS - OPERATIONS. There is hereby 4
appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the Division 5
of Higher Education Fund Account, for personal services, operating expenses, 6
and grants and aid by the Department of Education - Division of Higher 7
Education - AmeriCorps - Operations for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, 8
the following: 9
10
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 11
NO. 2025 -2026 12
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $324,617 13
(02) EXTRA HELP 30,000 14
(03) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 126,827 15
(04) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 16
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 363,650 17
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 85,650 18
(C) PROF. FEES 2,500 19
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 20
(E) DATA PROC. 0 21
(05) GRANTS AND AID 50,000 22
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $983,244 23
24
SECTION 19. APPROPRIATION - AMERICORPS - GRANTS AND AID. There is 25
hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the 26
Division of Higher Education Fund Account, for grants and aid by the 27
Department of Education - Division of Higher Education - AmeriCorps - Grants 28
and Aid for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 29
30
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 31
NO. 2025 -2026 32
(01) GRANTS AND AID $2,010,704 33
34
SECTION 20. APPROPRIATION - OSTEOPATHIC RURAL MEDICAL PRACTICE STUDENT 35
LOAN AND SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. There is hereby appropriated, to the 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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Department of Education, to be payable from the Higher Education Grants Fund 1
Account, for Osteopathic Rural Medical Practice Student Loan & Scholarship 2
Program loans and/or scholarships by the Department of Education - Division 3
of Higher Education - Osteopathic Rural Medical Practice Student Loan & 4
Scholarship Program for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 5
6
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 7
NO. 2025 -2026 8
(01) OSTEOPATHIC RURAL MEDICAL PRACTICE 9
STUDENT LOANS/SCHOLARSHIP $400,000 10
11
SECTION 21. APPROPRIATION - GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION RESIDENCY 12
EXPANSION BOARD. There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of 13
Education, to be payable from the Graduate Medical Education Fund, for 14
planning grants to eligible entities for graduate medical education residency 15
program expansion or new programs, and for board expenses and reimbursements 16
of the Department of Education - Division of Higher Education - Graduate 17
Medical Education Residency Expansion Board for the fiscal year ending June 18
30, 2026, the following: 19
20
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 21
NO. 2025 -2026 22
(01) GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION RESIDENCY EXPANSION BOARD $10,000,000 23
24
SECTION 22. APPROPRIATION - HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND 25
UNIVERSITIES GRANTS AND EXPENSES. There is hereby appropriated, to the 26
Department of Education, to be payable from the Higher Education Grants Fund 27
Account, for grants for scholarships to Historically Black Colleges and 28
Universities and for personal services and operating expenses as determined 29
by the Division of Higher Education for outreach programs to promote 30
awareness of those scholarships of the Department of Education - Division of 31
Higher Education - HBCU Grants and Expenses for the fiscal year ending June 32
30, 2026, the following: 33
34
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 35
NO. 2025 -2026 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
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(01) HBCU GRANTS AND EXPENSES $4,000,000 1
2
SECTION 23. APPROPRIATION - ARKANSAS TEACHER ACADEMY SCHOLARSHIP 3
PROGRAM. There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be 4
payable from the Arkansas Teacher Academy Scholarship Program Fund, for 5
scholarships, personal services, and operating expenses necessary to create 6
and maintain the Arkansas Teacher Academy Scholarship Program by the 7
Department of Education - Division of Higher Education - Arkansas Teacher 8
Academy Scholarship Program for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the 9
following: 10
11
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 12
NO. 2025 -2026 13
(01) AR TEACHER ACADEMY SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM $12,000,000 14
15
SECTION 24. APPROPRIATION - SUSTAINABLE BUILDING MAINTENANCE PROGRAM 16
FOR STATE-SUPPORTED INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION. There is hereby 17
appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable from the 18
Sustainable Building Maintenance Program for State -Supported Institutions of 19
Higher Education Revolving Loan Fund, for transfers or loans to a state -20
supported institution of higher education for deferred maintenance, critical 21
maintenance, or renovation of state -owned property of the Department of 22
Education - Division of Higher Education - Sustainable Building Maintenance 23
Program for State-Supported Institutions of Higher Education for the fiscal 24
year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 25
26
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 27
NO. 2025 -2026 28
(01) LOANS $7,437,405 29
30
SECTION 25. REGULAR SALARIES - NORTHWEST TECHNICAL INSTITUTE. 31
There is hereby established for the Department of Education - Division of 32
Higher Education - Northwest Technical Institute for the 2025 -2026 fiscal 33
year, the following maximum number of regular employees. 34
35
Maximum Annual 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
13 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
Maximum Salary Rate 1
Item Class No. of Fiscal Year 2
No. Code Title Employees 2025 -2026 3
(1) NWT10C NWTI DIRECTOR 1 $169,298 4
(2) NWT07C NWTI ASSISTANT DIRECTOR 2 $127,195 5
(3) NWT19P NWTI NURSE INSTRUCTOR 6 $124,726 6
(4) NWT06P NWTI AMMONIA & INDUST TRAIN SUPV/EXPERT 1 $112,976 7
(5) NWT12P NWTI EDUC PROG SUPV/EXPERT 3 $112,976 8
(6) NWT01P NWTI ACCOUNTANT II 1 $95,564 9
(7) NWT09P NWTI CAREER & TECH FACULTY II 7 $95,564 10
(8) NWT05P NWTI AMMONIA & INDUST TRAINER 2 $93,367 11
(9) NWT21P NWTI USER SUPPORT ANALYST 2 $89,613 12
(10) NWT08P NWTI CAREER & TECH FACULTY I 28 $86,876 13
(11) NWT11P NWTI EDUCATION PROGRAM COORDINATOR 3 $84,879 14
(12) NWT13P NWTI EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT 1 $84,879 15
(13) NWT15P NWTI HR COORDINATOR 1 $84,879 16
(14) NWT20P NWTI TRAINER 3 $84,879 17
(15) NWT17P NWTI MAINT SUPERVISOR/EXPERT 2 $77,163 18
(16) NWT02P NWTI ADMINISTRATIVE ANALYST 2 $70,148 19
(17) NWT03P NWTI ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATOR 5 $63,770 20
(18) NWT14P NWTI FISCAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST 1 $63,770 21
(19) NWT16P NWTI HR SPECIALIST 1 $63,770 22
(20) NWT18P NWTI MAINTENANCE TECHNICIAN 3 $57,973 23
(21) NWT04P NWTI ADMINISTRATIVE SPECIALIST 4 $52,703 24
MAX. NO. OF EMPLOYEES 79 25
26
SECTION 26. EXTRA HELP - NORTHWEST TECHNICAL INSTITUTE. There is 27
hereby authorized, for the Department of Education - Division of Higher 28
Education - Northwest Technical Institute for the 2025 -2026 fiscal year, the 29
following maximum number of part -time or temporary employees, to be known as 30
"Extra Help", payable from funds appropriated herein for such purposes: one 31
hundred thirty-five (135) temporary or part -time employees, when needed, at 32
rates of pay not to exceed those provided in the Uniform Classification and 33
Compensation Act, or its successor, or this act for the appropriate 34
classification. 35
36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
14 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
SECTION 27. APPROPRIATION - NORTHWEST TECHNICAL INSTITUTE - STATE. 1
There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable 2
from the Northwest Technical Institute Fund, for personal services and 3
operating expenses of the Department of Education - Division of Higher 4
Education - Northwest Technical Institute - State for the fiscal year ending 5
June 30, 2026, the following: 6
7
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 8
NO. 2025 -2026 9
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $3,199,793 10
(02) EXTRA HELP 453,411 11
(03) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 1,199,110 12
(04) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 13
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 668,564 14
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 44,866 15
(C) PROF. FEES 0 16
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 17
(E) DATA PROC. 0 18
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $5,565,744 19
20
SECTION 28. APPROPRIATION - NORTHWEST TECHNICAL INSTITUTE - FEDERAL. 21
There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable 22
from the federal funds as designated by the Chief Fiscal Officer of the 23
State, for personal services and operating expenses of the Department of 24
Education - Division of Higher Education - Northwest Technical Institute - 25
Federal for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following: 26
27
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 28
NO. 2025 -2026 29
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $82,696 30
(02) EXTRA HELP 171,492 31
(03) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 47,690 32
(04) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 33
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 14,278 34
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 0 35
(C) PROF. FEES 0 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
15 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 0 1
(E) DATA PROC. 0 2
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $316,156 3
4
SECTION 29. APPROPRIATION - NORTHWEST TECHNICAL INSTITUTE - CASH. 5
There is hereby appropriated, to the Department of Education, to be payable 6
from cash funds as defined by Arkansas Code §19 -4-801, for personal services 7
and operating expenses of the Department of Education - Division of Higher 8
Education - Northwest Technical Institute - Cash for the fiscal year ending 9
June 30, 2026, the following: 10
11
ITEM FISCAL YEAR 12
NO. 2025 -2026 13
(01) REGULAR SALARIES $1,005,551 14
(02) EXTRA HELP 556,450 15
(03) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 440,606 16
(04) MAINT. & GEN. OPERATION 17
(A) OPER. EXPENSE 1,894,530 18
(B) CONF. & TRAVEL 15,000 19
(C) PROF. FEES 275,000 20
(D) CAP. OUTLAY 200,000 21
(E) DATA PROC. 0 22
(05) RESALE 325,000 23
TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $4,712,137 24
25
SECTION 30. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 26
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 27
DHE - REALLOCATION OF RESOURCES FOR INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION. Upon 28
determination by the president or chancellor of an institution of higher 29
education that a reallocation of resources for purposes of reorganization or 30
consolidation of administrative functions within the institution is necessary 31
for efficient and effective operations of the institution, the president or 32
chancellor, with approval of the institution's board of trustees, may have 33
the authority to transfer positions, appropriations and related funds between 34
campuses, divisions, branches, and other budgetary units of the institution, 35
after receiving prior approval of the Legislative Council or Joint Budget 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
16 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
Committee. The transfers of positions, programs, or activities shall be used 1
for those purposes for which the appropriations were approved by the General 2
Assembly. The transfers, consolidations, or reorganizations which involve 3
academic programs shall be reviewed by the Division of Higher Education prior 4
to submission to the Legislative Council or Joint Budget Committee. Provided, 5
however, that the institution shall be limited to submitting no more than two 6
(2) individual transaction transfer requests during any fiscal year and shall 7
be further limited to no more than five percent (5%) of the total General 8
Revenue and Special Revenue appropriation, funding, positions specific to 9
each institution, and no Tobacco Settlement funds or appropriations may be 10
reallocated pursuant to this section. 11
Determining the maximum number of employees and the maximum amount of 12
appropriation and general revenue funding for institutions of higher 13
education each fiscal year is the prerogative of the General Assembly. This 14
is usually accomplished by delineating such maximums in the appropriation 15
act(s) for institutions of higher education and the general revenue 16
allocations authorized for each fund and fund account by amendment to the 17
Revenue Stabilization law. Further, the General Assembly has determined that 18
institutions of higher education may operate more efficiently if some 19
flexibility is provided to institutions of higher education authorizing broad 20
powers under this section. Therefore, it is both necessary and appropriate 21
that the General Assembly maintain oversight by requiring prior approval of 22
the Legislative Council or Joint Budget Committee as provided by this 23
section. The requirement of approval by the Legislative Council or Joint 24
Budget Committee is not a severable part of this section. If the requirement 25
of approval by the Legislative Council or Joint Budget Committee is ruled 26
unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, this entire section is 27
void. 28
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 29
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 30
31
SECTION 31. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 32
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 33
DHE - BUILDING MAINTENANCE FUND. After the sum of $13,200,000 has been 34
deposited into the Higher Education Building Maintenance Fund, any additional 35
deposits are to be transferred to the Research Development Fund there to be 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
17 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
used as provided by law. 1
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 2
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 3
4
SECTION 32. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 5
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 6
DHE - TRANSFER PROVISION. Upon certification by the Director of the Division 7
of Higher Education that transfers are needed to make maximum utilization of 8
funds and appropriations provided for financial aid programs, and with the 9
approval of the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State and a review by the 10
Arkansas Legislative Council or Joint Budget Committee, funds and 11
appropriations may be transferred between financial aid programs to more 12
adequately align the appropriation with the number of eligible students. 13
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 14
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 15
16
SECTION 33. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 17
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 18
DHE - TRANSFER OF HIGHER EDUCATION GRANTS FUND APPROPRIATIONS - HEALTH 19
EDUCATION GRANTS AND LOANS. Upon certification to and with the approval of 20
the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State, surplus funds and appropriations may 21
be transferred between the appropriations provided for "Health Education 22
Grants and Loans" by this Act by the General Assembly for Dental Aid Grants 23
and Loans, Optometry Aid Grants and Loans, Veterinary Aid, Veterinary Med. 24
Loan Forgiveness Program, Podiatry Aid, and Chiropractic Aid. 25
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 26
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 27
28
SECTION 34. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 29
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 30
DHE - CONTINGENCY APPROPRIATIONS - TRANSFERS AND REPORTS. (a) Upon approval 31
by the Department of Education - Division of Higher Education and the Chief 32
Fiscal Officer of the State, institutions of higher education may transfer 33
appropriation from the cash contingency appropriation to any other 34
appropriation made to the institution from cash funds including the 35
establishment of commitment items, and may transfer appropriation from the 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
18 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
contingency appropriation made payable from each institution’s State Treasury 1
Fund to the state operations appropriation made payable from each 2
institution’s State Treasury Fund including the establishment of commitment 3
items, and may transfer appropriation from the contingency appropriation made 4
payable from the Tobacco Settlement Program Fund Accounts to any other 5
appropriation made to the institution from Tobacco Settlement Program Fund 6
Accounts including the establishment of commitment items. 7
(b) Contingency appropriation transfers shall only establish and 8
supplement commitment items that were recommended by the Higher Education 9
Coordinating Board in the budget manuals presented to the Legislative Council 10
and Joint Budget Committee. 11
(c) The Department of Education - Division of Higher Education shall 12
report contingency appropriation transfers and the establishment of any 13
commitment items authorized by this Section to the Legislative Council or 14
Joint Budget Committee for review during its July meeting. The report shall 15
include, by institution, the establishment of, and the amounts transferred 16
to, each commitment item, the reasons therefor and the source of funds. 17
Institutions shall submit contingency appropriation transfer and commitment 18
item establishment requests authorized by this Section to the D ivision of 19
Higher Education no later than July 1. Upon the failure of an institution to 20
submit the required information by the July 1 deadline, the Department of 21
Education - Division of Higher Education shall immediately notify by written 22
notification the chairpersons of the Legislative Council or Joint Budget 23
Committee. 24
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 25
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 26
27
SECTION 35. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 28
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 29
DHE WORKFORCE INITIATIVE ACT FUNDING. The Chief Fiscal Officer of the State 30
may transfer, on his or her books and those of the State Treasurer and the 31
Auditor of the State, funding up to the amount authorized in the Workforce 32
Initiative Act of 2015 appropriation section in this Act, from the Division 33
of Higher Education Fund Account to the Workforce Initiative Act of 2015 Fund 34
in order to finance the distribution of grants identified under §6-60-107. 35
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
19 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 1
2
SECTION 36. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 3
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 4
DHE - STATEWIDE SCHOLARSHIP AND GRANT PROMOTION. Of the general revenue that 5
is received by and distributed from the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, 6
the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State shall transfer two hundred ninety -five 7
thousand dollars ($295,000) to the Division of Higher Education Fund Account 8
to be allocated, budgeted, committed and distributed to the Statewide 9
Scholarship and Grant Promotion line item in the General Operations section 10
of this Act for the purpose of increasing public awareness of the 11
scholarships and grants programs and initiatives offered by the State through 12
the Arkansas Department of Education - Division of Higher Education. The 13
Department shall utilize a minimum of one hundred forty -seven thousand five 14
hundred dollars ($147,500) of the aforementioned total specifically for the 15
promotion of the Arkansas Future Grant Program. 16
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 17
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 18
19
SECTION 37. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS 20
CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. 21
GOVERNOR'S HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSITION SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. The Department 22
of Education - Division of Higher Education shall provide for the 23
administration of the "Governor's Higher Education Transition Scholarship 24
Program" as appropriated in the Student Assistance Grants and Various 25
Scholarships Appropriation section of this Act to assist students accepted 26
into transitional programs for students with intellectual and/or 27
developmental disabilities at state institutions of higher education and 28
shall promulgate rules for the implementation of the program and for the 29
disbursement of scholarships to eligible students. 30
The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from July 1, 2024 31
2025 through June 30, 2025 2026. 32
33
SECTION 38. COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAWS. Disbursement of funds 34
authorized by this act shall be limited to the appropriation for such agency 35
and funds made available by law for the support of such appropriations; and 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 S4/3/25 SB88
20 04-03-2025 14:49:24 KMW014
the restrictions of the State Procurement Law, the General Accounting and 1
Budgetary Procedures Law, the Revenue Stabilization Law, the Regular Salary 2
Procedures and Restrictions Act, or their successors, and other fiscal 3
control laws of this State, where applicable, and regulations promulgated by 4
the Department of Finance and Administration, as authorized by law, shall be 5
strictly complied with in disbursement of said funds. 6
7
SECTION 39. LEGISLATIVE INTENT. It is the intent of the General 8
Assembly that any funds disbursed under the authority of the appropriations 9
contained in this act shall be in compliance with the stated reasons for 10
which this act was adopted, as evidenced by the Agency Requests, Executive 11
Recommendations and Legislative Recommendations contained in the budget 12
manuals prepared by the Department of Finance and Administration, letters, or 13
summarized oral testimony in the official minutes of the Arkansas Legislative 14
Council or Joint Budget Committee which relate to its passage and adoption. 15
16
SECTION 40. EMERGENCY CLAUSE. It is found and determined by the 17
General Assembly, that the Constitution of the State of Arkansas prohibits 18
the appropriation of funds for more than a one (1) year period; that the 19
effectiveness of this Act on July 1, 2025 is essential to the operation of 20
the agency for which the appropriations in this Act are provided, and that in 21
the event of an extension of the legislative session, the delay in the 22
effective date of this Act beyond July 1, 2025 could work irreparable harm 23
upon the proper administration and provision of essential governmental 24
programs. Therefore, an emergency is hereby declared to exist and this Act 25
being necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health 26
and safety shall be in full force and effect from and after July 1, 2025. 27
28
/s/Joint Budget Committee 29
30
31
APPROVED: 4/14/25 32
33
34
35
36