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Arkansas Senate Bill SCR1

Arkansas 2025 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SCR1 Compare Versions

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33 State of Arkansas 1
44 95th General Assembly 2
55 Regular Session, 2025 SCR 1 3
66 4
77 By: Senator Hester 5
88 By: Representative Evans 6
99 7
1010 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 8
1111 TO ADOPT THE JOINT RULES OF THE HOUSE OF 9
1212 REPRESENTATIVES AND THE SENATE OF THE NINETY -FIFTH 10
1313 GENERAL ASSEMBLY. 11
1414 12
1515 13
1616 Subtitle 14
1717 TO ADOPT THE JOINT RULES OF THE HOUSE OF 15
1818 REPRESENTATIVES AND THE SENATE OF THE 16
1919 NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY. 17
2020 18
2121 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY -FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE 19
2222 STATE OF ARKANSAS, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN: 20
2323 21
2424 SECTION 1. The Joint Rules of the House of Representatives and the 22
2525 Senate of the Ninety -Fifth General Assembly are adopted to read as follows: 23
2626 JOINT RULES 24
2727 OF THE 25
2828 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 26
2929 AND THE SENATE 27
3030 95
3131 th
3232 General Assembly 28
3333 29
3434 Joint Session - How Convened 30
3535 Section 1. When, by the Constitution or laws of the state, a joint 31
3636 meeting of the Senate and House of Representatives is required, they shall 32
3737 assemble with their clerks on the day and at the hour previously agreed on 33
3838 for that purpose in the hall of the House of Representatives. 34
3939 35
4040 Officers of Joint Session 36 SCR1
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4343 Section 2. When the meeting is assembled, the President of the Senate 1
4444 and Speaker of the House shall preside in conjunction, and the meeting shall 2
4545 be governed by such standing rules as shall have been adopted for that 3
4646 purpose by the concurrence of both houses. They shall have power to punish 4
4747 any person, other than a member, for disorderly or contemptuous behavior in 5
4848 their presence, by fine and imprisonment, in the same manner and to the same 6
4949 extent as either house may do, for like conduct before it, by the 7
5050 Constitution and laws of this state. 8
5151 (A) Any member of either house who shall be guilty of 9
5252 disorderly behavior in the presence of the meeting may be punished by the 10
5353 house of which he or she is a member, in the same manner as if the offense 11
5454 had been committed in the presence of that house. 12
5555 (B) The Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House 13
5656 shall both keep records of the proceedings, to be entered on the Journal of 14
5757 their respective houses. 15
5858 16
5959 Manner of Presenting Bills, Etc. 17
6060 Section 3. All bills, resolutions, votes and amendments by either 18
6161 house, to which the concurrence of both is necessary, as well as messages, 19
6262 shall be presented to the other by the Clerk or Secretary of the house from 20
6363 which they are sent or by the assistant secretary or assistant clerk. 21
6464 22
6565 Contents of Bills 23
6666 Section 4. No bill or resolution shall be passed by either house 24
6767 containing more than one subject, which shall be expressed in the title. 25
6868 House bills and resolutions shall have at least one House sponsor, and Senate 26
6969 bills and resolutions shall have at least one Senate Sponsor. House bills, 27
7070 House concurrent resolutions, and House joint resolutions may have Senate 28
7171 sponsors, and Senate bills, Senate concurrent resolutions, and Senate joint 29
7272 resolutions may have House sponsors. 30
7373 31
7474 Notice of Bill Rejection 32
7575 Section 5. When a bill or resolution which has passed one house shall 33
7676 be rejected by the other, notice thereof shall be given to the house in which 34
7777 the same shall have passed. 35
7878 36 SCR1
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8181 Engrossment of Bills 1
8282 Section 6. After adoption of an amendment on the floor of the Senate, 2
8383 regardless whether the bill or resolution originated in the House or the 3
8484 Senate, the Senate shall engross the bill or resolution as amended. After 4
8585 the adoption of the amendment on the floor of the House of Representatives, 5
8686 regardless whether the bill or resolution originated in the House or the 6
8787 Senate, the House of Representatives shall engross the bill or resolution as 7
8888 amended. 8
8989 This rule may be waived by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate or 9
9090 in his or her absence the Chairman of Senate Rules Committee, or the Speaker 10
9191 of the House of Representatives. 11
9292 12
9393 Enrollment of Bills 13
9494 Section 7. When a bill shall have passed both houses, it shall be 14
9595 enrolled by the enrolling clerk of the house in which it originated. 15
9696 16
9797 Section 8. All bills must be enrolled and reported to each house by 17
9898 the committee designated by each house to supervise the enrolling of bills, 18
9999 within three (3) days after their passage; provided, that if the 19
100100 reconsideration of any bill is moved, in either house, previous to its 20
101101 presentation to the Governor, the committee shall hold the same until action 21
102102 is taken upon such motion. 22
103103 23
104104 Section 9. No bill, resolution, or memorial shall be sent to the 24
105105 Governor for his or her approval, unless the same shall have been clearly and 25
106106 fairly enrolled without obliteration or interlineation. 26
107107 27
108108 Signing of Bills 28
109109 Section 10. After examination and report by the committee responsible 29
110110 for enrolling bills, each bill shall be signed by the Speaker of the House of 30
111111 Representatives and by the President of the Senate. Each page of a bill 31
112112 shall be signed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives on the right 32
113113 margin, and shall be signed by the President of the Senate on the left margin 33
114114 of each page. The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President 34
115115 of the Senate shall manually sign each page of each bill, or may provide, at 35
116116 their option and under their supervision, for the affixing thereto of their 36 SCR1
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119119 facsimile signature. 1
120120 2
121121 Conference Committee 3
122122 Section 11. When either body shall request a conference, and appoint a 4
123123 committee for that purpose, the other body shall also appoint a committee of 5
124124 equal number to confer, and such conference shall be held at any time and 6
125125 place agreed upon by the Chairpersons. 7
126126 8
127127 Suspension of Joint Rules 9
128128 Section 12. No joint rules shall be dispensed with but by a concurrent 10
129129 vote of two-thirds (2/3) of each house, and if either house shall violate a 11
130130 joint rule, the question of order may be raised in the other house, and 12
131131 decided in the same manner as in case of a violation of the rules of such 13
132132 house. 14
133133 15
134134 Appropriation Bills 16
135135 Section 13. The general appropriation bill, and all appropriation 17
136136 bills recommended “do pass” by the Joint Budget Committee, shall be 18
137137 privileged bills advanced upon the calendar, and take precedence over all 19
138138 other bills at any time after the reading of the Journal. It shall be in 20
139139 order, by the direction of the appropriate committee, to move that the House 21
140140 or Senate (as the case may be) resolve itself into the committee of the whole 22
141141 house for the purpose of considering the general appropriation bill, and no 23
142142 dilatory motion shall be entertained by the presiding officer. 24
143143 25
144144 Deadline for the Introduction of Bills 26
145145 Section 14. (A) Appropriation Bills. An "appropriation bill" means a 27
146146 bill by the General Assembly that authorizes the expenditure of moneys if 28
147147 moneys are available. 29
148148 (1) No appropriation bill shall be filed for introduction in 30
149149 either the House of Representatives or the Senate later than the fiftieth 31
150150 (50th) day of a regular session except upon consent of two -thirds (2/3) of 32
151151 the members elected to each house. When the filing deadline for any bills or 33
152152 resolutions ends on Saturday or Sunday, the deadline is hereby extended until 34
153153 the close of business the following Monday. 35
154154 (2) No appropriation bill shall be filed for introduction in 36 SCR1
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157157 either the House of Representatives or the Senate later than the fifteenth 1
158158 (15th) day of a fiscal session except upon consent of two -thirds (2/3) of the 2
159159 members elected to each house. 3
160160 (B) Retirement System Legislation. 4
161161 (1) Any proposed legislation affecting any publicly supported 5
162162 retirement system or pension plan to be considered by the General Assembly at 6
163163 a regular session shall be introduced in the General Assembly during the 7
164164 first fifteen (15) calendar days of a regular session. 8
165165 (2) No such bill shall be introduced after the fifteenth (15th) 9
166166 day of a regular session unless its introduction is first approved by a 10
167167 three-fourths (3/4) vote of the full membership of each house of the General 11
168168 Assembly. 12
169169 (3) A bill affecting any publicly supported retirement system or 13
170170 systems shall not be introduced at any special session of the General 14
171171 Assembly unless the introduction and consideration of the bill is first 15
172172 approved by a three-fourths (3/4) vote of the full membership of each house 16
173173 of the General Assembly. 17
174174 (C) Non-appropriation Legislation During a Fiscal Session. 18
175175 (1) For a fiscal session, a non -appropriation bill shall not be 19
176176 filed for introduction until identical resolutions authorizing the 20
177177 introduction of the non -appropriation bill have been approved by an 21
178178 affirmative vote of two -thirds (2/3) of the members elected to each house. 22
179179 (2) The identical resolutions authorizing the introduction of a 23
180180 non-appropriation bill in a fiscal session shall not be filed for 24
181181 introduction in either the House of Representatives or the Senate later than 25
182182 the first (1st) day of a fiscal session. 26
183183 (3) A non-appropriation bill shall not be filed for introduction 27
184184 in either the House of Representatives or the Senate later than the fifteenth 28
185185 (15th) day of a fiscal session. 29
186186 (D) Non-procedural Resolutions During a Special Session. 30
187187 (1) As used in this subsection (D), "non -procedural resolution" 31
188188 means a resolution unrelated to the procedures followed by the House of 32
189189 Representatives or the Senate or both during a legislative session. 33
190190 (2) A non-procedural resolution shall not be introduced at any 34
191191 special session of the General Assembly in either chamber. 35
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195195 (E) State and Public School Life and Health Insurance Program 1
196196 Legislation. 2
197197 (1) As used in this subsection (D): 3
198198 (a) “Entity of the state” means any agency, board, bureau, 4
199199 commission, committee, council, department, division, institution of higher 5
200200 education, office, public school, quasi -public organization, or other 6
201201 political subdivision of the state; and 7
202202 (b) “Health benefit plan” means a policy, contract, 8
203203 certificate, or agreement offered or issued by an entity to provide, deliver, 9
204204 arrange for, pay for, or reimburse any of the costs of healthcare services, 10
205205 including pharmacy benefits, to an entity of the state. 11
206206 (2) A bill affecting the State and Public School Life and Health 12
207207 Insurance Program or that imposes a new or increased cost obligation for 13
208208 health benefit plans, including pharmacy benefits, on an entity of the state 14
209209 on the State and Public School Life and Health Insurance Program to be 15
210210 considered by the General Assembly at a regular session shall be introduced 16
211211 in the General Assembly during the first fifteen (15) calendar days of a 17
212212 regular session. 18
213213 (3)(2) A bill as described in subsection (D)(2)(E)(1) shall not 19
214214 be introduced after the fifteenth day of a regular session unless the 20
215215 introduction of the bill is first approved by a three -fourths (3/4) vote of 21
216216 the full membership of each house of the General Assembly. 22
217217 (4)(3) A bill affecting the State and Public School Life and 23
218218 Health Insurance Program or that imposes a new or increased cost obligation 24
219219 for health benefit plans, including pharmacy benefits, on an entity of the 25
220220 state on the State and Public School Life and Health Insurance Program shall 26
221221 not be introduced or considered at a fiscal session or an extraordinary a 27
222222 special session of the General Assembly unless the introduction and 28
223223 consideration of the bill is first approved by a two -thirds (2/3) vote of the 29
224224 full membership of each house of the General Assembly. 30
225225 (E)(F) Lottery-Funded Scholarship Legislation. 31
226226 (1) The following proposed legislation to be considered by the 32
227227 General Assembly at a regular session shall be introduced in the General 33
228228 Assembly during the first thirty -one (31) calendar days of a regular session: 34
229229 (a) A bill that creates a new scholarship to be funded 35
230230 with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund 36 SCR1
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233233 Account, as applicable; and 1
234234 (b) A bill that affects an existing scholarship that is 2
235235 funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education 3
236236 Grants Fund Account, as applicable. 4
237237 (2)(a) A bill creating a new scholarship to be funded with net 5
238238 proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, 6
239239 as applicable, or affecting an existing scholarship that is funded with net 7
240240 proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, 8
241241 as applicable, shall not be introduced after the thirty -first day of a 9
242242 regular session unless its introduction is first approved by a three -fourths 10
243243 (3/4) vote of the full membership of each chamber of the General Assembly. 11
244244 (b) If the General Assembly recesses for longer than three 12
245245 (3) consecutive days during the first thirty -one (31) days of a regular 13
246246 session, the deadline imposed under this section shall be extended for a time 14
247247 period equal to the recess. 15
248248 (3) A bill creating a new scholarship to be funded with net 16
249249 proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, 17
250250 as applicable, or affecting an existing scholarship that is funded with net 18
251251 proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, 19
252252 as applicable, shall not be introduced or considered at a special session or 20
253253 fiscal session of the General Assembly unless the introduction or 21
254254 consideration of the bill is first approved by a two -thirds (2/3) vote of the 22
255255 full membership of each chamber of the General Assembly. 23
256256 (F)(G) When the filing deadline for any bills or resolutions ends on 24
257257 Saturday or Sunday, the deadline is extended until the close of business the 25
258258 following Monday. 26
259259 (G)(H) If the General Assembly recesses for longer than three (3) 27
260260 consecutive days during the first fifteen (15) days of a regular session, the 28
261261 fifteen-day introduction deadlines established in this section shall be 29
262262 extended for a time period equal to the recess. 30
263263 31
264264 Introduction of Health Care Healthcare Legislation 32
265265 Section 15. (A) Any proposed legislation affecting the licensure of 33
266266 any profession, occupation, or class of health care healthcare providers not 34
267267 currently licensed, or expanding the scope of practice of any profession, 35
268268 occupation, or class of health care healthcare providers to be considered by 36 SCR1
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271271 the General Assembly at a regular biennial session shall be introduced in the 1
272272 General Assembly during the first fifteen (15) calendar days of a regular 2
273273 biennial session. 3
274274 (B) No such bill shall be introduced after the fifteenth (15th) day of 4
275275 a regular biennial session unless its introduction is first approved by a 5
276276 three-fourths (3/4) vote of the full membership of each house of the General 6
277277 Assembly. 7
278278 (C) The Senate and the House, and committees of the Senate and House, 8
279279 shall take no action on any such bill for an additional fifteen (15) calendar 9
280280 days after the fifteen (15) calendar day deadline for introduction of such 10
281281 bills has passed. 11
282282 12
283283 Method of Preparing Bills and Resolutions - Automated Bill Preparation System 13
284284 Section 16. (A) No bill or resolution, as defined herein, shall be 14
285285 accepted for introduction by clerks of the Senate or of the House of 15
286286 Representatives unless such bill or resolution has been prepared for 16
287287 introduction by an automated bill preparation system developed by the Bureau 17
288288 of Legislative Research. 18
289289 (1) The Bureau of Legislative Research shall establish and 19
290290 operate, in cooperation with the appropriate officials of the House of 20
291291 Representatives and the Senate, an automated bill preparation system in which 21
292292 all bills and resolutions, as defined herein, shall be prepared for 22
293293 introduction. Such system shall be designed in a manner which will permit 23
294294 either or both houses of the General Assembly to install compatible and 24
295295 interconnecting electronic equipment for the preparation of bills and 25
296296 resolutions in the same format as prepared by the Bureau of Legislative 26
297297 Research for introduction in either house of the General Assembly. 27
298298 (2) The Bureau of Legislative Research shall provide the 28
299299 Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives 29
300300 access by electronic medium to the central bill files in which bills and 30
301301 resolutions recorded in the automated bill preparation system are stored, to 31
302302 enable the engrossing rooms of the respective houses to have ready access 32
303303 thereto for enrollment of engrossed amendments adopted to such bills and 33
304304 resolutions. 34
305305 (3) As used herein: 35
306306 (a) “resolutions” shall mean all resolutions prepared for 36 SCR1
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309309 introduction which require the concurrence of both houses of the General 1
310310 Assembly for the adoption thereof, and shall include resolutions prepared for 2
311311 consideration by only the house in which introduced; 3
312312 (b) “automated bill preparation system” shall mean an 4
313313 automated system using word processors, computers, or other electronic 5
314314 devices for the typing and preparation of bills and resolutions (as defined 6
315315 herein) for introduction by members of the General Assembly in either the 7
316316 Senate or the House of Representatives, and shall include the following 8
317317 features: 9
318318 (i) a separate identification number, to be placed 10
319319 upon each page of the original and each copy thereof prepared for 11
320320 introduction in the General Assembly; 12
321321 (ii) a method of electronically recording the 13
322322 contents of each bill and resolution for ready access for retrieval and 14
323323 engrossment purposes; 15
324324 (iii) security features to protect the automated 16
325325 bill preparation files from access by unauthorized persons, and to maintain 17
326326 the integrity and confidentiality of drafts of bills and resolutions prepared 18
327327 by the Bureau of Legislative Research for members of the General Assembly 19
328328 which have not been filed for introduction; and 20
329329 (iv) such other features as deemed to be necessary 21
330330 and advisable by the Bureau of Legislative Research after consulting with the 22
331331 appropriate officials of the House of Representatives and the Senate. 23
332332 (B) All bills and resolutions introduced in the House and Senate shall 24
333333 be prepared on 8 1/2 x 11 inch paper. The number of copies of bills and 25
334334 resolutions to be prepared for introduction shall be specified by the 26
335335 Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives. 27
336336 One (1) copy shall be placed in the manuscript cover provided for the 28
337337 official copy of bills or resolutions and one (1) copy shall be placed in the 29
338338 manuscript cover provided for the duplicate copy, with any additional copies 30
339339 attached thereto in the manner prescribed by the respective houses. In 31
340340 addition, copies of the caption on each bill or resolution shall be prepared 32
341341 and attached thereto at the time of introduction. 33
342342 (C) Upon the introduction of each bill and resolution, the appropriate 34
343343 clerks of the respective houses shall cause the original signed copy thereof 35
344344 (which is contained in the official bill or resolution manuscript cover) to 36 SCR1
345345
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347347 be identified as the official copy by perforation or stamping on the left 1
348348 margin of each page thereof the words “HOUSE ORIGINAL” to be placed on each 2
349349 official original copy of House bills and resolutions, and the words “SENATE 3
350350 ORIGINAL” to be placed on the left margin of each official original copy of 4
351351 Senate bills and resolutions. Whenever any bill or resolution is amended, 5
352352 the engrossed page or pages thereof shall be perforated in the same manner as 6
353353 the original introduced copy. Only the original signed copy of a bill or 7
354354 resolution and engrossed pages thereof shall be perforated or stamped as 8
355355 provided herein. 9
356356 (D) If any person shall unlawfully perforate any fraudulent or 10
357357 counterfeit copy of any bill or resolution for the purpose of intentionally 11
358358 inserting in any bill or resolution any page or provision thereof for the 12
359359 purpose of altering the bill or resolution as introduced, such person shall 13
360360 be in contempt of the House or Senate, or both House and Senate, and shall be 14
361361 punished accordingly. If any person shall make any alteration, change or 15
362362 erasure in any original copy of a bill or resolution as originally 16
363363 introduced, except upon direction of the House or Senate, or both House and 17
364364 Senate, or upon direction of the appropriate committees on engrossed or 18
365365 enrolled bills, such person shall be in contempt of the House or Senate, or 19
366366 both of them and shall be punished accordingly. In addition, such person 20
367367 shall be subject to such fine and imprisonment as may be imposed by the laws 21
368368 of this State for fraud. 22
369369 (E)(1) Only bills and amendments to bills which meet the requirements 23
370370 of this subsection (E) may be introduced into the Senate or the House of 24
371371 Representatives. 25
372372 (2) Except as provided in subsections (E)(5), (6) and (8), all 26
373373 bills and amendments to bills shall reflect the changes proposed in the 27
374374 existing law by: 28
375375 (a) over striking all language of the existing law which 29
376376 is proposed to be deleted; and 30
377377 (b) underlining all new language proposed to be added to 31
378378 the existing law. At the top of the first page of the bill shall appear 32
379379 language substantially similar to the following: “Stricken language would be 33
380380 deleted from present law. Underlined language would be added to present 34
381381 law.” 35
382382 (3) Except as provided in subsections (E)(5), (6) and (8), all 36 SCR1
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385385 resolutions proposing amendments to the Arkansas Constitution and amendments 1
386386 to resolutions shall reflect the changes proposed in the existing 2
387387 Constitution by: 3
388388 (a) over striking all language of the existing 4
389389 Constitution which is proposed to be deleted; and 5
390390 (b) underlining all new language proposed to be added to 6
391391 the existing Constitution. At the top of the first page of the bill shall 7
392392 appear language substantially similar to the following: “Stricken language 8
393393 would be deleted from the present Constitution. Underlined language would be 9
394394 added to present Constitution.” 10
395395 (4) Except as provided in subsections (E)(5), (6) and (8), all 11
396396 resolutions proposing changes in the rules of the Senate or House or the 12
397397 joint rules of the Senate and House shall reflect the changes proposed in the 13
398398 existing rule by: 14
399399 (a) over striking all language of the existing rule which 15
400400 is proposed to be deleted; and 16
401401 (b) underlining all new language proposed to be added to 17
402402 the existing rule. At the top of the first page of the resolution shall 18
403403 appear language substantially similar to the following: “Stricken language 19
404404 would be deleted from present rule. Underlined language would be added to 20
405405 present rule.” 21
406406 (5) This subsection (E) may be waived by the President Pro 22
407407 Tempore of the Senate or in his or her absence, the Chairman of the Senate 23
408408 Rules Committee, or the Speaker of the House of Representatives. 24
409409 (6) Markups are not required of the following: 25
410410 (a) appropriation sections, state agencies regular salary 26
411411 sections, and state agencies extra help sections contained within a bill if 27
412412 the sections do not specifically amend existing law; 28
413413 (b) sections which allocate funds within the Revenue 29
414414 Stabilization Law or within the General Improvement Fund Distribution Law; 30
415415 and 31
416416 (c) sections which amend Arkansas Code §§ 21-5-208(b) and 32
417417 21-5-209(e).; and 33
418418 (d)(i) sections repealing, amending, reenacting or 34
419419 creating a title of the Arkansas Code in conjunction with a recodification of 35
420420 the title. 36 SCR1
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423423 (ii) Subdivision (E)(6)(d)(i) of this section does 1
424424 not require the inclusion of the following in a bill: 2
425425 (A) An existing appendix of a title of the 3
426426 Arkansas Code in a bill when recodifying that title of the Arkansas Code if 4
427427 the appendix is not being amended, repealed, or reenacted; or 5
428428 (B) Portions of a title of the Arkansas Code 6
429429 subject to recodification that are not being amended, repealed, or reenacted. 7
430430 (7) It shall be the duty of the Chairman of the Joint Budget 8
431431 Committee to have a schedule prepared which reflects the amounts approved by 9
432432 the Joint Budget Committee for each category for each fund within the Revenue 10
433433 Stabilization Law to provide funding for the budget enacted by the General 11
434434 Assembly and a schedule reflecting the proposed distribution of General 12
435435 Improvement funds. The schedule reflecting the allocation of funds in the 13
436436 Revenue Stabilization Law for the next fiscal year shall be submitted during 14
437437 a regular session or fiscal session to each body of the Arkansas General 15
438438 Assembly at least three (3) calendar days prior to the day at which the same 16
439439 is to be considered for final passage. The schedule reflecting the 17
440440 allocation of funds in the General Improvement Fund Distribution Law for the 18
441441 next biennium shall be submitted during a regular session to each body of the 19
442442 Arkansas General Assembly at least three (3) calendar days prior to the day 20
443443 at which the same is to be considered for final passage. 21
444444 (8) Markups are not required on sections that are substantially 22
445445 the same as the following boiler -plate sections: 23
446446 24
447447 “SECTION. COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAWS. Disbursement of funds 25
448448 authorized by this Act shall be limited to the appropriation for such agency 26
449449 and funds made available by law for the support of such appropriations; and 27
450450 the restrictions of the State Purchasing Law, the General Accounting and 28
451451 Budgetary Procedures Law, the Revenue Stabilization Law, the Regular Salary 29
452452 Procedures and Restrictions Act, the Higher Education Expenditure 30
453453 Restrictions Act, where applicable, and regulations promulgated by the 31
454454 Department of Finance and Administration, as authorized by law, shall be 32
455455 strictly complied with in disbursement of said funds. 33
456456 34
457457 SECTION. EMPLOYMENT OF ATTORNEYS. None of the funds appropriated in 35
458458 this Act for Maintenance and General Operation shall be expended in payment 36 SCR1
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461461 for services of attorneys, unless the agency shall first make a request in 1
462462 writing to the Attorney General of the State of Arkansas to provide the 2
463463 required legal services. The Attorney General’s Office shall provide the 3
464464 required legal services, or, if the Attorney General’s Office shall determine 4
465465 that sufficient personnel are not available to provide the requested legal 5
466466 services, the Attorney General shall certify the same to the agency and may 6
467467 authorize the agency to employ legal counsel and to expend monies 7
468468 appropriated for Maintenance and General Operations thereof, if: 8
469469 (1) The Attorney General determines, and certifies in writing, 9
470470 that such agency needs the advice or assistance of legal counsel, and 10
471471 (2) The Attorney General consents in writing to the employment 11
472472 of the legal counsel to be retained by the agency. 12
473473 Such certification shall be required with respect to each 13
474474 instance of the employment of special legal counsel, or shall be required 14
475475 annually with respect to legal counsel employed on a retainer basis. A copy 15
476476 of such certification shall be entered in the official minutes of the agency, 16
477477 and shall be retained in the fiscal records of the agency for audit purposes. 17
478478 18
479479 SECTION. DISBURSEMENT CONTROLS. (A) No contract may be awarded nor 19
480480 obligations otherwise incurred in relation to the project or projects 20
481481 described herein in excess of the State Treasury funds actually available 21
482482 therefore as provided by law. Provided, however, that institutions and 22
483483 agencies listed herein shall have the authority to accept and use grants and 23
484484 donations including Federal funds, and to use its unobligated cash income or 24
485485 funds, or both available to it, for the purpose of supplementing the State 25
486486 Treasury funds for financing the entire costs of the project or projects 26
487487 enumerated herein. Provided further, that the appropriations and funds 27
488488 otherwise provided by the General Assembly for Maintenance and General 28
489489 Operations of the agency or institutions receiving appropriation herein shall 29
490490 not be used for any of the purposes as appropriated in this Act. 30
491491 (B) The restrictions of any applicable provisions of the State 31
492492 Purchasing Law, the General Accounting and Budgetary Procedures Law, the 32
493493 Revenue Stabilization Law and any other applicable fiscal control laws of 33
494494 this State and regulations promulgated by the Department of Finance and 34
495495 Administration, as authorized by law, shall be strictly complied with in 35
496496 disbursement of any funds provided by this Act unless specifically provided 36 SCR1
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498498 14 01/10/2025 5:03:46 PM JET010
499499 otherwise by law. 1
500500 2
501501 SECTION. LEGISLATIVE INTENT. It is the intent of the General Assembly 3
502502 that any funds disbursed under the authority of the appropriations contained 4
503503 in this Act shall be in compliance with the stated reasons for which this Act 5
504504 was adopted, as evidenced by the Agency Requests, Executive Recommendations 6
505505 and Legislative Recommendations contained in the budget manuals prepared by 7
506506 the Department of Finance and Administration, letters, or summarized oral 8
507507 testimony in the official minutes of the Arkansas Legislative Council or 9
508508 Joint Budget Committee which relate to its passage and adoption. 10
509509 11
510510 Section 17. (A) Once a Senate bill has passed the House of 12
511511 Representatives and returned to the Senate, it may not be subsequently 13
512512 amended in the Senate unless the House expunges the vote by which it passed 14
513513 the bill and any amendments to the bill and the Senate expunges the vote by 15
514514 which the bill was passed and places the bill on second reading. 16
515515 (B) Once a House bill has passed the Senate and has been returned to 17
516516 the House, it may not be subsequently amended in the House unless the Senate 18
517517 expunges the vote by which it passed the bill and any amendments to the bill 19
518518 and the House expunges the vote by which the bill was passed and places the 20
519519 bill on second reading. 21
520520 22
521521 Submission of Bills to Governor 23
522522 Section 18. Whenever any Senate bill shall be approved by the House of 24
523523 Representatives and enrolled by the Senate, the Secretary of the Senate or 25
524524 one of his or her authorized agents shall without delay, deliver the same to 26
525525 the Governor or his or her designated representative and take receipt 27
526526 thereof, which receipt shall be returned to the Senate and entered in the 28
527527 Journal. Whenever any House bill shall be approved by the Senate and 29
528528 enrolled by the House, the Chief Clerk of the House or one of his or her 30
529529 authorized agents shall, without delay, deliver the same to the Governor or 31
530530 his or her designated representative and take receipt thereof, which receipt 32
531531 shall be returned to the House and entered in the Journal. In the event the 33
532532 Governor, or his or her designated representative, shall refuse to accept 34
533533 delivery of any such bill, the Secretary of the Senate, or the Chief Clerk of 35
534534 the House, or their designated agents, as the case may be, shall forthwith 36 SCR1
535535
536536 15 01/10/2025 5:03:46 PM JET010
537537 serve the same by handing the bill to either the Governor or to any employee 1
538538 of the Governor’s office, and shall return a certificate to the Senate or the 2
539539 House as the case may be, of the date and time of such delivery and of the 3
540540 name of the person to whom delivered and such certificate shall be entered in 4
541541 the Journal of the Senate or the Journal of the House, as the case may be, 5
542542 and shall constitute proof of delivery of said bill to the Governor in 6
543543 determining the period of time in which the Governor has to sign the same or 7
544544 return it to the Senate or the House with his or her veto as provided in the 8
545545 Constitution of the State of Arkansas. 9
546546 10
547547 Constitutional Amendments 11
548548 Section 19. (A)(1) The Senate may, according to its rules, recommend 12
549549 one (1) proposed constitutional amendment for consideration and vote by the 13
550550 House of Representatives and the Senate. 14
551551 (2) If the Senate-proposed constitutional amendment does not 15
552552 receive an affirmative vote of the majority of the House of Representatives, 16
553553 the Senate may, according to its rules, recommend additional proposed 17
554554 constitutional amendments to the House of Representatives one (1) at a time 18
555555 until the House of Representatives affirms by a majority vote the Senate -19
556556 proposed constitutional amendment. 20
557557 (B)(1) The House of Representatives may, according to its rules, 21
558558 recommend one (1) proposed constitutional amendment for consideration and 22
559559 vote by the House of Representatives and the Senate. 23
560560 (2) If the House of Representatives -proposed constitutional 24
561561 amendment does not receive an affirmative vote of the majority of the Senate, 25
562562 the House of Representatives may, according to its rules, recommend 26
563563 additional proposed constitutional amendments to the Senate one (1) at a time 27
564564 until the Senate affirms by a majority vote the House of Representatives -28
565565 proposed constitutional amendment. 29
566566 (C) A third (3
567567 rd
568568 ) proposed constitutional amendment shall not be 30
569569 considered or voted upon by the General Assembly until identical resolutions 31
570570 authorizing the consideration of the proposed constitutional amendment have 32
571571 been approved by an affirmative vote of two -thirds (2/3) of the members 33
572572 elected to each house. 34
573573 (D) A resolution proposing a constitutional amendment shall not be 35
574574 filed in either the House of Representatives or the Senate after the thirty -36 SCR1
575575
576576 16 01/10/2025 5:03:46 PM JET010
577577 first (31st) day of each regular session of the General Assembly. 1
578578 (E) A resolution proposing a constitutional amendment shall be 2
579579 considered only during a regular session. 3
580580 4
581581 Joint Meetings of Senate and House Committees 5
582582 Section 20. The standing and select Committees of the Senate and the 6
583583 House of Representatives are authorized to hold joint meetings upon the call 7
584584 of the Chairpersons of the two committees involved or by one -half (1/2) or 8
585585 more of the members of both committees involved. 9
586586 10
587587 Correction of Obvious Errors 11
588588 Section 21. The Secretary of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the 12
589589 House are authorized, subject to approval by the appropriate designated 13
590590 committee, to correct obvious errors occurring in documents originating in 14
591591 the House and the Senate respectively, provided that each such correction is 15
592592 noted on the bill jacket and is documented by a “correction note” at the end 16
593593 of the official daily journal for the date on which the correction was made. 17
594594 18
595595 Assigning Bill and Resolution Numbers 19
596596 Section 22. In assigning numbers to bills and resolutions introduced 20
597597 in the Senate and House of Representatives, Senate bills and resolutions 21
598598 shall be numbered commencing with the figure 1, and House bills and 22
599599 resolutions shall be assigned numbers commencing with the figure 1001. 23
600600 24
601601 Pre-filing of Bills and Resolutions 25
602602 Section 23. (A) Beginning on November 15th of each year preceding a 26
603603 regular session of the General Assembly, each holdover member of the Senate 27
604604 who will be serving at the next following regular session of the General 28
605605 Assembly, and each member -elect of the General Assembly, as soon as the 29
606606 members-elect of the next General Assembly are certified to the Secretary of 30
607607 State, shall be permitted to prefile bills and resolutions for such regular 31
608608 session with the Chief Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate. 32
609609 (B)(1) Beginning on the second Monday of January of each year of 33
610610 a fiscal session of the General Assembly, each member of the House of 34
611611 Representatives and the Senate may prefile appropriation bills and 35
612612 resolutions for the fiscal session with the Chief Clerk of the House and the 36 SCR1
613613
614614 17 01/10/2025 5:03:46 PM JET010
615615 Secretary of the Senate. 1
616616 (2) A non-appropriation bill may not be pre -filed prior to 2
617617 a fiscal session due to the requirements of Article 5, § 5 of the 3
618618 Constitution of Arkansas. 4
619619 5
620620 Interim Committee Meetings 6
621621 Section 24. (A) Interim committees shall not meet beginning January 1 7
622622 immediately prior to a regular legislative session, without the prior 8
623623 approval of: 9
624624 (1) The current Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 10
625625 current President Pro Tempore of the Senate for joint interim committees; 11
626626 (2) The current Speaker of the House of Representatives for 12
627627 interim committees of the House of Representatives; or 13
628628 (3) The current President Pro Tempore of the Senate for interim 14
629629 committees of the Senate. 15
630630 (B)(1) Interim committees, including the Legislative Council and 16
631631 Legislative Joint Auditing Committee and their respective subcommittees, 17
632632 shall not schedule a meeting at the same time as a regularly scheduled pre -18
633633 session Arkansas Legislative Council/Joint Budget Committee or Joint Budget 19
634634 Committee budget hearing meeting, unless the pre -session budget hearing 20
635635 meeting was scheduled with less than one week's notice and prior 21
636636 authorization for the conflicting interim committee meeting is granted by the 22
637637 President Pro Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 23
638638 Representatives. 24
639639 (2)(a) For purposes of this rule, "regularly scheduled pre -25
640640 session budget hearing meetings" means those pre -session budget hearings that 26
641641 are held prior to the regular or fiscal session for the purpose of 27
642642 recommending agency appropriation bills for the following regular or fiscal 28
643643 session. 29
644644 (b) "Regularly scheduled pre -session budget hearing 30
645645 meetings" does not include meetings of the subcommittees of the Arkansas 31
646646 Legislative Council/Joint Budget Committee or the Joint Budget Committee. 32
647647 (C) Interim committees and their respective subcommittees, including 33
648648 legislative task forces, councils, or other statutorily created legislative 34
649649 bodies, shall not schedule a meeting during the week of a regularly scheduled 35
650650 meeting of the Legislative Council, unless prior authorization for the 36 SCR1
651651
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653653 conflicting interim committee meeting is granted by the President Pro Tempore 1
654654 of the Senate, for a Senate committee or subcommittee, the Speaker of the 2
655655 House of Representatives for a House committee or subcommittee, or both the 3
656656 Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the 4
657657 Senate for a joint committee or task force. 5
658658 (D) Interim committees and their respective subcommittees, including 6
659659 legislative task forces, councils, and other statutorily created legislative 7
660660 bodies, may meet and transact their normal business during a recess of the 8
661661 General Assembly that is in excess of thirty (30) calendar days. 9
662662 10
663663 Procedural Requirements for Creating or Amending Lottery -Funded Scholarships 11
664664 Section 25.(A) Lottery fiscal impact statements. 12
665665 (1) Any bill filed with the Senate or the House of 13
666666 Representatives that creates a new scholarship to be funded with net proceeds 14
667667 from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, as 15
668668 applicable, or affects an existing scholarship that is funded with net 16
669669 proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, 17
670670 as applicable, shall: 18
671671 (a)(i) Have a lottery fiscal impact statement 19
672672 attached to it that is substantially in the form set forth in Arkansas Code § 20
673673 6-85-502. 21
674674 (ii) A bill that creates a new scholarship to 22
675675 be funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education 23
676676 Grants Fund Account, as applicable, or affects an existing scholarship that 24
677677 is funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education 25
678678 Grants Fund Account, as applicable, shall not be taken up by the House 26
679679 Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education, meeting 27
680680 jointly, until a lottery fiscal impact statement is attached; and 28
681681 (b) Not take effect until at least one (1) year 29
682682 immediately following the year in which the scholarship was enacted. 30
683683 (2) The lottery fiscal impact of a bill that creates a new 31
684684 scholarship to be funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the 32
685685 Higher Education Grants Fund Account, as applicable, or affects an existing 33
686686 scholarship that is funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the 34
687687 Higher Education Grants Fund Account, as applicable, shall be determined in 35
688688 the manner set forth in Arkansas Code § 6 -85-502. 36 SCR1
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691691 (3) In addition to the information required under 1
692692 subdivision (A)(2) of this section, the final lottery fiscal impact statement 2
693693 regarding the scholarship that is the subject of the bill shall include and 3
694694 be calculated as required under Arkansas Code § 6 -85-502. 4
695695 (4)(a)(i) If the final lottery fiscal impact statement 5
696696 results in a positive number, the House Committee on Education and the Senate 6
697697 Committee on Education, meeting jointly during a regular session, special 7
698698 session, or fiscal session, may refer a bill creating a new scholarship to be 8
699699 funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education 9
700700 Grants Fund Account, as applicable, or amending an existing scholarship 10
701701 funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education 11
702702 Grants Fund Account, as applicable, to either chamber of the General Assembly 12
703703 for consideration. 13
704704 (ii) The referral of a bill under subdivision 14
705705 (A)(4)(a)(i) of this section shall require approval by a separate vote of 15
706706 House Committee on Education members and Senate Committee on Education 16
707707 members, meeting jointly during a regular session, special session, or fiscal 17
708708 session. 18
709709 (b) If the final lottery fiscal impact results in a 19
710710 negative number, the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on 20
711711 Education, meeting jointly during a regular session, special session, or 21
712712 fiscal session, shall not refer the bill to either chamber of the General 22
713713 Assembly for consideration unless: 23
714714 (i) The bill is amended to ensure the final lottery 24
715715 fiscal impact results in a positive number; or 25
716716 (ii) Additional funding is provided through the 26
717717 General Revenue Fund Account. 27
718718 (B) Consideration of bills. 28
719719 (1) The House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on 29
720720 Education shall meet jointly during a regular session, special session, or 30
721721 fiscal session to consider any bill: 31
722722 (a) Creating a new scholarship to be funded with net 32
723723 proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account; 33
724724 or 34
725725 (b) Affecting an existing scholarship that is funded with 35
726726 net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund 36 SCR1
727727
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729729 Account. 1
730730 (2) A bill creating a new scholarship to be funded with net 2
731731 proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, 3
732732 as applicable, or affecting an existing scholarship funded with net proceeds 4
733733 from the state lottery or the Higher Education Grants Fund Account, as 5
734734 applicable, shall not be recommended to either chamber of the General 6
735735 Assembly except upon an affirmative vote or a majority of the members of the 7
736736 following, meeting jointly during a regular session, special session, or 8
737737 fiscal session: 9
738738 (a) House Committee on Education; and 10
739739 (b) Senate Committee on Education. 11
740740 (3) A lottery fiscal impact statement prepared for a bill as 12
741741 required under Arkansas Code § 6 -85-502 shall be amended each time the House 13
742742 Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education recommends to 14
743743 either chamber of the General Assembly a bill creating a new scholarship to 15
744744 be funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education 16
745745 Grants Fund Account, as applicable, or affecting an existing scholarship 17
746746 funded with net proceeds from the state lottery or the Higher Education 18
747747 Grants Fund Account, as applicable, in order to account for the updated 19
748748 lottery fiscal impact, if any, the bill that proposes a new scholarship or 20
749749 amends an existing scholarship will have. 21
750750 22
751751 Fiscal Impact Statements -- State and Public School Life and Health Insurance 23
752752 Program Bills 24
753753 Section 26.(A) For purposes of this section, “fiscal impact statement” 25
754754 means a realistic written statement of the purpose of a proposed law and the 26
755755 estimated financial cost to the State and Public School Life and Health 27
756756 Insurance Program of implementing or complying with the proposed law. 28
757757 (B)(1) A bill filed in the House of Representatives or the Senate that 29
758758 will impose a new or increased cost obligation on the State and Public School 30
759759 Life and Health Insurance Program shall: 31
760760 (a) Have a fiscal impact statement attached to the bill 32
761761 prepared and filed with the chair of the committee to which the bill is 33
762762 referred; and 34
763763 (b) Not be taken up by the committee to which the bill is 35
764764 referred until a fiscal impact statement is provided to the chair of the 36 SCR1
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767767 committee. 1
768768 (2) A fiscal impact statement required by this section shall be 2
769769 prepared by an actuary under contract with the Bureau of Legislative Research 3
770770 for this purpose. 4
771771 (C)(1)(a) If a House bill or Senate bill is called up for final 5
772772 passage in the House of Representatives or the Senate and a fiscal impact 6
773773 statement has not been provided by the sponsor of the bill or by the 7
774774 committee to which the bill was referred, a member of the House of 8
775775 Representatives or the Senate may object to the bill’s being called up for 9
776776 final passage until a fiscal impact statement is prepared and made available 10
777777 on the desk of each member of the House of Representatives or the Senate at 11
778778 least one (1) day before the bill is called up for final passage. 12
779779 (b) An affirmative vote of two -thirds (2/3) of a quorum 13
780780 present and voting shall override the objection. 14
781781 (2) If an objection is made without override, the presiding 15
782782 officer of the House of Representatives or the Senate shall cause the bill to 16
783783 be referred to an actuary for the preparation of a fiscal impact statement, 17
784784 which shall be filed with the presiding officer not later than five (5) days 18
785785 from the date of the request. 19
786786 (D) A fiscal impact statement required by this section shall be 20
787787 prepared by an actuary under contract with the Bureau of Legislative Research 21
788788 for this purpose within the guidelines adopted by the House Committee on 22
789789 Insurance and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Insurance and Commerce. 23
790790 24
791791 25
792792 26
793793 27
794794 28
795795 29
796796 30
797797 31
798798 32
799799 33
800800 34
801801 35
802802 36