Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to the Arkansas
Constitution.
*JLL053* 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM JLL053
State of Arkansas 1
95th General Assembly 2
Regular Session, 2025 SJR 2 3
4
By: Senator B. King 5
6
7
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 8
AN AMENDMENT TO THE ARKANSAS CONSTITUTION TO AMEND 9
CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING APPORTIONMENT; 10
AND TO CREATE THE ARKANSAS APPORTIONMENT COMMISSION 11
TO APPORTION DISTRICTS FOR THE HOUSE OF 12
REPRESENTATIVES, THE SENATE, AND THE UNITED STATES 13
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. 14
15
16
Subtitle 17
A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO CREATE THE 18
ARKANSAS APPORTIONMENT COMMISSION TO 19
APPORTION DISTRICTS FOR THE HOUSE OF 20
REPRESENTATIVES, THE SENATE, AND THE 21
UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. 22
23
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY -FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE 24
STATE OF ARKANSAS, AND BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, A MAJORITY OF ALL 25
MEMBERS ELECTED TO EACH HOUSE AGREEING THERETO: 26
27
THAT the following is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of 28
the State of Arkansas, and upon being submitted to the electors of the state 29 SJR2
2 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
for approval or rejection at the next general election for Representatives 1
and Senators, if a majority of the electors voting thereon at the election 2
adopt the amendment, the amendment shall become a part of the Constitution of 3
the State of Arkansas, to wit: 4
5
SECTION 1. Arkansas Constitution, Article 5, § 29, is amended to read 6
as follows: 7
§ 29. Appropriations. 8
Except as provided in Arkansas Constitution, Article 8, § 8, and 9
Article 19, § 31, no money shall be drawn from the treasury except in 10
pursuance of specific appropriation made by law, the purpose of which shall 11
be distinctly stated in the bill, and the maximum amount which may be drawn 12
shall be specified in dollars and cents; and no appropriations made by the 13
General Assembly after December 31, 2008, shall be for a longer period than 14
one (1) fiscal year. 15
16
SECTION 2. Arkansas Constitution, Article 8, § 1, is amended to read 17
as follows: 18
§ 1. Board of apportionment Apportionment created — Powers and 19
duties. 20
(a) A Board board to be known as "The Board of Apportionment ,", 21
consisting of the Governor (who shall be Chairman Chair), the Secretary of 22
State, and the Attorney General , is hereby created, and it shall be its 23
imperative duty to make approve the apportionment of representatives Senators 24
and Representatives of the General Assembly and Representatives of the United 25
States House of Representatives from the State of Arkansas in accordance with 26
the provisions hereof ; the. The action of a majority in each instance shall 27
be deemed the action of said board. 28
(b) The members of the board shall appoint members to the Arkansas 29
Apportionment Commission as provided in this article and approve or reject 30
reports issued by the commission. 31 SJR2
3 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
1
SECTION 3. Arkansas Constitution, Article 8, § 2, is amended to read 2
as follows: 3
§ 2. One hundred members in House of Representatives districts — 4
Apportionment One hundred members of House of Representatives . 5
The House of Representatives shall consist of one hundred members and 6
each county existing at the time of any apportionment shall have at least one 7
representative; the remaining members shall be equally distributed (as nearly 8
as practicable) among the more populous counties of the State, in accordance 9
with a ratio to be determined by the population of said counties as shown by 10
the Federal census next preceding any apportionment hereunder The House of 11
Representatives shall consist of one hundred (100) members. Subject to the 12
approval of the Board of Apportionment, the Arkansas Apportionment Commission 13
shall divide the State into one hundred (100) House of Representatives 14
districts as provided in this article. The districts shall have an equal 15
population, or as nearly equal as practicable, in accordance with the 16
population of the State as shown by the federal decennial census next 17
preceding any apportionment under this article . 18
19
SECTION 4. Arkansas Constitution, Article 8, § 3, is amended to read 20
as follows: 21
§ 3. Senatorial districts — Thirty-five members of Senate. 22
The Senate shall consist of thirty -five members. Senatorial districts 23
shall at all times consist of contiguous territory, and no county shall be 24
divided in the formation of such districts. "The Board of Apportionment" 25
hereby created shall, from time to time, divide the state into convenient 26
senatorial districts in such manner as that the Senate shall be based upon 27
the inhabitants of the state, each senator representing, as nearly as 28
practicable, an equal number thereof; each district shall have at least one 29
senator The Senate shall consist of thirty -five (35) members. Subject to the 30
approval of the Board of Apportionment, the Arkansas Apportionment Commission 31
shall divide the State into thirty -five (35) Senate districts as provided in 32 SJR2
4 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
this article. The districts shall have an equal population, or as nearly 1
equal as practicable, in accordance with the population of the State as shown 2
by the federal decennial census next preceding any apportionment under this 3
article. 4
5
SECTION 5. Arkansas Constitution, Article 8, § 4, is amended to read 6
as follows: 7
§ 4. Duties of Arkansas Apportionment Commission and Board of 8
Apportionment. 9
On or before February 1 immediately following each Federal federal 10
decennial census, said board the Arkansas Apportionment Commission shall 11
reapportion the State for Representatives to the House of Representatives , 12
Senators to the Senate, and Representatives to the United States House of 13
Representatives. The commission shall issue a report to the Board of 14
Apportionment, which shall either accept or reject the report. If the board 15
accepts the report, and in each instance said the board shall file its the 16
report with the Secretary of State, setting forth (a) the basis of population 17
adopted for representatives Representatives to the House of Representatives, 18
Senators to the Senate, and Representatives to the United States House of 19
Representatives; and (b) the number of Representatives to the House of 20
Representatives and Senators to the Senate assigned to each county ; 21
whereupon, after 30. After thirty (30) days from such filing date, the 22
apportionment thus made shall become effective unless proceedings for 23
revision be instituted in the Supreme Court within said period. 24
25
SECTION 6. Arkansas Constitution, Article 8, § 5, is amended to read 26
as follows: 27
§ 5. Mandamus to compel Arkansas Apportionment Commission and Board of 28
Apportionment to act. 29
Original jurisdiction (to be exercised on application of any citizens 30
and taxpayers) is hereby vested in the Supreme Court of the State (a) to 31
compel (by mandamus or otherwise) the board Arkansas Apportionment Commission 32 SJR2
5 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
and the Board of Apportionment to perform its their duties as here directed, 1
and (b) to revise any arbitrary action of or abuse of discretion by the 2
commission or the board in making such apportionment , and (c) to reapportion 3
the State for Representatives to the House of Representatives, Senators to 4
the Senate, and Representatives to the United States House of Representatives 5
if the report of the commission is rejected three (3) times by the board ; 6
provided any such application for revision or reapportionment shall be filed 7
with said the Supreme Court within 30 thirty (30) days after the filing 8
acceptance or the third rejection of the report of apportionment by said 9
board with the Secretary of State ; if revised or reapportioned by the court, 10
a certified copy of its judgment shall be by the clerk thereof forthwith 11
transmitted to the Secretary of State, and thereupon be and become a 12
substitute for the apportionment made by the commission and the board. 13
14
SECTION 7. Arkansas Constitution, Article 8, is amended to add 15
additional sections to read as follows: 16
§ 7. United States House of Representatives districts. 17
Subject to the approval of the Board of Apportionment, the Arkansas 18
Apportionment Commission, as provided in this article, shall divide the state 19
into the number of United States House of Representatives districts required 20
by federal law. The districts shall have an equal population, or as nearly 21
equal as practicable, in accordance with the population of the State as shown 22
by the federal decennial census next preceding any apportionment under this 23
article. 24
25
§ 8. Arkansas Apportionment Commission — Creation. 26
(a) There is created the Arkansas Apportionment Commission. 27
(b)(1) The commission shall consist of nine (9) members. 28
(2) Three (3) members of the commission shall be appointed by 29
the Governor, three (3) members of the commission shall be appointed by the 30
Secretary of State, and three (3) members of the commission shall be 31
appointed by the Attorney General. 32 SJR2
6 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
(3) Of the nine (9) members of the commission: 1
(A) At least one (1) member shall be educated in the field 2
of mathematics; 3
(B) At least one (1) member shall be an attorney who is 4
licensed to practice in this state; and 5
(C) At least one (1) member shall be competent in the 6
field of computer-assisted cartography. 7
(c) Each member of the commission shall be appointed on or before 8
January 15 immediately following each federal decennial census and shall 9
serve a term of ten (10) years with each term beginning on the January 15 10
immediately following the federal decennial census and ending on January 14 11
immediately following the next occurring federal decennial census. 12
(d) A vacancy on the commission shall be filled in the manner of the 13
original appointment for the remainder of the term. 14
(e) Five (5) members of the commission shall constitute a quorum for 15
the purpose of transacting business. 16
(f) A majority vote of the total membership of the commission is 17
required for any action of the commission. 18
(g) The office of the Secretary of State shall provide staff 19
assistance as may be requested by the commission. 20
(h) Each member of the commission shall: 21
(1) Be a registered voter of the State; 22
(2) Not be a registe red lobbyist, an employee of a registered 23
lobbyist, an elected official, an appointed federal or state official, an 24
officer or employee of a political party, an officer or employee of a 25
political campaign committee, or an officer or employee of a political action 26
committee; 27
(3) Not have served in any of the positions listed in 28
subdivision (h)(2) of this section within three (3) years of the date of his 29
or her appointment to the commission; and 30 SJR2
7 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
(4) Not be, by blood or marriage, the spouse, child, parent, or 1
sibling of a person in any of the positions listed in subdivision (h)(2) of 2
this section. 3
(i) A member of the commission shall not campaign for elected office 4
or actively participate in or contribute to the campaign of a person running 5
for a state or federal elected office during his or her term of office or for 6
two (2) years after his or her term of office. 7
(j)(1) The commission, during its first meeting following each federal 8
decennial census, may authorize payment to its members of a stipend not to 9
exceed eighty-five dollars ($85.00) per day for each meeting attended or for 10
any day while performing any proper business of the commission. 11
(2) Stipends shall be paid by the Auditor of State from funds 12
available for that purpose. 13
(3) Members of the commission shall receive no other 14
compensation, expense reimbursement, or in -lieu-of payments for their service 15
on the commission. 16
(k) In addition to taking and subscribing to the oath under Arkansas 17
Constitution, Article 19, § 20, each member of the commission shall take and 18
subscribe to an oath of affirmation that his or her official decisions will 19
be based on the values of political neutrality and the public interest and 20
not on any attempt to further the interests of any particular private person, 21
private interest, or political party. 22
(l)(1) The commission shall be entitled to funding in amounts 23
sufficient to discharge the commission's duties under this article. 24
(2)(A) The General Assembly shall appropriate the amount 25
necessary for the commission to accomplish the commission's duties under this 26
article for: 27
(i) The fiscal year in which the federal decennial 28
census is performed; and 29
(ii) The fiscal year immediately following the 30
federal decennial census. 31 SJR2
8 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
(B) The total amount under subdivision (l)(2)(A) of this 1
section shall not be less than seven hundred fifty thousand dollars 2
($750,000). 3
(3) If the commission requires funds to discharge the 4
commission's duties under this article before the convening of a legislative 5
session in which the General Assembly can appropriate funds for the 6
commission, the commission is entitled to and shall receive funds from the 7
Constitutional Officers Fund or its successor fund in the amount necessary to 8
discharge the commission's duties under this article until the General 9
Assembly appropriates funds for the commission. 10
(m) A person appointed to serve on the commission may be appointed to 11
serve subsequent terms on the commission. 12
(n) The commission is subject to the Freedom of Information Act of 13
1967, Arkansas Code § 25 -19-101 et seq. 14
(o)(1) The commission shall retain all records related to 15
reapportioning the State for Representatives to the House of Representatives, 16
Senators to the Senate, and Representatives to the United States House of 17
Representatives, including without limitation all communications received by 18
members of the commission and the commission's staff regarding how the State 19
should be reapportioned for Representatives, Senators, United States 20
Representatives, or any combination of Representatives, Senators, and United 21
States Representatives. 22
(2) If a member of the commission or a member of the 23
commission's staff receives a verbal communication regarding how the State 24
should be reapportioned for Representatives, Senators, United States 25
Representatives, or any combination of Representatives, Senators, and United 26
States Representatives, the member or staff of the commission shall document 27
the verbal communication in writing. 28
29
§ 9. Powers and duties of Arkansas Apportionment Commission – Approval 30
by Board of Apportionment. 31
(a)(1)(A) On or before February 1 immediately following each federal 32 SJR2
9 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
decennial census, the Arkansas Apportionment Commission shall convene to 1
reapportion the State for Representatives, Senators, and United States 2
Representatives. 3
(B) If the population information resulting from the 4
federal decennial census is not available on February 1 immediately following 5
a federal decennial census, the commission shall convene to reapportion the 6
State for Representatives, Senators, and United States Representatives as 7
soon as practicable. 8
(2) The Governor shall call the first meeting of the commission 9
following each federal decennial census. 10
(3) The commission shall elect a chair and other officers it 11
deems necessary at its first meeting following each federal decennial census. 12
(b) When reapportioning the State for Representatives, Senators, and 13
United States Representatives, the commission shall consider the following 14
criteria in the order stated in this subsection: 15
(1) Population equality; 16
(2) Any applicable federal civil rights laws; 17
(3) Contiguity; 18
(4) Avoiding the division of cities and counties; 19
(5) Avoiding the division of school districts; 20
(6) Compactness; 21
(7) Avoiding the division of areas marked by geographical 22
features such as mountains or rivers; and 23
(8) The drawing of House of Representatives districts wholly 24
within Senate districts. 25
(c) Unless otherwise required by law, the commission shall not 26
consider any factors not identified in subsection (b) of this section when 27
reapportioning the State for Representatives to the House of Representatives, 28
Senators to the Senate, and Representatives to the United States House of 29
Representatives, including without limitation: 30 SJR2
10 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
(1) Political affiliation of residents; 1
(2) Previous election results; 2
(3) Residence of an incumbent elected official; 3
(4) Communities of interest; or 4
(5) Any demographic information other than population. 5
(d)(1) The commission shall issue reapportionment maps as provided in 6
this section. 7
(2) The commission shall establish multiple methods for the 8
public to provide comments and propose alternative reapportionment maps for 9
consideration by the commission. 10
(e)(1) The commission shall conduct at least one (1) hearing in each 11
congressional district and shall publicly release at least three (3) 12
different reapportionment maps for all state and federal districts for public 13
comment at least thirty (30) days before the first hearing. 14
(2) If the commission revises a reapportionment map after the 15
reapportionment map has been publicly released under subdivision (e)(1) of 16
this section, the revised reapportionment map shall be publicly released at 17
least thirty (30) days before a final vote on adoption of the revised 18
reapportionment map by the commission. 19
(f)(1) The commission shall prepare a report and submit the report to 20
the Board of Apportionment. 21
(2) The report shall include: 22
(A) The basis of population adopted for Representatives, 23
Senators, and United States Representatives; and 24
(B) The number of Representatives and Senators assigned to 25
each county. 26
(3)(A) The board may choose to: 27
(i) Accept the report; or 28
(ii) Reject the report and request that the 29 SJR2
11 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
commission make revisions. 1
(B) The board may reject the report no more than three (3) 2
times. 3
(g) If the board rejects the report of the commission three (3) times, 4
the apportionment shall be made by the Supreme Court following the 5
requirements under subsections (b) and (c) of this section. 6
7
Section 8. EFFECTIVE DATE. This amendment is effective on and after 8
January 1, 2027. 9
10
Section 9. BALLOT TITLE AND POPULAR NAME. When this proposed 11
amendment is submitted to the electors of this state on the general election 12
ballot: 13
(1) The title of this Joint Resolution shall be the ballot 14
title; and 15
(2) The popular name shall be “A Constitutional Amendment to 16
Amend Constitutional Provisions Concerning Apportionment and to Create the 17
Arkansas Apportionment Commission to Apportion Districts for the House of 18
Representatives, the Senate, and the United States House of 19
Representatives.”. 20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32 SJR2
12 11/20/2024 4:54:35 PM
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20