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Arkansas Senate Bill SJR3

Arkansas 2025 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SJR3 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
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11 Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to the Arkansas
22 Constitution.
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44 State of Arkansas 1
55 95th General Assembly 2
66 Regular Session, 2025 SJR 3 3
77 4
88 By: Senator B. King 5
99 6
1010 7
1111 SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 8
1212 AN AMENDMENT TO THE ARKANSAS CONSTITUTION CONCERNING 9
1313 THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE STATE HIGHWAY COMMISSION; 10
1414 PROVIDING THAT EACH COMMISSIONER SHALL REPRESENT A 11
1515 DISTRICT COMPRISED OF CERTAIN COUNTIES OF THE STATE; 12
1616 PROVIDING THAT A COMMISSIONER SHALL RESIDE WITHIN HIS 13
1717 OR HER DISTRICT; AMENDING AND CLARIFYING THE DUTIES 14
1818 OF THE SENATE REGARDING ADVICE AND CONSENT FOR 15
1919 APPOINTMENTS TO THE STATE HIGHWAY COMMISSION AND THE 16
2020 REMOVAL OF COMMISSIONERS; AND PROVIDING FOR THE 17
2121 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AMENDMENT. 18
2222 19
2323 20
2424 Subtitle 21
2525 A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT CONCERNING 22
2626 THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE STATE HIGHWAY 23
2727 COMMISSION. 24
2828 25
2929 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY -FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE 26
3030 STATE OF ARKANSAS, AND BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, A MAJORITY OF ALL 27
3131 MEMBERS ELECTED TO EACH HOUSE AGREEING THERETO: 28
3232 29
3333 THAT the following is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of 30
3434 the State of Arkansas, and upon being submitted to the electors of the state 31
3535 for approval or rejection at the next general election for Representatives 32
3636 and Senators, if a majority of the electors voting thereon at the election 33
3737 adopt the amendment, the amendment shall become a part of the Constitution of 34
3838 the State of Arkansas, to wit: 35
3939 36 SJR3
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4242 SECTION 1. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 2, is amended to 1
4343 read as follows: 2
4444 § 2. Qualifications and appointment of members — Terms of office of 3
4545 first commission. 4
4646 (a) Within ten days after the convening of the General Assembly of the 5
4747 State of Arkansas in the year 1953, the The Governor, by and with the advice 6
4848 and consent of the Senate under subsection (c) of this section , shall appoint 7
4949 five (5) persons who are qualified electors of the State to constitute the 8
5050 State Highway Commission for terms of two, four, six, eight and ten years 9
5151 respectively. The terms of the persons so appointed shall be determined by 10
5252 lot. The Commissioners to be appointed from the State at large; provided, 11
5353 however, that no two Commissioners shall be appointed from any single 12
5454 Congressional District . 13
5555 (b)(1) The Commissioners shall be appointed as follows: 14
5656 (A) One (1) Commissioner who resides within and represents 15
5757 District 1, which shall consist of the counites of Baxter, Boone, Carroll, 16
5858 Clay, Cleburne, Conway, Craighead, Franklin, Fulton, Greene, Independence, 17
5959 Izard, Johnson, Lawrence, Madison, Marion, Newton, Pope, Randolph, Searcy, 18
6060 Sharp, Stone, and Van Buren; 19
6161 (B) One (1) Commissioner who resides within and represents 20
6262 District 2, which shall consist of the counties of Faulkner, Pulaski, and 21
6363 Saline; 22
6464 (C) One (1) Commissioner who resides within and represents 23
6565 District 3, which shall consist of the counties of Benton, Crawford, 24
6666 Sebastian, and Washington; 25
6767 (D) One (1) Commissioner who resides within and represents 26
6868 District 4, which shall consist of the counties of Calhoun, Clark, Columbia, 27
6969 Dallas, Garland, Grant, Howard, Hot Spring, Hempstead, Howard, Lafayette, 28
7070 Little River, Logan, Miller, Nevada, Ouachita, Pike, Perry, Polk, Scott, 29
7171 Sevier, and Yell; and 30
7272 (E) One (1) Commissioner who resides within and represents 31
7373 District 5, which shall consist of the counites of Arkansas, Ashley, Bradley, 32
7474 Chicot, Cleveland, Crittenden, Cross, Desha, Drew, Jackson, Jefferson, Lee, 33
7575 Lincoln, Lonoke, Mississippi, Monroe, Phillips, Poinsett, Prairie, St. 34
7676 Francis, White, and Woodruff. 35
7777 (2)(A) A Commissioner shall reside within the district he or she 36 SJR3
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8080 represents during his or her term. 1
8181 (B) If a Commissioner no longer resides within the 2
8282 district he or she represents during his or her term, the Governor shall 3
8383 remove the Commissioner under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 4. 4
8484 (c)(1) When the name of an appointee is submitted to the Senate for 5
8585 advice and consent, only the members of the Senate who reside within the 6
8686 district under subsection (b) of this section that would be represented by 7
8787 the appointee shall provide advice and consent regarding the appointment. 8
8888 (2) Advice and consent for an appointee to the Commission 9
8989 requires a majority vote of the members of the Senate considering the 10
9090 appointment under subdivision (c)(1) of this section. 11
9191 (d)(1) In the event of rejection by the members of the Senate under 12
9292 subsection (c) of this section of a person whose name has been so submitted, 13
9393 the Governor shall within five (5) days after receipt of written notice from 14
9494 the Secretary of the Senate of such rejection submit the name of another 15
9595 appointee to fill such vacancy. 16
9696 (2) In the event the Governor should within five (5) days 17
9797 thereafter fail to appoint or fail to submit to the Senate for confirmation 18
9898 the name of any person to be appointed, the members of the Senate who reside 19
9999 within the district under subsection (b) of this section subject to the 20
100100 appointment shall proceed to make the appointment of a Commissioner of its 21
101101 their own choice by a majority vote of the members of the Senate who reside 22
102102 within the district. 23
103103 (e) A Commissioner shall serve a term of ten (10) years. 24
104104 (f)(1) The General Assembly may, by a three -fifths (3/5) vote of each 25
105105 house, amend the distribution of counties among districts under subsection 26
106106 (b) of this section in the regular session following each federal decennial 27
107107 census. 28
108108 (2) If a redistribution of counties among districts under 29
109109 subdivision (f)(1) of this section results in a Commissioner no longer 30
110110 residing within the district he or she represents: 31
111111 (A) A vacancy shall be declared by the Governor with 32
112112 regard to the Commissioner who no longer resides within the district as a 33
113113 result of the redistribution of counties; and 34
114114 (B) A Commissioner shall be appointed under Arkansas 35
115115 Constitution, Amendment 42, § 5 to fill the unexpired term. 36 SJR3
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118118 1
119119 SECTION 2. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 3, is repealed. 2
120120 § 3. Terms of office of members. 3
121121 Upon the expiration of the foregoing terms of said Commissioners, a 4
122122 successor shall be appointed by the Governor in the manner provided for in 5
123123 Section 2 for a term of ten years, which term shall thereafter be for each 6
124124 member of the Commission. 7
125125 8
126126 SECTION 3. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 4, is amended to 9
127127 read as follows: 10
128128 § 4. Removal of members — Hearing — Review and appeal. 11
129129 A Commissioner may be removed by the Governor only as provided in this 12
130130 amendment or for the same causes as apply to other constitutional officers 13
131131 after a hearing which may be reviewed by the Chancery Court for the First 14
132132 District Pulaski County Circuit Court, with right of appeal therefrom to the 15
133133 Supreme Court, such review and appeal to be without presumption in favor of 16
134134 any finding by the Governor or the trial court, and provided further, in 17
135135 addition to the right of confirmation hereinabove reserved to the Senate, the 18
136136 full membership of the Senate may, upon the written request of at least Five 19
137137 (5) of its members that a member or members of the Commission Commissioner 20
138138 should be removed therefrom, proceed, when in session, to hear any and all 21
139139 evidence pertinent to the reasons for removal. The member or members 22
140140 Commissioner whose removal is so requested shall be entitled to be heard in 23
141141 the matter and to be represented before the Senate by legal Counsel. These 24
142142 proceedings conducted by the Senate shall be public and a transcript of the 25
143143 testimony so heard shall be prepared and preserved in the journal of the 26
144144 Senate. The taking of evidence either orally or by deposition shall not be 27
145145 bound by the formal rules of evidence. Upon the conclusion of the hearing, 28
146146 the Senate, sitting as a body in executive session, may remove said member or 29
147147 members of the Commission the Commissioner by a majority vote conducted by 30
148148 secret ballot. 31
149149 32
150150 SECTION 4. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 5, is amended to 33
151151 read as follows: 34
152152 § 5. Vacancies — Filling. 35
153153 (a) Vacancies on the State Highway Commission due to resignations, 36 SJR3
154154
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156156 death, or removal, or a Commissioner residing outside his or her district as 1
157157 a result of a redistribution of counties under Arkansas Constitution, 2
158158 Amendment 42, § 2(f), shall be filled by appointment of the Governor for the 3
159159 unexpired term within thirty (30) days from the date of such vacancy. 4
160160 (b) Upon failure of the Governor to fill the vacancy within thirty 5
161161 (30) days, the remaining Commissioners shall make the appointment for the 6
162162 unexpired term. 7
163163 8
164164 SECTION 5. EFFECTIVE DATE AND IMPLEMENTATION. 9
165165 (a) This amendment is effective on and after January 1, 2027. 10
166166 (b) The changes to the membership of the State Highway Commission 11
167167 under Section 1 of this amendment shall be implemented by the filling of 12
168168 vacancies on the Commission as follows: 13
169169 (1)(A) The Commissioner serving on the effective date of this 14
170170 amendment whose term expires in 2027 shall, upon the expiration of his or her 15
171171 term, be replaced by a Commissioner who shall reside within and represent 16
172172 District 1 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 2(b). 17
173173 (B) If a vacancy occurs in the position of the 18
174174 Commissioner whose term expires in 2027 prior to the expiration of his or her 19
175175 term: 20
176176 (i) The appointment to fill the vacancy shall be for 21
177177 the unexpired term; and 22
178178 (ii) The appointee to fill the vacancy shall reside 23
179179 within and represent District 1 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 24
180180 2(b); 25
181181 (2)(A) The Commissioner serving on the effective date of this 26
182182 amendment whose term expires in 2029 shall, upon the expiration of his or her 27
183183 term, be replaced by a Commissioner who shall reside within and represent 28
184184 District 5 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 2(b). 29
185185 (B) If a vacancy occurs in the position of the 30
186186 Commissioner whose term expires in 2029 prior to the expiration of his or her 31
187187 term: 32
188188 (i) The appointment to fill the vacancy shall be for 33
189189 the unexpired term; and 34
190190 (ii) The appointee to fill the vacancy shall reside 35
191191 within and represent District 5 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 36 SJR3
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194194 2(b); 1
195195 (3)(A) The Commissioner serving on the effective date of this 2
196196 amendment whose term expires in 2031 shall, upon the expiration of his or her 3
197197 term, be replaced by a Commissioner who shall reside within and represent 4
198198 District 3 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 2(b). 5
199199 (B) If a vacancy occurs in the position of the 6
200200 Commissioner whose term expires in 2031 prior to the expiration of his or her 7
201201 term: 8
202202 (i) The appointment to fill the vacancy shall be for 9
203203 the unexpired term; and 10
204204 (ii) The appointee to fill the vacancy shall reside 11
205205 within and represent District 3 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 12
206206 2(b); 13
207207 (4)(A) The Commissioner serving on the effective date of this 14
208208 amendment whose term expires in 2033 shall, upon the expiration of his or her 15
209209 term, be replaced by a Commissioner who shall reside within and represent 16
210210 District 2 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 2(b). 17
211211 (B) If a vacancy occurs in the position of the 18
212212 Commissioner whose term expires in 2033 prior to the expiration of his or her 19
213213 term: 20
214214 (i) The appointment to fill the vacancy shall be for 21
215215 the unexpired term; and 22
216216 (ii) The appointee to fill the vacancy shall reside 23
217217 within and represent District 2 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 24
218218 2(b); and 25
219219 (5)(A) The Commissioner serving on the effective date of this 26
220220 amendment whose term expires in 2035 shall, upon the expiration of his or her 27
221221 term, be replaced by a Commissioner who shall reside within and represent 28
222222 District 4 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 2(b). 29
223223 (B) If a vacancy occurs in the position of the 30
224224 Commissioner whose term expires in 2035 prior to the expiration of his or her 31
225225 term: 32
226226 (i) The appointment to fill the vacancy shall be for 33
227227 the unexpired term; and 34
228228 (ii) The appointee to fill the vacancy shall reside 35
229229 within and represent District 4 under Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 42, § 36 SJR3
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232232 2(b). 1
233233 2
234234 SECTION 6. BALLOT TITLE AND POPULAR NAME. When this proposed 3
235235 amendment is submitted to the electors of this state on the general election 4
236236 ballot: 5
237237 (1) The title of this Joint Resolution shall be the ballot 6
238238 title; and 7
239239 (2) The popular name shall be "A Constitutional Amendment 8
240240 Concerning the Membership of the State Highway Commission; Providing That 9
241241 Each Member of the State Highway Commission Shall Represent a District 10
242242 Comprised of Certain Counties of the State; Providing That a Member of the 11
243243 State Highway Commission Shall Reside Within His or Her District; Amending 12
244244 and Clarifying the Duties of the Senate Regarding Advice and Consent for 13
245245 Appointments to the State Highway Commission and the Removal of 14
246246 Commissioners; and Providing for the Implementation of the Amendment. ". 15
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