Legislation – Family Council

Liberal Groups Challenge State Ballot Initiative Laws

May 16, 2025Jerry CoxLegislationBallot Initiative, Update

Recently, liberal organizations filed multiple complaints in federal court challenging safeguards the Arkansas Legislature has enacted regarding the initiative process, including:

Act 274 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring people to read the ballot title – which is a summary of the measure – before signing a petition.
Act 240 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring canvassers to verify a person’s identity via photo ID before obtaining the person’s signature on a petition to help prevent people from fraudulently signing someone else’s name.
Act 218 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring canvassers to inform people that petition fraud is a crime before obtaining their signatures on a petition.
Act 453 of 2025 by Rep. DeAnn Vaught (R — Horatio) and Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) requiring petition canvassers for ballot measures to be Arkansas residents who actually live in the state.
Act 241 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) requiring petition canvassers to file an affidavit with the Secretary of State verifying the canvasser complied with the Arkansas Constitution and all laws concerning canvassing, perjury, forgery, and fraud.
Act 602 of 2025 by Rep. Ryan Rose (R — Van Buren) and Sen. Mark Johnson (R — Little Rock) requiring ballot initiative titles to be written at or below an eighth grade reading level. A ballot title is supposed to accurately summarize a measure so voters can decide if they support or oppose it.
Act 273 of 2025 by Sen. Kim Hammer (R — Benton) and Rep. Kendon Underwood (R — Cave Springs) clarifying that the signatures a canvasser collects will not count if the Secretary of State finds the canvasser has violated Arkansas’ laws concerning canvassing, perjury, forgery, or fraud.

The federal lawsuit claims the new laws make it too difficult to place constitutional amendments and initiated acts on the ballot.

We have written repeatedly about how Arkansas’ ballot initiative process has become the opposite of what it was intended to be. The Arkansas Constitution lets canvassers circulate petitions to place measures on a general election ballot. Its original intent was to give citizens a way to function as a “legislative body.” But instead of giving everyday people a way to enact their own laws, special interests have hired people to circulate petitions to place misleading, deceptive, and poorly written measures on the ballot in Arkansas.

Earlier this year, lawmakers passed measures to tighten the ballot initiative process. Now this lawsuit challenges several of those good laws.

Good laws like these are designed to address petition fraud and help average voters understand the ballot measure. The groups suing the state are asking the federal court to strike down these safeguards that the legislature passed. We believe our federal courts ultimately will recognize that and uphold these good laws as constitutional.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Arkansas Attorney General Rejects Ballot Title for Failing to Comply with New Readability Law

May 8, 2025Jerry CoxLegislationBallot Initiative, Update

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin’s office rejected a proposed ballot measure on Monday for failing a new readability standard the state legislature recently implemented.

We have written repeatedly about how Arkansas’ ballot initiative process has become the opposite of what it was intended to be. Instead of giving everyday people a way to enact their own laws, special interests have hired people to circulate petitions to place misleading, deceptive, and poorly written measures on the ballot in Arkansas.

Act 602 of 2025 by Rep. Ryan Rose (R — Van Buren) and Sen. Mark Johnson (R — Little Rock) helps address this problem by requiring ballot initiative titles to be written at or below an eighth grade reading level.

The Arkansas Legislature passed Act 602 earlier this year, and the law took effect as soon as Gov. Sanders signed it on April 14.

A ballot title is supposed to accurately summarize a measure so voters can decide if they support or oppose it. Act 602 requires these summaries to be written at or below an eighth grade level, according to the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level formula, which is a common readability standard the U.S. military and other institutions use.

Act 602 is similar to legislation enacted in other states to help make sure ballot titles are easy for voters to read and understand. It is a good law that will help address deceptive or misleading ballot initiatives in Arkansas.

On Monday, Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin rejected the ballot title of a proposed constitutional amendment, because the summary did not comply with Act 602.

The amendment would effectively prevent the legislature from regulating the initiative process. The measure’s ballot title — or summary — was several hundred words long, and it was written above a twelfth grade reading level.

It’s good to see Act 602 working to make sure ballot measure summaries are easy for voters to read and understand, and we appreciate Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin’s office properly enforcing this good law.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.