Category: Legislature

AG Opinion: Arkansas Legislature Controls Its Own Ethics Rulemaking

We have written before about Issue 3, which voters passed last November. Among other things, Issue 3 extended term limits for Arkansas’ legislators and put new ethics guidelines in the Arkansas Constitution.

One ballot proposal that did not garner very much attention, however, was Issue 1, which voters also passed last November.

Issue 1 made rules and regulations promulgated by state agencies subject to legislative review and approval.

On the surface, Issue 1 and Issue 3 seem to have very little to do with each other. One prescribes new ethics laws and extends term limits for legislators; the other increases accountability between the Arkansas Legislature and the state agencies operating under the Executive Branch of government.

Before leaving office this week, however, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel issued an opinion that connected Issue 1 and Issue 3: Together, Issue 1 and Issue 3 give the Arkansas Legislature a lot of authority over the ethics guidelines Issue 3 put in the Arkansas Constitution.

In a Nutshell

In a nutshell, here is what has happened:

1. Besides extending term limits, Issue 3 outlined ethics guidelines for things like gifts to lawmakers from lobbyists.
2. Issue 3 directed the Arkansas Ethics Commission to make rules implementing those ethics guidelines.
3. Issue 1 gave the Arkansas Legislature authority over rules and regulations implemented by state agencies like the Arkansas Ethics Commission.
4. This means the legislature controls the new ethics rules put out by the Arkansas Ethics Commission under Issue 3.
5. Issue 3 also gives the Arkansas Legislature the power to change the ethics guidelines in the Arkansas Constitution with a 2/3 vote of the Arkansas House and Senate; no approval from voters is required.

In other words, Issue 3 directs the Arkansas Ethics Commission to implement new ethics guidelines, but Issue 1 gives the Arkansas Legislature authority over anything the Ethics Commission tries to implement.

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Legislation to Watch in 2015

The Arkansas Legislature will convene soon, and already lawmakers are filing legislation Arkansans may want to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.

• Lottery Scholarships: Senator Hickey has filed two bills (SB3 and SB5) amending Arkansas’ Academic Challenge Scholarship. Academic Challenge is primarily funded by the Arkansas Lottery. Among other things, Senator Hickey’s proposals would raise the ACT and GPA requirements for scholarship applicants and make scholarship money available for students obtaining technical certificates.
• Balanced Budget Amendment: Representative Bell has filed a bill (HB1006) calling for an Article V convention for the purpose of adding an balanced-budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Under Article V of the U.S. Constitution, states can call a constitutional convention for the purpose of amending the constitution. Since the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1788, a constitutional convention has never been called. Representative Bell’s proposal would limit the scope of the convention to drafting a balanced budget amendment.
• Constitutional Convention: Representative House has filed a resolution (HJR1001) calling for an Article V convention for the purpose of “proposing amendments” to the U.S. Constitution. Rep. House’s proposal differs from Rep. Bell’s in that it does not limit the scope of the convention to drafting amendments related to balancing the federal budget.
• Ethics Legislation: Representative Warwick Sabin and Senator Jon Woods have co-sponsored legislation (HB1002) to “make amendments and clarifications to the ethics laws of the state of Arkansas.” Two years ago Representative Sabin and Senator Woods sponsored the constitutional amendment that eventually became Issue 3–which voters passed last November. Issue 3 changed Arkansas’ ethics laws, established a special committee for the purpose of determining pay scales for elected officials, and lengthened term limits for Arkansas’ legislators. HB1002 is a shell bill right now, meaning it has little more than a title, and will be amended later to flesh it out. This bill will be interesting to watch, because it–presumably–is intended to interpret some of the provisions governing gifts to lawmakers and political candidates under Arkansas’ newest constitutional amendment.

Family Council has no position on any of this legislation at this point; these are simply noteworthy bills voters may want to watch as the legislative session unfolds.

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