An Act For The Department Of Corrections - Post-prison Transfer Board Appropriation For The 2025-2026 Fiscal Year.
SB21 is an annual appropriation bill for the Arkansas Department of Corrections’ Post-Prison Transfer Board for fiscal year 2025-2026. It authorizes funding for the board’s regular salaries, employee benefits, and operating expenses, and sets the maximum number of authorized positions at 21. The bill specifies the board’s staffing structure, including the parole board chairman, parole board members, revocation hearing judges, investigators, and administrative staff.
The bill appropriates a total of $2,471,357 from the Miscellaneous Agencies Fund Account, including $1,667,874 for regular salaries, $558,772 for personal services matching, and $244,711 for maintenance and general operations. It also includes standard fiscal controls requiring compliance with state procurement, accounting, budgetary, and salary laws, and contains a legislative intent section tying spending to the agency’s budget materials and official legislative records. An emergency clause makes the act effective July 1, 2025, so the board can continue operating without interruption at the start of the fiscal year.
SB21 does not create new criminal justice policy or change parole law; instead, it provides the legal authority and funding needed for the Post-Prison Transfer Board to operate during the 2025-2026 fiscal year. Its practical effect is to maintain staffing and day-to-day operations for parole-related decision-making, revocation hearings, and administrative support within the Department of Corrections. The bill temporarily amends state spending authority by setting agency-specific appropriations and employee caps for the fiscal year.
The available voting history shows strong, unanimous support for the bill, with 32-0 passage in the Senate and 99-0 passage in the House on third reading. No committee transcripts were provided, and there is no indication of organized opposition in the record supplied. The overall sentiment appears routine and favorable, consistent with a standard budget appropriation measure.
No notable substantive contention is reflected in the provided materials. Because SB21 is a budget appropriation for an existing agency, any concerns would likely have centered on staffing levels, salary allocations, or operating funding, but no such objections appear in the transcript record. The unanimous votes suggest broad agreement on the need to fund the Post-Prison Transfer Board for the upcoming fiscal year.