Arkansas 2025 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SB23

Introduced

1/7/25

Refer

1/13/25

Report Pass

2/13/25

Engrossed

2/17/25

Enrolled

2/20/25

Chaptered

2/25/25

Passed

2/25/25

Caption

An Act For The Judicial Discipline And Disability Commission Appropriation For The 2025-2026 Fiscal Year.

Summary

SB23 is an annual appropriation bill for the Arkansas Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission (JDDC) for fiscal year 2025-2026. It authorizes funding for the commission’s personal services and operating expenses, including salaries for up to six employees: an executive director, deputy executive director, fiscal manager, investigator, paralegal, and legal/administrative secretary. The bill sets the commission’s total appropriation at $837,239, with line items for regular salaries, matching funds, operating expenses, conference and travel, professional fees, and investigator expenses. The bill also includes standard fiscal and legal provisions that limit spending to the amounts appropriated, require compliance with state procurement, accounting, budgetary, and salary laws, and tie expenditures to the agency’s budget requests and legislative records. An emergency clause makes the act effective July 1, 2025, so the commission can continue operating without interruption at the start of the fiscal year.

Impact

SB23 does not change substantive judicial discipline law; instead, it provides the funding authority needed for the JDDC to operate during the 2025-2026 fiscal year. Its practical effect is to maintain the commission’s staffing and investigative capacity, while subjecting expenditures to Arkansas fiscal control statutes and the Department of Finance and Administration’s rules. The bill primarily affects the Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission, its employees, and the state treasury through the Miscellaneous Agencies Fund Account.

Sentiment

The available voting history shows strong bipartisan support and no recorded opposition: the bill passed third reading in the Senate 34-0 and in the House 97-0. No committee transcript is provided, but the unanimous votes indicate the appropriation was viewed as routine and noncontroversial. The emergency clause further suggests general agreement that timely enactment was necessary for uninterrupted agency operations.

Contention

No notable contention appears in the provided record. Because SB23 is a budget appropriation for an existing oversight agency, any discussion would likely have centered on funding levels, staffing, and operating needs rather than policy disputes. The unanimous votes suggest there was little or no disagreement over the commission’s requested resources or the need for the appropriation.

Latest AR SB23 Activity

View All Events: AR 2025 Regular Session SB23

Companion Bills

No companion bills found.

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