All Roll Calls
Yes: 131 • No: 0
ArkansasSB3512025 Regular SessionSenate
TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING ETHICS AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE; TO AMEND PORTIONS OF INITIATED ACT 1 OF 1990; AND TO AMEND PORTIONS OF INITIATED ACT 1 OF 1996.
Sponsored By: Les D. Eaves (Republican), Jonathan Dismang (Republican)
Enacted
Personalized for You
How does this bill affect your finances?
Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this bill means for your household, plus every other piece of legislation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.
Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
10 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 6 costs, 3 mixed.
Political committees drop termination-plan reporting
Political action committees no longer have to state next-year registration termination plans in their fourth-quarter reports. The Secretary of State must still end a committee’s registration after two years without any quarterly reports.
Campaign participants must keep money records
Candidates and people acting for them must keep records of all contributions and spending. Political parties, county party committees, political action committees, independent spending committees, and people making independent expenditures must also keep records. The records must show compliance with campaign finance law. This provision sets no specific record retention period.
Candidates cannot pay fines with donations
Candidates and officeholders cannot use campaign money to pay Ethics Commission fines for treating campaign funds as personal income. This ban also covers money left after a campaign. If they use campaign money anyway, the fine payment counts as personal income.
Exploratory committees face earlier reporting deadlines
Exploratory committees must file monthly reports within 20 days after each month ends. The previous deadline was 30 days.
New limits on candidate campaign donors
Contributors outside the exceptions listed in Arkansas Code § 7-6-203(a)(1)(A)(i)-(vi) cannot give to candidates for public office. They also cannot give to someone acting on a candidate’s behalf. This is a restriction on who can give, not a new dollar limit.
Question campaigns face broader disclosure rules
Organizations inside or outside Arkansas can count as ballot-question or legislative-question committees when giving to another committee of the same type. Contributions must exceed $10,000 and use at least 2% of the most recently completed year’s revenues, operating expenses, or funds. Individuals and approved political action committees are excluded from this test. Covered final financial reports are due within 30 days after the election. If a ballot question fails to qualify or is disqualified, the deadline is 30 days after that month ends.
Education cooperative directors must disclose finances
Executive directors of education service cooperatives must file financial-interest statements with the county clerk.
Campaign materials gain reuse and labeling rules
People making independent expenditures must follow campaign-material rules for signs, literature, and printed materials they create or sponsor. Covered question committees, individuals, and elected officials can reuse materials in future initiative campaigns without listing them again. The same committee, individual, or official must have properly reported those materials in an earlier campaign. Covered question-campaign materials must clearly say “Paid for by” and name the committee, individual, or elected official who paid. The person or committee printing them is responsible for that statement.
Candidates must report leftover campaign money
Candidates who keep campaign money after an election must continue filing required reports. Reporting also continues for money raised for future campaigns or spent on officeholder expenses or future elections. Candidates keeping funds with no activity before year-end can skip the fourth-quarter report. Final reports must state how much campaign money is kept. School district, township, municipal, and county candidates must also name the legal surplus-disposal option used and the amount disposed of.
Independent spenders face mixed filing changes
Independent expenditure committees must register with the Arkansas Secretary of State within 15 days after crossing the annual threshold. That threshold falls from $500 to more than $200 in total contributions accepted or independent spending during a calendar year. Later independent-expenditure reports are due within 20 days after each month ends until the election, rather than 15 days. The reporting exception in Arkansas Code § 7-6-220(a)(1)(C) still applies.
Sponsors & Cosponsors
Sponsors
Les D. Eaves
Republican • House
Jonathan Dismang
Republican • Senate
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
House vote • 4/7/2025
House Vote - Monday, April 7, 2025 8:55:50 PM
Yes: 97 • No: 0
Senate vote • 3/10/2025
Senate Vote - Monday, March 10, 2025 2:29:19 PM
Yes: 34 • No: 0
Actions Timeline
Notification that SB351 is now Act 592
4/14/2025SenateDELIVERED TO GOVERNOR.
4/9/2025SenateReported correctly enrolled and ordered delivered to the Governor.
4/9/2025SenateORDERED ENROLLED
4/8/2025SenateReturned from the House as passed.
4/8/2025SenateReturned to the Senate as passed.
4/8/2025HouseRead the third time and passed and ordered transmitted to the Senate.
4/7/2025HouseReturned by the Committee Do Pass
4/2/2025HouseRead the first time, rules suspended, read the second time and referred to the Committee on STATE AGENCIES & GOVT'L AFFAIRS- HOUSE
3/10/2025HouseRECEIVED FROM THE SENATE
3/10/2025HouseOrdered immediately transmitted to the House.
3/10/2025SenateRead the third time and passed.
3/10/2025SenateReturned by the Committee, with the recommendation that it Do Pass
3/6/2025SenateRe-referred to STATE AGENCIES & GOVT'L AFFAIRS-SENATE
3/5/2025SenateREPORTED CORRECTLY ENGROSSED
3/5/2025SenateAmendment # 1 read the first time, rules suspended, read the second time and adopted, ordered engrossed.
3/5/2025SenateWithdrawn from Committee and placed on 2nd reading for purpose of amendment # 1
3/5/2025SenateRules suspended.
3/5/2025SenateRead first time, rules suspended, read second time, referred to STATE AGENCIES & GOVT'L AFFAIRS-SENATE
3/3/2025SenateFiled
2/28/2025Senate
Bill Text
SB351 - Introduced
2/28/2025
Act Version
Related Bills
HB1265, AN ACT FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS AT LITTLE ROCK APPROPRIATION FOR THE 2025-2026 FISCAL YEAR.
HB1237, TO PROHIBIT MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS FROM SOLICITING INJURED INDIVIDUALS; AND TO SET PENALTIES FOR A VIOLATION OF THE PROHIBITION OF SOLICITATION OF INJURED INDIVIDUALS.
HB1686, TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING LICENSES TO CARRY CONCEALED HANDGUNS.
SB440, TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING EMBALMERS AND FUNERAL DIRECTORS; TO REGULATE THE USE OF ALKALINE HYDROLYSIS; AND TO REGULATE ALKALINE HYDROLYSIS FACILITIES.
HB1695, TO CLARIFY THE FORECLOSURE PROCESS FOR PROPERTY SUBJECT TO A MUNICIPAL LIEN; TO ALLOW A MUNICIPALITY TO PETITION TO SET ASIDE THE SALE OF PROPERTY TO CERTAIN PERSONS; AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE PRIORITY OF UNRECORDED MUNICIPAL LIENS.
HR1012, TO AMEND THE RULES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY; TO REQUIRE THAT A MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BE SELECTED AS A DESIGNATED SURVIVOR.