Title 21 — Public Officers and Employees

(a) In computing or granting pensions, retirement pay, eligibility lists based on length of service, or any other right under a civil service or merit system in which length of service is the criterion, time spent by any employee, as defined in subsection (b) of this section, in …

(a) (1) The terms of office of the Justices of the Supreme Court, all district officers, except state senators, all county officers, except members of the lower house of the General Assembly, and all township officers and road overseers, when road overseers are elected, shall beg…

(a) There is established a method of recognition of service by employees of the State of Arkansas. (b) The Office of Personnel Management shall coordinate the purchase, distribution, and presentation of service awards based on years of service with the State of Arkansas for full-…

(a) No state employee shall serve both in a full-time quasi judicial position, or in a full-time position which provides legal assistance to a quasi judicial position, in the Arkansas State Claims Commission, Arkansas Public Service Commission, Workers' Compensation Commission, S…

(a) Each state agency, board, commission, and institution of higher education shall develop an informational program explaining the various fringe benefit programs that are provided for employees or in which employees may participate. (b) Each state agency, board, commission, and…

(a) As used in this section:(1) (A) “Prohibit” means to interfere with the physical operation of a recording device by threat, duress, coercion, direct order, arrest, detention, or use of force.(B) “Prohibit” does not include instances when there is no interference with the opera…

(a) (a) As used in this section, “state agency” means the same as defined in § 21-5-203.(b) There is established the Arkansas State Employee Student Loan Program to assist an eligible employee of a state agency with the repayment of student loans.(c) The program shall be administ…

(a) Gender shall not be a bar to the holding of any public or civil office in this state. (b) Women, where otherwise qualified, shall be entitled to hold public or civil office, whether elective or appointive, under the Arkansas Constitution and statutes of this state.

No employee of the state, a county, a municipality, a school district, or any other political subdivision of this state shall be deprived of his or her right to run as a candidate for an elective office or to express his or her opinion as a citizen on political subjects, unless a…

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Emergency Interim Executive and Judicial Succession Act”.

(1) Because of the existing possibility of attack of unprecedented size and destructiveness upon the United States, and in order, in the event of such an attack, to assure continuity of government through legally constituted leadership, authority, and responsibility in offices of…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Attack” means any attack or series of attacks by an enemy of the United States causing, or which may cause, substantial damage or injury to civilian property or persons in the United States in any manner by sabotage or by the use of bombs, miss…

(a) In the event that the Governor, for any of the reasons specified in the Arkansas Constitution, is not able to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of his or her office, or is unavailable, and in the event the Lieutenant Governor, President Pro Tempore of the Senate, a…

A.C.A. § 21-1-305Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

(a) (1) With respect to local offices for which the legislative bodies of cities, towns, villages, townships, and counties may enact resolutions or ordinances relative to the manner in which vacancies will be filled or temporary appointments to office made, the legislative bodies…

(a) In the event that any judge of any court is unavailable to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of his or her office and in the event no other judge authorized to act in the event of absence, disability, or vacancy or no special judge appointed in accordance with the …

(a) At the time of their designation, emergency interim successors and special emergency judges shall take any oath which may be required for them to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of the office to which they may succeed. (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of l…

(a) Officials authorized to act as Governor pursuant to this subchapter, emergency interim successors, and special emergency judges are empowered to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of an office as authorized in this subchapter only after an attack upon the United Sta…

Until such time as the persons designated as emergency interim successors or special emergency judges are authorized to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of an office in accordance with this subchapter, including § 21-1-309, those persons shall serve in their designate…

Any dispute concerning a question of fact arising under this subchapter with respect to an office in the executive branch of the state government, except a dispute of fact relative to the Office of Governor, shall be adjudicated by the Governor or other official authorized under …

(1) For purposes of this subchapter:(1) “Constitutional officer” means Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Treasurer of State, Attorney General, Commissioner of State Lands, Auditor of State, member of the House of Representatives, and member of the Senate; and(2) …

(a) (1) Subject to any restriction or condition prescribed by the Arkansas Constitution and except as provided under subdivisions (a)(2) and (3) of this section and subsection (f) of this section, and unless the person resigns before entering into the employment, a person elected…

(a) No constitutional officer may enter into any lease agreement, contract, or grant with any state agency unless:(1) The lease agreement, contract, or grant is awarded as a result of competitive bidding or a request for proposal and the constitutional officer played no role, dir…

(a) The Secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration is authorized to promulgate and implement any necessary rules or policies to ensure compliance with this subchapter subject to the prior review and approval of the Joint Budget Committee during legislative sessions…

(a) Any knowing violation of this subchapter is a Class D felony. (b) The violation of any rule or policy promulgated by the Department of Finance and Administration under this subchapter or the failure of a constitutional officer or spouse of a constitutional officer to disclose…

The venue for the judicial proceedings for violating § 21-1-405(a) shall be in the county of the defendant's domicile.

A person whose spouse is elected to a constitutional office may be employed by a state agency without the approval of the employment required by § 21-1-402(b) if the person's entry salary does not exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).

(a) The Arkansas Ethics Commission is authorized to investigate any complaints or allegations of violations of the provisions of this subchapter and to make findings thereon. (b) In the investigation of such matters, the commission is specifically given all authority and powers a…

This subchapter shall create the “Public Employees' Political Freedom Act of 1999”.

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Elected public official” means the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Treasurer of State, Auditor of State, Attorney General, Commissioner of State Lands, a member of the Senate, and a member of the House of Representatives;(2) …

(a) A public employee shall not be prohibited from communicating with an elected public official concerning a matter related to the public employee's job, except for a matter exempted under § 25-19-105. (b) A public employee shall not be prohibited from exercising a right or priv…

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Arkansas Whistle-Blower Act”.

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Adverse action” means to discharge, threaten, or otherwise discriminate or retaliate against a public employee in any manner that affects the employee's employment, including compensation, job location, rights, immunities, promotions, or privil…

(a) (1) A public employer shall not take adverse action against a public employee because the public employee or a person authorized to act on behalf of the public employee communicates in good faith to an appropriate authority:(A) The existence of waste of public funds, property…

(a) A public employee who alleges a violation of this subchapter may bring a civil action for appropriate injunctive relief or actual damages, or both, within one hundred eighty (180) calendar days after the occurrence of the alleged violation of this subchapter. (b) An action co…

(a) A court in rendering judgment under this subchapter may order any or all of the following remedies:(1) An injunction to restrain continued violation of the provisions of this subchapter;(2) The reinstatement of the public employee to the same position held before the adverse …

(a) A court may order that reasonable attorney's fees and court costs be awarded to an employer if the court determines that an action brought by a public employee under this subchapter is without basis in law or fact. (b) A public employee shall not be assessed attorney's fees u…

(a) This subchapter shall not be construed to permit a disclosure which would diminish or impair the rights of any person or any public official to the continued protection of confidentiality of records or working papers where a statute or the common law provides for protection. …

(a) A public employer shall use appropriate means to notify its public employees of their protection and obligations under this subchapter. (b) (1) A public employer shall post in a conspicuous place a printed sign at least eight and one-half inches by eleven inches (8½″ x 11″) i…

A.C.A. § 21-1-609Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

(a) As used in this section:(1) “State employee” means a person who performs a full-time or part-time service for wages, salary, or other remuneration for a state employer; and(2) “State employer” means:(A) An agency, department, board, commission, division, office, bureau, counc…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) (A) “Employee” means a person regularly appointed or employed in a position of state service by a state agency for which:(i) He or she is compensated on a full-time basis or on a pro rata basis; and(ii) A class title and pay grade are establishe…

(a) The Office of Personnel Management shall establish a procedure for the filing, hearing, adjudication, and appeal of grievances by state agencies. (b) (1) An employee of a state agency may file a grievance under this subchapter if his or her termination or suspension from empl…

A.C.A. § 21-1-703Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

A.C.A. § 21-1-704Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) (A) “Public employee” means a person who performs a full-time or part-time service for wages, salary, or other remuneration for a public employer.(B) “Public employee” includes without limitation a state employee under § 21-1-610.(C) “Public emp…

(a) A public employer shall not recognize a labor union or other public employee association as a bargaining agent of public employees. (b) A public employer shall not collectively bargain or enter into any collective bargaining contract with a labor union or other public employe…

(a) A public employee willfully refuses to perform the duties of his or her employment with a public employer when, acting in concert with one (1) or more public employees, he or she:(1) Strikes or walks away from the duties of his or her employment with the public employer;(2) P…

Public employees may form associations for the purpose of promoting the public employees' interests before a public employer.

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Arkansas Sovereignty Act of 2021”.