Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official PDF posted by the Arkansas General Assembly, fetched 2026-07-23. Page and line markers are part of the official record; nothing is edited or removed. The official bill page.
Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
1 State of Arkansas As Engrossed: H1/15/25
2 95th General Assembly
A Bill
3 Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1051
4
5 By: Representative Andrews
6 By: Senator B. Davis
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO AMEND THE PUBLIC SCHOOL START DATE
10 REQUIREMENTS; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
11
12
13 Subtitle
14 TO AMEND THE PUBLIC SCHOOL START DATE
15 REQUIREMENTS.
16
17 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
18
19 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code � 6-10-106(a), concerning the first day of
20 the school year for public schools, is amended to read as follows:
21 (a)(1)(A) Each school year, each public school district board of
22 directors or governing entity of an open-enrollment public charter school
23 shall establish by policy the first day of the school year for student
24 attendance in public elementary and secondary schools shall be:
25 (i) On or after the Monday of the week in which
26 August 19 falls;
27 (ii) Not earlier than August 14; and
28 (iii) Not later than August 26.
29 (B) The date for beginning the school year shall be
30 determined by the board of directors of each school district The first day
31 of the school year for student attendance established under subdivision
32 (a)(1)(A) of this section shall comply with the number of student-teacher
33 interaction days or hours required by the Standards for Accreditation of
34 Arkansas Public Schools and School Districts established by the State Board
35 of Education.
36 (C)(2) Labor Day shall be celebrated as a school holiday in all
*TNL022* 01-15-2025 11:53:37 TNL022
As Engrossed: H1/15/25 HB1051
1 the school districts of the state, and school shall not be held on that date.
2 (D)(3) As used in this section, "week" means a seven-day period
3 that begins on a Sunday and ends on a Saturday.
4 (2) The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education may grant
5 a school district a waiver to begin school on an earlier or a later date if
6 the division determines that there exists a material and substantial reason
7 for the school district to begin school on an earlier or a later date due to
8 very exceptional or emergency circumstances such as a contagious disease
9 outbreak, inclement weather, or other acts of God.
10
11 SECTION 2. EMERGENCY CLAUSE. It is found and determined by the
12 General Assembly of the State of Arkansas that public schools need ample time
13 to select and announce the school calendar for the upcoming school year,
14 which requires meetings and determinations of certain dates; that for
15 purposes of teacher and administrator contracts, establishing the school
16 calendar is vital; and that this act is immediately necessary because public
17 schools need to know as soon as possible what the statutory requirements are
18 with respect to establishing the school calendars for the upcoming school
19 year. Therefore, an emergency is declared to exist, and this act being
20 immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health, and
21 safety shall become effective on:
22 (1) The date of its approval by the Governor;
23 (2) If the bill is neither approved nor vetoed by the Governor,
24 the expiration of the period of time during which the Governor may veto the
25 bill; or
26 (3) If the bill is vetoed by the Governor and the veto is
27 overridden, the date the last house overrides the veto."
28
29
30 /s/Andrews
31
32
33
34
35
36
2 01-15-2025 11:53:37 TNL022Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.