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 A Bill
2 95th General Assembly
3 Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1805
4
5 By: Representatives Childress, Hawk
6 By: Senator K. Hammer
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO AMEND THE DEFINITION OF "BULLYING" WITH
10 RESPECT TO PUBLIC SCHOOL ANTIBULLYING POLICIES; TO
11 CREATE A PROCESS WHEREBY A PUBLIC SCHOOL MAY CONDUCT
12 MULTIPLE, SIMULTANEOUS INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE SAME
13 ALLEGATION OF BULLYING UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES;
14 AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
15
16
17 Subtitle
18 TO AMEND THE DEFINITION OF "BULLYING";
19 AND TO CREATE A PROCESS WHEREBY A PUBLIC
20 SCHOOL MAY CONDUCT MULTIPLE,
21 SIMULTANEOUS INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE
22 SAME ALLEGATION OF BULLYING UNDER
23 CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.
24
25 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
26
27 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code � 6-18-514(b)(2)(A), concerning the
28 definition of "bullying" as it pertains to school antibullying policies, is
29 amended to read as follows:
30 (2)(A) "Bullying" means the intentional harassment,
31 intimidation, humiliation, ridicule, defamation, or threat or incitement of
32 violence by a student against another student or public school employee by a
33 written, verbal, electronic, or physical act that may:
34 (i) May address an attribute of the other student,
35 public school employee, or person with whom the other student or public
36 school employee is associated and that causes or creates actual or reasonably
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HB1805
1 foreseeable:;
2 (ii) Involves an actual or reasonably perceived
3 power imbalance;
4 (iii) Is repeated or has a high likelihood of
5 repetition; and
6 (iv) Causes or creates actual or reasonably
7 foreseeable:
8 (i)(a) Physical harm to a public school
9 employee or student or damage to the public school employee's or student's
10 property;
11 (ii)(b) Substantial interference with a
12 student's education or with a public school employee's role in education;
13 (iii)(c) A hostile educational environment for
14 one (1) or more students or public school employees due to the severity,
15 persistence, or pervasiveness of the act; or
16 (iv)(d) Substantial disruption of the orderly
17 operation of the public school or educational environment.
18
19 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code � 6-18-514, concerning school antibullying
20 policies, is amended to add additional subsections to read as follows:
21 (m) To prevent multiple, simultaneous investigations into the same
22 alleged conduct, if the facts that support an alleged incident of bullying
23 under this section may also constitute a violation of another state law or
24 rule or federal law or regulation, nothing in this section shall be construed
25 to prevent a public school or public school district from investigating and
26 disposing of the alleged incident of bullying in accordance with the other
27 applicable state law or rule or federal law or regulation in lieu of the
28 requirements of this section.
29 (n) A public school or public school district shall complete the
30 manner of process or investigation selected by the public school or public
31 school district under subsection (m) of this section.
32 (o) This section does not excuse a public school or public school
33 district from complying with applicable obligations under federal law or
34 regulations or state law or rules.
35
36
2 03/11/2025 3:01:17 PM TNL245Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.