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 1920
4
5 By: Representatives McClure, Cavenaugh
6 By: Senator D. Wallace
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO AMEND THE DISTRIBUTIONS FROM THE GENERAL
10 REVENUE FUND ACCOUNT; TO TRANSFER GENERAL REVENUE TO
11 THE AGING AND ADULT SERVICES FUND ACCOUNT TO BE USED
12 FOR FOOD SERVICES BENEFITING THE ELDERLY; TO DECLARE
13 AN EMERGENCY; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
14
15
16 Subtitle
17 TO TRANSFER GENERAL REVENUE TO THE AGING
18 AND ADULT SERVICES FUND ACCOUNT TO BE
19 USED FOR FOOD SERVICES BENEFITING THE
20 ELDERLY; AND TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY.
21
22 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
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24 SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Legislative intent.
25 It is the intent of the General Assembly that:
26 (1) This act serves to create a pilot program to provide funding
27 for food services to benefit the elderly population in the State of Arkansas;
28 and
29 (2) The pilot program created by this act shall be in place for
30 the fiscal years of 2025 -- 2026 and 2026 -- 2027, whereafter the Legislative
31 Council shall, after reviewing reports on the program submitted by each area
32 agency on aging in accordance with the provisions of this act, make a
33 recommendation as to whether the program shall continue.
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35 SECTION 2. DO NOT CODIFY. Funding.
36 (a) After the distributions under � 19-5-406(a) and (b), an amount not
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1 to exceed seven million dollars ($7,000,000), or so much as is available,
2 shall be transferred to the Aging and Adult Services Fund Account to be used
3 exclusively for meal and food services benefitting the elderly, including
4 without limitation congregate meals at senior citizen centers and home-
5 delivered meal programs.
6 (b) An amount not to exceed four hundred ninety thousand dollars
7 ($490,000), or seven percent (7%) of funds available to be transferred under
8 subsection (a) of this section, shall be set aside for the Fight Senior
9 Hunger Community Grant Match Program.
10 (c) The remaining ninety-three percent (93%) of funds available to be
11 transferred under subsection (a) of this section shall be allocated following
12 the intrastate funding formula and with the following restrictions:
13 (1) Fifty percent (50%) shall be used for raw food costs in
14 accordance with the Nutrition Services Incentive Program, 45 C.F.R. �
15 1321.87(d)(3), as it existed on January 1, 2025; and
16 (2)(A) Fifty percent (50%) shall be used for the direct
17 operating and labor costs of preparing and delivering meals or food for the
18 elderly.
19 (B) Indirect food preparation and delivery costs shall not
20 exceed ten percent (10%).
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22 SECTION 3. DO NOT CODIFY. Fight Senior Hunger Community Grant Match
23 Program -- Creation -- Definitions -- Reporting.
24 (a) There is created a grant program to be known as the "Fight Senior
25 Hunger Community Grant Match Program" to incentivize Arkansas counties,
26 cities, and nonprofit organizations to help fight senior hunger in their
27 respective communities.
28 (b) The Department of Human Services is authorized to award a grant to
29 a county, city, or nonprofit organization from funds provided under Section 2
30 of this act if:
31 (1) The county, city, or nonprofit organization develops a
32 written plan for providing meals or food to senior citizens in its community
33 and submits the written plan to the Area Agency on Aging in its region for
34 approval; and
35 (2) The members of the county quorum court, city council, or
36 nonprofit organization submit proof that, through either donations of money
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1 or property in kind, citizens of the county or city or persons associated
2 with the nonprofit organization have pledged or will make available no less
3 than one-half (1/2) of the cost of the program.
4 (c)(1) Except as provided in subdivision (c)(2) of this section, upon
5 the Area Agency on Aging's approval of compliance required by subdivision
6 (b)(1) of this section, the department may approve a state grant to be used
7 for the benefit of the county, city, or nonprofit organization program in an
8 amount that equals up to one-half (1/2) of the estimated program cost.
9 (2) The state's share of the county, city, or nonprofit
10 organization program shall not exceed twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).
11 (d) As used in this section:
12 (1) "Nonprofit organization" means an organization formed under
13 26 U.S.C. � 501(c)(3), as it existed on January 1, 2025; and
14 (2) "Property in kind" is limited to kitchen and dining space
15 operational costs that would be associated with the county, city, or
16 nonprofit organization program.
17 (e) Each Area Agency on Aging shall report on each active city,
18 county, or nonprofit organization program in its region and expenditures to
19 address senior food insecurity under this act to the:
20 (1) House Committee on Aging, Children and Youth, and
21 Legislative Affairs at least one (1) time each year and during a legislative
22 session;
23 (2) Senate Interim Committee on Children and Youth at least one
24 (1) time each year during a legislative interim; and
25 (3) The Legislative Council at least one (1) time each year.
26
27 SECTION 4. DO NOT CODIFY. Effectiveness.
28 This act shall be effective for fiscal years 2025 -- 2026 and 2026 --
29 2027.
30
31 SECTION 5. EMERGENCY CLAUSE. It is found and determined by the
32 General Assembly of the State of Arkansas that the percentage of Arkansas's
33 elderly population is increasing; that food insecurity within Arkansas's
34 elderly population is also increasing; that if unaddressed, this food
35 insecurity will continue to worsen and lead to needless mental and physical
36 suffering and increased financial stress; that this act creates the Fight
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1 Senior Hunger Community Grant Match Program to address the issue of food
2 insecurity; and that it is necessary that this act become effective on July
3 1, 2025, to align with the start of the grant program created by this act
4 with the start of the state's fiscal year and thereby ensure proper funding
5 and appropriation for the grant program. Therefore, an emergency is declared
6 to exist, and this act being necessary for the preservation of the public
7 peace, health, and safety shall become effective on July 1, 2025.
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4 03/31/2025 1:08:17 PM LJH266Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.