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 SENATE BILL 349
4
5 By: Senator Gilmore
6 By: Representative Gazaway
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8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO MAKE AN APPROPRIATION FOR PERSONAL SERVICES
10 FOR THE VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATORS FOR THE FISCAL
11 YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2026; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
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13
14 Subtitle
15 AN ACT FOR THE AUDITOR OF STATE - VICTIM
16 ASSISTANCE COORDINATORS APPROPRIATION FOR
17 THE 2025-2026 FISCAL YEAR.
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19 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
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21 SECTION 1. REGULAR SALARIES - VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATORS. There is
22 hereby established for the Auditor of State - Victim Assistance Coordinators
23 for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the following maximum number of regular
24 employees.
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26 Maximum Annual
27 Maximum Salary Rate
28 Item No. of Fiscal Year
29 No. Title Employees 2025-2026
30 (1) SENIOR VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR II 6 GRADE GS11
31 (2) SENIOR VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR I 4 GRADE GS10
32 (3) VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR SPEC 19 GRADE GS09
33 (4) VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR II 43 GRADE GS07
34 (5) VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR I 38 GRADE GS05
35 MAX. NO. OF EMPLOYEES 110
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SB349
1 SECTION 2. APPROPRIATION - VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATORS. There is
2 hereby appropriated, to the Auditor of State, to be payable from the State
3 Central Services Fund, for personal services of the Victim Assistance
4 Coordinators for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, the following:
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6 ITEM FISCAL YEAR
7 NO. 2025-2026
8 (01) REGULAR SALARIES $3,809,910
9 (02) PERSONAL SERVICES MATCHING 1,523,964
10 TOTAL AMOUNT APPROPRIATED $5,333,874
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12 SECTION 3. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS
13 CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. VICTIM
14 ASSISTANCE COORDINATORS. (a) (1) Effective October 1, 2025, all victim
15 assistance coordinators employed by an elected or appointed prosecuting
16 attorney shall become state employees.
17 (2) The number of positions authorized by this Act equal the total number
18 of county and grant funded victim assistance coordinator positions in place
19 as of January 1, 2025.
20 (3) The initial allocation of the state funded victim assistance
21 coordinators positions for fiscal year 2026 shall be determined by the
22 Prosecution Coordination Commission and shall be consistent with the number
23 of positions in place for each judicial district as of January 1, 2025.
24 (b) The entry level and maximum salaries of victim assistance coordinators
25 shall be comparable with that established by the Uniform Classification and
26 Compensation Act for the appropriate grade established for each position.
27 (c) The victim assistance coordinators shall be subject to the Uniform
28 Attendance and Leave Policy Act as administered by the elected prosecuting
29 attorney by whom they are employed.
30 (d) Victim assistance coordinators who convert from county or grant funded
31 employment to state employment and are employed from the effective date of
32 the Act shall have their length of service with the county recognized for
33 purposes of accrual rates for sick and annual leave.
34 The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from October 1,
35 2025 to June 30, 2026.
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SB349
1 SECTION 4. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS
2 CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW. EXPENSES
3 OF VICTIM ASSISTANCE COORDINATORS. Each county or counties within a judicial
4 district shall continue to bear the responsibility and expenses of providing
5 the cost of facilities, equipment, and supplies, at sufficient levels of
6 operation, but not less than amounts appropriated by ordinance in effect
7 January 1, 2025.
8 The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from October 1,
9 2025 to June 30, 2026.
10
11 SECTION 5. SPECIAL LANGUAGE. NOT TO BE INCORPORATED INTO THE ARKANSAS
12 CODE NOR PUBLISHED SEPARATELY AS SPECIAL, LOCAL AND TEMPORARY LAW.
13 LEGISLATIVE INTENT. It is the intent of the General Assembly, in the
14 transition to a state-funded victim assistance system, to provide an
15 appropriation and adequate level of victim services in all areas of the
16 state. It is recognized by the General Assembly that in many areas of the
17 state, resources have not been available to support victim services at the
18 necessary level to comply with statutory requirements and other duties as
19 assigned by the prosecuting attorney. With the transition of local funding
20 of victim assistance coordinator salaries to state funding, it is not the
21 intent of the General Assembly to adversely affect those districts whose
22 system has been working well or to implement a system which is too inflexible
23 to respond to the needs of each judicial district. Therefore, the
24 Prosecution Coordination Commission is charged with the responsibility of
25 assisting in the maintenance of a system which equitably serves all areas of
26 the state by providing quality victim assistance coordinators.
27 The provisions of this section shall be in effect only from October 1,
28 2025 to June 30, 2026.
29
30 SECTION 6. COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAWS. Disbursement of funds
31 authorized by this act shall be limited to the appropriation for such agency
32 and funds made available by law for the support of such appropriations; and
33 the restrictions of the State Procurement Law, the General Accounting and
34 Budgetary Procedures Law, the Revenue Stabilization Law, the Regular Salary
35 Procedures and Restrictions Act, or their successors, and other fiscal
36 control laws of this State, where applicable, and regulations promulgated by
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SB349
1 the Department of Finance and Administration, as authorized by law, shall be
2 strictly complied with in disbursement of said funds.
3
4 SECTION 7. LEGISLATIVE INTENT. It is the intent of the General
5 Assembly that any funds disbursed under the authority of the appropriations
6 contained in this act shall be in compliance with the stated reasons for
7 which this act was adopted, as evidenced by the Agency Requests, Executive
8 Recommendations and Legislative Recommendations contained in the budget
9 manuals prepared by the Department of Finance and Administration, letters, or
10 summarized oral testimony in the official minutes of the Arkansas Legislative
11 Council or Joint Budget Committee which relate to its passage and adoption.
12
13 SECTION 8. EFFECTIVE DATE. This act is effective on and after October
14 1, 2025
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4 02/27/2025 2:42:27 PM JAR050Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.