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 551
4
5 By: Senator K. Hammer
6 By: Representative Eubanks
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING CANVASSING FOR A
10 PETITION FOR A LOCAL OPTION ELECTION; AND FOR OTHER
11 PURPOSES.
12
13
14 Subtitle
15 TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING CANVASSING
16 FOR A PETITION FOR A LOCAL OPTION
17 ELECTION.
18
19 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
20
21 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code � 3-8-805(a) and (b), concerning the signing
22 of a petition and the penalty for falsification for a local option election,
23 are amended to read as follows:
24 (a)(1) A person signing a petition under this subchapter shall:
25 (A) Be a registered voter; and
26 (B) Sign After reading the ballot title of the petition in
27 the presence of the canvasser or having the ballot title of the petition read
28 aloud to him or her in the presence of the canvasser, sign his or her own
29 name and print his or her own name, address, birthdate, and the date of
30 signing on a petition in his or her own handwriting.
31 (2) If a person signing a petition under subdivision (a)(1) of
32 this section requires assistance due to disability, another person:
33 (A) May print the name, address, birthdate, and the date
34 of signing; and
35 (B) Shall sign and print his or her name in the margin of
36 the petition.
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1 (3) A person who is under eighteen (18) years of age shall not
2 act as a canvasser.
3 (4) A person acting as a canvasser shall not obtain a signature
4 for a petition without disclosing to the potential petitioner that petition
5 fraud is a criminal offense before the potential petitioner signs the
6 petition in the custody of the canvasser by:
7 (A) Verbal notification; or
8 (B) If verbal notification is impossible, written
9 notification with a document that is provided separately from all other
10 petition materials.
11 (b) A person commits a Class A misdemeanor if the person, acting as a
12 canvasser, notary, sponsor, or agent of a sponsor knowingly:
13 (1) Signs a name other than his or her own to a petition;
14 (2) Prints a name, address, or birthdate other than his or her
15 own on a petition unless the signer requires assistance due to disability and
16 the person complies with this section;
17 (3) Solicits or obtains a signature to a petition knowing that
18 the person signing is not qualified to sign the petition;
19 (4) Pays a person any form of compensation in exchange for
20 signing a petition as a petitioner;
21 (5) Accepts or pays money or anything of value for obtaining
22 signatures on a petition when the person acting as a canvasser, sponsor, or
23 agent of a sponsor knows that the person acting as canvasser's name or
24 address is not included on the sponsor's list filed with the county clerk; or
25 (6) As a sponsor, files a petition part with the official
26 charged with verifying the signatures knowing that the petition part contains
27 one (1) or more false or fraudulent signatures unless each false or
28 fraudulent signature is clearly stricken by the sponsor before filing;
29 (7) As a canvasser, knowingly accepts a signature when the
30 person signing the petition has not read the ballot title of the petition in
31 the presence of the canvasser or the ballot title of the petition has not
32 been read aloud to the person in the presence of the canvasser; or
33 (8) As a canvasser, fails to disclose to a potential petitioner
34 that petition fraud is a criminal offense before the potential petitioner
35 signs the petition in the custody of the canvasser under subdivision (a)(4)
36 of this section.
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1
2 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code � 3-8-805, concerning the signing of a
3 petition and penalty for falsification for a local option election, is
4 amended to add an additional subsection to read as follows:
5 (d)(1) The county clerk shall not count signatures collected and
6 witnessed by a canvasser if the county clerk finds by a preponderance of the
7 evidence that the canvasser has violated Arkansas laws regarding canvassing,
8 perjury, forgery, or fraudulent practices in the procurement of petition
9 signatures or any provision of the Arkansas Constitution applicable to the
10 collection of signatures on a local option petition during the current
11 election cycle.
12 (2) This subsection shall not constrain the duties and authority
13 of the county clerk as set forth in Arkansas law.
14
15 SECTION 3. Arkansas Code � 3-8-808(a), concerning the form of
16 verification for a petition for a local option election, is amended to read
17 as follows:
18 (a) Each petition containing signatures shall be verified in
19 substantially the following form by the canvasser's affidavit thereon as a
20 part thereof:
21 "State of Arkansas, County of _____________
22 I, _____________ (print name of canvasser) _____________, being duly
23 sworn, state that each of the foregoing persons signed his or her own name to
24 this sheet of the petition in my presence. To the best of my knowledge and
25 belief, each signature is genuine and each signer is a registered voter of
26 _____________ County, or City or Incorporated Town of _____________. At all
27 times during the circulation of this signature sheet, an exact copy of the
28 popular name, ballot title, and text was attached to the signature sheet, and
29 each signer read the ballot title of the petition or had the ballot title of
30 the petition read to the signer in my presence. My current residence address
31 is correctly stated below.
32 Signature_____________
33 Residence _____________
34 Indicate one: _____________ Paid Canvasser _____________
35 Volunteer/Unpaid Canvasser
36 Subscribed and sworn to before me this _____________day of
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1 _____________, 20_____________
2 Signature_____________
3 Clerk, Notary, Judge, or Justice of the Peace
4 Seal_____________ ".
5
6 SECTION 4. Arkansas Code � 3-8-808 is amended to add an additional
7 subsection to read as follows:
8 (e)(1) A canvasser who witnesses signatures on a petition part shall
9 view a copy of a potential petitioner's photo identification to verify the
10 identity of the potential petitioner before obtaining the signature.
11 (2) If a canvasser cannot verify the identity of the potential
12 petitioner, the canvasser shall not obtain a signature from the potential
13 petitioner.
14 (3) A canvasser who submits a canvasser affidavit under
15 subsection (a) of this section swearing that to the best of the affiant's
16 knowledge and belief each signature is genuine and that the person signing is
17 a legal voter, but does not comply with the requirements under subdivision
18 (e)(1) of this section, makes a false statement on the petition verification
19 form.
20 (4) As used in this subsection, "photo identification" means a
21 document or identification card permitted under � 7-1-101(40).
22
23 SECTION 5. Arkansas Code � 3-8-811(c), concerning the count of
24 signatures for a local option petition, is amended to read as follows:
25 (c) The following signatures shall not be counted for any purpose by
26 the official charged with verifying the signatures, including the initial
27 count of signatures:
28 (1) A signature that is not an original signature;
29 (2) A signature that is obviously not that of the purported
30 petitioner;
31 (3) A signature that is illegible and is accompanied by no
32 personally identifying information;
33 (4) A signature for which the corresponding printed name,
34 address, or birthdate is written by someone other than the signer except
35 under circumstances of disability of the signer; and
36 (5) A signature that has any other material defect that, on its
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1 face, renders the signature invalid; and
2 (6) A signature submitted by a canvasser who has not filed a
3 true affidavit with the county clerk as required under subdivision (d)(1) of
4 this section certifying that the canvasser has complied with the Arkansas
5 Constitution and all Arkansas laws regarding canvassing, perjury, forgery,
6 and fraudulent practices in the procurement of petition signatures during the
7 current election cycle.
8
9 SECTION 6. Arkansas Code � 3-8-811, concerning the count of signatures
10 for a local option petition, is amended to add additional subsections to read
11 as follows:
12 (d)(1) Except as provided under subdivision (d)(4) of this section, a
13 canvasser shall file a true affidavit with the county clerk certifying that
14 the canvasser has complied with the Arkansas Constitution and all Arkansas
15 laws regarding canvassing, perjury, forgery, and fraudulent practices in the
16 procurement of petition signatures during the current election cycle.
17 (2) The county clerk shall not count the signatures submitted
18 by the canvasser until a true affidavit is submitted under subdivision (d)(1)
19 of this section.
20 (3) A true affidavit submitted under subdivision (d)(1) of this
21 section shall have no bearing to establish the genuineness or falsity of the
22 signatures obtained by the canvasser.
23 (4)(A) The inability of a canvasser to submit an affidavit due
24 to death or medical disability shall not disqualify the signatures gathered
25 by the canvasser.
26 (B) Subdivision (d)(4)(A) of this section does not excuse
27 a canvasser from filing the affidavit required under � 3-8-808.
28 (e) A canvasser who has filed a true affidavit under subsection (d) of
29 this section shall not collect additional signatures unless the county clerk
30 determines that the sponsor of the local option petition is eligible to
31 solicit and add additional signatures to the local petition under � 14�14�
32 915(e).
33
34
35
36
5 03/20/2025 4:20:24 PM SSS272Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.