State Agencies to Hear Proposed Amendments
The House State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee will begin hearing proposed Constitutional Amendments on Wednesday, March 6.
Although a constitution encompasses the core values at the time when it was adopted, framers have provided ways for revisions recognizing that such tenets may change over time.
According to the Arkansas Constitution, either branch of the General Assembly, may propose amendments during a regular session. House members of the 89th General Assembly have filed 19 proposed amendments. You can click here for a complete list. The proposed amendments from the House will appear as House Joint Resolutions (HJR).
Since no more than three amendments are to be proposed at the same time, members of both the Senate and House State Agencies committees will begin the process of narrowing down the number of amendments to be presented on the House and Senate floor. There are no rules stipulating how many amendments must originate in either chamber.
Proposed amendments that receive a majority vote in both chambers will appear on the ballot in the next general election for Senators and Representatives.
Arkansas is one of 35 states where the legislation proposing a constitutional amendment is adopted by the legislature during only one session. Twelve states require two legislative sessions.
Arkansas is the only state that limits the number to 3.
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