Senate votes to Transfer Oversight of AETN, Library Board to Education Department
LITTLE ROCK – The Senate approved legislation to transfer the powers of the state Library Board to the Education Department.
The same bill transfers the authority of the Arkansas Educational Television Commission to the Education Department.
The measure is Senate Bill 184. It passed in the Senate by a vote of 23-to-8 and was sent to the House of Representatives.
The bill’s sponsor said it was necessary to abolish the Board and the Commission because of their poor leadership. Their staff and funding would remain intact under the control of the Education Department, he said.
Also this week the Senate gave final approval to SB 59 to provide a free breakfast every day to every public school student, regardless of their family’s income, beginning in the 2025-2026 school year.
It is part of the governor’s package. The Senate completed action on the measure and sent it to the governor for her signature.
The fiscal impact is estimated to be $14.7 million a year.
SB 59 creates a Food Insecurity Fund. Revenue from a tax on sales of medical marijuana are prioritized under the bill. Besides paying for breakfasts for students, the revenue will pay for Summer EBT, which provides food for children during the summer when they otherwise would not get free or reduced-price meals at school.
The Senate also passed House Bill 1048, which allows the sale of unpasteurized milk at farmers’ markets, or by delivery from the dairy farm to consumers. The milk could be from a cow, goat or sheep. The bill is ready for the governor’s signature.
The deadline has passed for filing proposed constitutional amendments and this year legislators introduced 44 proposals. In every regular session legislators can place up to three proposed amendments on the upcoming general election ballot. Proposals approved during this session will be on the ballot in November of 2026.
The Senate and House Committees on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs will narrow the list of 44 down to three, or fewer, proposals. They are in the form of joint resolutions. For example, Senate Joint Resolution 16, or SJR 16, would exempt certain types of property from real property taxes. House Joint Resolution 1008, or HJR 1008, would lower property taxes and create exemption.
The Arkansas Constitution also allows for citizens to propose constitutional amendments and initiated acts. The Secretary of State is the top election official in Arkansas. He announced this week the results of a national study that gave Arkansas high marks for election security and prevention of voter fraud. However, the process of collecting signatures earned Arkansas a grade of D.
A concern is that a well-financed, out-of-state organization could buy its way into the Constitution. First it could pay canvassers to collect thousands of signatures, then it could flood the media with commercials during election season.
In past election years, some groups have submitted petitions with thousands of fraudulent signatures.