TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING CANVASSING FOR A PETITION FOR A LOCAL OPTION ELECTION.
Senate Bill 551 amends the law regarding canvassing for local option election petitions, directly affecting individuals who sign these petitions and those who collect signatures (canvassers). The bill requires petition signers to read or have the ballot title read to them and mandates canvassers to verify a potential signer's identity using photo identification before collecting a signature. Canvassers must also disclose that petition fraud is a criminal offense and must be at least 18 years old. It expands the actions considered a Class A misdemeanor for individuals involved in petition collection and allows county clerks to reject signatures collected by canvassers who violate these new provisions or other related laws.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
Apr 2025
Senate Passage
Apr 2025
House Passage
Apr 2025
Signed into Law
Apr 2025
Introduced Mar 20, 2025
Signed Apr 18, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
Act 764
→
SB 551
·
3 edits
MINOR
SB 551 modifies petition signing requirements for local option elections in Arkansas, clarifying when voters must read ballot titles before signing and updating procedures for assisting voters with disabilities. The bill also strengthens fraud prevention by requiring canvassers to notify potential petitioners about criminal penalties before they sign petitions.
Scope change
Applies to all local option election petition signers in Arkansas
REQUIREMENT
Petition signers must read the ballot title before signing, either by reading it themselves or having it read aloud to them in the presence of the canvasser
Assistants helping voters with disabilities may print required information but must sign and print their name in the petition margin
ENFORCEMENT
Canvassers must verbally notify potential petitioners that fraud is a criminal offense before they sign, or provide written notification if verbal notification is impossible
Floor votes
How they voted
This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
15
Key actions
7
Committee
2
Apr 18, 2025
Signed into law
Notification that SB551 is now Act 764
upper
Apr 15, 2025
Upper · Passed
Returned from the House as passed.
upper
Apr 14, 2025
Lower · Passed
Returned to the Senate as passed.
lower
Apr 14, 2025
Lower · Passed
Read the third time and passed and ordered transmitted to the Senate.
lower
Apr 9, 2025
Lower · Passed
Returned by the Committee Do Pass
lower
Apr 3, 2025
Upper · Passed
Read the third time and passed.
upper
Apr 1, 2025
Upper · Passed
Returned by the Committee, with the recommendation that it Do Pass
upper
Mar 20, 2025
Introduced
Filed
upper
2 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
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