City, County & Local Affairs Committee - Senate
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Transcript
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Bills discussed (16)
| Bill | Title | Sponsor | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
|
HB1872
Act 693
· 4 mentions in agenda, chapter, transcript
Matched: “…OF A CITY OF THE FIRST CLASS TO A CITY OF THE SECOND CLASS. HB1872 Gazaway TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE FEES THAT MAY BE CO…”
|
TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE FEES THAT MAY BE COLLECTED BY A COUNTY SHERIFF; … | Gazaway | Notification that HB1872 is now Act 693 |
|
HB1783
Act 834
· 3 mentions in transcript, agenda, chapter
Matched: “…resentative District 21 in Fayetteville. All right, this is House Bill 1783, um, currently in the state of Arkansas, when you, when you…”
|
TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE REDUCTION OF A CITY OF THE FIRST CLASS TO … | Clowney | Notification that HB1783 is now Act 834 |
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HB1416
Act 673
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…LIQUOR ACT; AND TO ESTABLISH A WINE DIRECT SHIPPER LICENSE. HB1416 L. Johnson TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING FIRE DEPARTMENTS; AN…”
|
TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING FIRE DEPARTMENTS; AND TO ALLOW A VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT SERVICING … | L. Johnson | Notification that HB1416 is now Act 673 |
|
HB1476
Act 675
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…. SB588 C. Penzo TO ESTABLISH A WINERY PRIVATE CLUB PERMIT. HB1476 B. McKenzie TO AMEND THE DIRECT SHIPMENT OF VINOUS LIQUOR A…”
|
TO AMEND THE DIRECT SHIPMENT OF VINOUS LIQUOR ACT; AND TO ESTABLISH A WINE DIRECT … | B. McKenzie | Notification that HB1476 is now Act 675 |
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HB1686
· 2 mentions in chapter, agenda
Matched: “HB1686 Childress TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING LICENSES TO CARRY CON…”
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TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING LICENSES TO CARRY CONCEALED HANDGUNS. | Childress | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
|
HB1730
Act 830
· 2 mentions in chapter, agenda
Matched: “HB1730 M. Brown TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE ISSUANCE AND TRANS…”
|
TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE ISSUANCE AND TRANSFER OF WHOLESALE PERMITS. | M. Brown | Notification that HB1730 is now Act 830 |
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HB1901
Act 844
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…OLLECT FEES FOR ATTEMPTED SERVICE IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES. HB1901 Milligan TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING PASSPORT FEES COLLECTE…”
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TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING PASSPORT FEES COLLECTED BY COUNTY PASSPORT ACCEPTANCE FACILITIES. | Milligan | Notification that HB1901 is now Act 844 |
|
HB1902
Act 845
· 2 mentions in chapter, agenda
Matched: “HB1902 Milligan TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING A CERTIFICATE OF MARRI…”
|
TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING A CERTIFICATE OF MARRIAGE AND BOND; AND TO AMEND THE … | Milligan | Notification that HB1902 is now Act 845 |
|
SB10
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…RADIUS OF A MILITARY FACILITY; AND TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY. SB10 B. King TO AMEND THE ARKANSAS DATA CENTERS ACT OF 2023; AND…”
|
TO AMEND THE ARKANSAS DATA CENTERS ACT OF 2023; AND TO REGULATE THE IMPACT ON … | B. King | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
|
SB399
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…ND THE LAW CONCERNING LICENSES TO CARRY CONCEALED HANDGUNS. SB399 G. TO CREATE THE ANTI-ATF COMMANDEERING ACT; AND TO PROHIBI…”
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TO CREATE THE ANTI-ATF COMMANDEERING ACT; AND TO PROHIBIT THE PROVISION OF MATERIAL AID AND … | G. Stubblefield | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
|
SB518
· 2 mentions in chapter, agenda
Matched: “SB518 Hester TO PROHIBIT A LOCAL GOVERNMENT FROM ENACTING REGULAT…”
|
TO PROHIBIT A LOCAL GOVERNMENT FROM ENACTING REGULATIONS IN A FLOOD-PRONE AREA THAT ARE MORE … | Hester | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
|
SB520
Act 747
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…hua Bryant RE-REFERRED TO COMMITTEE Number Sponsor Subtitle SB520 D. Sullivan TO PROHIBIT DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION OF…”
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TO PROHIBIT DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION OFFICES, OFFICERS, POLICIES, OR PRACTICES IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT. | D. Sullivan | Notification that SB520 is now Act 747 |
|
SB531
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…THE NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM IN CERTAIN INSTANCES. SB531 K. Hammer TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING MUNICIPAL PLANNING; A…”
|
TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING MUNICIPAL PLANNING; AND TO ALLOW A MUNICIPALITY TO CONTRACT WITH … | K. Hammer | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
|
SB588
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…CIPAL BOUNDARY FOR MUNICIPAL SERVICES IN CERTAIN INSTANCES. SB588 C. Penzo TO ESTABLISH A WINERY PRIVATE CLUB PERMIT. HB1476…”
|
TO ESTABLISH A WINERY PRIVATE CLUB PERMIT. | C. Penzo | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
|
SB60
· 2 mentions in agenda, chapter
Matched: “…THAT CONVEYS REAL PROPERTY OR AN INTEREST IN REAL PROPERTY. SB60 Hill TO PROHIBIT A DIGITAL ASSET MINING BUSINESS FROM BEING…”
|
TO PROHIBIT A DIGITAL ASSET MINING BUSINESS FROM BEING LOCATED WITHIN A THIRTY-MILE RADIUS OF … | Hill | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
|
SB69
· 2 mentions in chapter, agenda
Matched: “SB69 A. Clark CONCERNING THE RECORDATION AND FILING OF A DEED OR…”
|
CONCERNING THE RECORDATION AND FILING OF A DEED OR OTHER INSTRUMENT THAT CONVEYS REAL PROPERTY … | A. Clark | Died in Senate Committee at Sine Die adjournment. |
Machine transcript
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- October 2, 2026
Senator Dan Sullivan
Unverified
0:12
Senator Sullivan. Senator Dan Sullivan, District 20, Jonesboro. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment to run first. Pardon me? I have an amendment to run first. Does it, do you have a copy of the amendment pass it out.
Yeah, folks with the amendment does, uh, This is 5:20 a justice uh DEI applies to counties and cities similar to what's happening federally. To prevent that. And it also we had an amendment to change to the bill for to make sure funding wasn't impacted. So that's what the amendment does both of those things.
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
1:16
questions? you've had an explanation since I you have a question. uh, have a motion to move adoptions the amendment in discussion. With 2.
Senator Dan Sullivan
Unverified
1:29
All those fuckers say all the post. Doctor Bill, your amendment's been adopted. So members as the title says, an act to prohibit diversity, equity, inclusion, offices, officers' policies and practices in local government. So this is pretty much the same
bill you saw in the the higher ed bill access is pretty much follows in line with Act 116. Uh, I've worked with the governor's office, uh, cities and
Speaker 9
1:52
counties and municipal league, and there is no opposition known on this bill. I'd appreciate a good vote.
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
1:59
He, uh, Committee heard an explanation Billing questions? Anyone
that would like to speak for. We have uh Doctor
Speaker 20
2:14
Or is Bennett. this Ma Arissa Bennett, yeah, you, you want to come to the table. And recognize yourself, tell us who you're with for the record. You will be recognized.
Speaker 25
2:45
I'm with the city of North Little Rock and we really do not agree with this. We're totally against it. As far as our DEI policy. Um I know that the Federal government is doing away with a lot of the DEI but as far as our city, we're just not in agreeance with this. And we wanted to make it known.
And far as uh your uh we feel like you're violating a First Amendment rights. And telling us that we cannot say anything about DEI. And it even goes to the point where Uh, if it's any violations that There would be a uh A possibility of Attorney fees and I mean, it, it's just really getting to the point where
People are gonna be afraid to say anything when it has to do with any programs that they do in the community because a lot of times we go out into the community and do different events. We partner with other organizations that have DEI programs and it's almost like we're being censored. And I just wanted to make that known. Any questions for me?
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
4:20
Send Would you mind if Entertain a question if there's any. Any questions from committee? I say no, you, you're dismissed. Thank you,
ma'am. Uh, anyone else in the audience that wish to speak for or against?
I have none. Saying none, uh. So when you are recognized
Senator Dan Sullivan
Unverified
4:50
clothes for. Yeah, thank you, Mr. Chair. The only thing I'll say is if you'll notice in the penalties, it allows 30 days to cure the thing. So people are doing things that are wrong, you report it, and the city and county governments have 30 days to cure it. Again, I appreciate your consideration, would appreciate a good vote and I'm
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
5:08
closed. All right. shirt, gave emotion, have a motion to pass and a 2nd discussion. All those in favor of the motion.
Speaker 37
5:20
Say ah. would be the best. Thank you committee and thank you, Mr. Chair. Gilmore, you're
Senator Ben Gilmore
Unverified
5:41
up next. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Senator Gilmore, District one here for House Bill 1872. OK, you reckon Thank you
members. This is a bill from the Sheriff's Association and as you know, they spend a lot of time and effort and money trying to serve warrants and other writs associated with the legal process, um, and so what this does, this is not increase any fees, but this allows them to get paid for every attempt of service that they that they attempt. So in some cases when they're trying to serve somebody, they're maybe doing it. 34 or 5 times, um, that's fuel
costs, that's man hours, that's a lot of things associated with that. So this bill quite simply just allows them to be uh to be uh basically recoup any charges and expenses they incur in that in in the attempt to service. Happy to take
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
6:37
questions. hurt, you hurt committeenation of the bill. Any questions? Sent to Bryant. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
6:49
Just, uh, could you identify what would be
qualifying as attempt to serve. Yeah, I mean that would be, you know, serving is physically handed you and I could document that, but by attempt to serve. What keeps what keeps law enforcement from leaving for that intended purpose, but then getting called away and then coming back and just documenting they left and then some transcriber transcribing that that was an attempt and it really wasn't going to the, that's that's
Senator Ben Gilmore
Unverified
7:16
a great point, and I'm happy to let any of the sheriffs that are here to speak to this, but I mean anytime an
attempt is made, that has to be documented in such a way that it can stand up in court, should that arise, and so I trust them to do the due diligence that they are are obligated to do to make sure that it is properly served. But Senator I should recognize. Now,
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
7:44
could we have the director of Sheriff's association come up? Sure, Mr. Bradley is here.
Speaker 58
8:01
Scott Bradley, the director of the Arkansas Sheriff's Association. Go you. Yes, sir. Do
Speaker 61
8:10
you have anything you want to say? No, I just obviously there was uh No, there was no need for increase of fees. No one was wanting to do that. Um, we don't get near as much money as the private servers do. It's our obligation to serve papers, not the, not the city or the Or the state, it's our obligation to serve papers. We
haven't asked for an increase in quite some time, so we're just trying
Senator Ben Gilmore
Unverified
8:38
to. Keep up with inflation. And, and if I may really quick to that, Senator, one of the things that I would point out to you is there was a conversation about maybe trying to increase the fees, um, and we decided not to go that route for several reasons, but one in particular with this again, there's a lot of money expended in them trying to uh make multiple attempts to serve, and so I think this is a fair way to do that. Good.
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
9:05
And I, I don't oppose the bill, uh, I do. We want to make a point, uh, in a previous committee. You realize when you're sitting in that chair, you're a live stream video. Yes sir. And uh I had a report. That after people testified that you were taking pictures of witnesses. I, I, you don't remember taking, have you ever taken pictures in this committee. It's not, it's not anything wrong with it, but
no, sir, I don't know what I would do with a photograph any pictures of this committee, no, this was on the day the ATF bill was present no, sir. OK. No, I don't know what I, I don't know what I'd do, I may have been given wrong information. I just wanted for the audience and and the live stream to know that people said at the table and give their name. in the picture, it's out there for the world to see and there was somebody taking pictures of two ladies who were witnesses
that day. Yes sir, and that was the kind of contentious hearing anyway and I just want people to know why you can take pictures in here. I wouldn't want anybody to uh do anything that might be uh concerning to to a witness, so I appreciate that because you, I've been given the wrong information. I don't, I don't. I mean, I don't oppose this
Speaker 67
10:27
bill, so thank you for your testimony. Yes, sir. Censure right, you have a question. Yeah, thank you,
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
10:36
Mr. Chair, and just, just so I'm
clear functionally on the process when I Need something served, order notice, notice to vacate, and I go ask for that service. Usually that's charged upfront like charge for that, so I guess if I go write a check for $30 to the sheriffs, and then here's my information, here's all the items you need, a week goes by, I, I really don't hear anything. I is that when you say, hey, well, we attempted it and they weren't home, so come pay us another $30 or how will this functionally work on the
attempts to serve versus So That was accomplished because eventually after $150.05 attempts at $30 it's not working. And so I'm gonna have to go somewhere else, so I agree. I, I, I, I could see
Speaker 61
11:21
a form that you would fill out upon attempts of the service every time you go out and try to serve the paper, you'd fill out the form, uh, the date and time you went and tried to serve the paper, uh, you know, anytime someone wants to come back and get their paper and take it to a private server or do something different. There's certainly
could do that, um. We're just trying to find a way to, you know, to offset the cost, um, I think it's probably our fault. We should have been here a lot sooner asking to try to keep up with inflation, and we haven't done so. I just kind of fell through the cracks, so. I think we're just us to keep up, keep a good record, um, I also had the question of how we're going to uh make sure everybody pays and we really don't have a mechanism for that either. We just count on. Mostly, mostly who we work for
the attorneys, the people, different people in the community, so I mean, I think the sheriffs are good to work with everyone, and it depends on the situation though, so.
Speaker 32
12:29
Any other questions from committee? Saying no, uh, we don't have anybody signed up to speak for or against it.
Chair
Unverified
12:39
And the audience All right, since Gilmore, you were recognized closely. Thank
Senator Ben Gilmore
Unverified
12:43
you, Mr. Chair. I'm not going to belabor the point. I think it's very, very apparent that with the rising costs of fuel and man hours associated with this. I think it's fair that they receive payment for every attempt of service because they spent a lot of time doing this and so with that, I'm closed for the bill and I appreciate your vote.
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
13:03
All right. She would entertain a motion. We have a motion to pass and a second in discussion. All those in favor say aye, all the post.
Speaker 81
13:16
Congratulations, your bill passes. We're gonna go down, uh, here Well, you've got one more sent to history. Wait
Speaker 8
13:40
a minute. What, what are you running? 518. Let me see here. Yeah. We got, we've got a house built 147, 1470, yeah, 1476.
Speaker 88
13:47
to Uh 1476. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Bart hasster state senator District
Speaker 89
14:10
33, uh, Britt McKenzie, State Representative District 7, Rogers, Arkansas.
Senator Bart Hester
Unverified
14:13
I'll tell you, we had some discussion on this last week, I think that Senator
Stubblefield has some constituents that wanted to come, uh, have some concerns about it that wanted to speak on it, but I will let Brent Britt give a 62nd overview of how we
Representative Brit McKenzie
Unverified
14:27
got here. Yeah, so this is a, this is a bill of compromise worked hand in hand over
the house side before running it to ensure that industry stakeholders had a seat at the table and that when we talk about ing options at consumer choice for any type of spirit liquor or wine or beer that we work with the entities that are here first to ensure that it's going to be
a soft landing. Um, what this bill does, and I know that Senator Hester talked about this last last week. It opens the door for out of state um wineries, suppliers to ship wine at a very limited amount. It's 9, it's one case of wine per quarter, um, to wet territories in the state. of Arkansas, um, not dry territories, um, what this ostensibly does is it creates a new license structure that license structure will replace an old license structure. There will be no change to that license structure. It is the
same that our small wine farmeries currently use in the state for those out of state entities, ABC has confirmed to me that this is going to be a very nominal change at all, just going to be opening up for other people outside of the state. This is a good consumer choice bill allows people that have an appreciation of specific wines. This isn't going to be mass retail lines, so you go to your Walmart, your Kroger, and you see the Maomis or the Kim Crawford's, it's not those wines. This would be, you know, kind of um um refined to fine
wines, so wines that are from small production wineries across the country, niche wine, so things like organic or natural ones, and it's really going to be going to the hobbyists, those who enjoy this product the most, those who have appreciation for the craft of the beverage as opposed to I made the comment in the well over in the house, this is not Mad Dog 2020. We're not going to see alcohol. Or um wine in air quotes run amok in the state of Arkansas. This is for those who truly appreciate the craft of good winemaking, so that'd be happy to take any questions. All right. Any questions from committee?
Speaker 99
16:23
So then we have one signed up to speak against the bill. And Mr. Dennis Whittaker. OK I'm Dennis Whittaker. I'm 4th-generation president and chairman Whittaker wine cellars Incorporated, uh, weaker Village. I also am the chair for the Arkansas Wine Producers Council,
who I speak for today, and I'm a vice chair for uh Arkansas Association of Grape Growers. Uh, there's a lot of people that this affects, um, besides those shipping in. Uh, our grape growers, it'll have some, it'll have some effect on them. Our liquor stores that we have in the state, um, it'll have some effect on them, uh. The biggest thing that we want to do, we're fighting for, for our lives and fighting for our existence. There's been a lot of
changes that have happened over the last 7 or 8 years. The last shipping bill that came through that is now the small farm winery bill, I was not for that. Uh, we were not for that because it was something that could hurt our liquor stores, package stores, our biggest customers, 40 500 different permits out there, and these are families and lives just like the grape growers, just like the vineyards and, and wineries that we have. When I first came to to Whittaker Wine cellars in 2001. There were 4 wineries in
Arkansas. There was Whittaker wine cellars, Pos Family winery, Mount Bethel, uh, chateaus actually was 5 and Chateau Ozark, Chateau Ozark is currently allow in production. What happened to them? Well, COVID and other things had happened. We were all shut down like a lot of other people that may have been in the service industry. Well I don't think that the intention is to hurt our business. I don't think that is your intention.
Speaker 100
18:25
I think that the, the people that are Our friends in this
Speaker 99
18:35
industry. could stand Leaving the small farm wine pyramid alone. It's currently our permit is $25 a year. This one is, I think, going to $100. Is that correct? No sir. Um, and the, the permit and the bill for the small farm winery limits it to a certain size of
winery. I think that the new permit that is coming in, there is no size of winery. If I pay $100 and I'm Gallo Winey, I can chip my wine in here. Now, is that smart for the consumer to do? I don't think so. I wouldn't, I wouldn't necessarily do that because you're paying for not only the shipping, you're paying for the packaging material that that comes in. So, you know, it is an investment for the consumer that really wants that.
I think Senator Hester, if we were to come to an agreement to leave the small farm wine permit and loan or we can ship any right now we can ship anywhere in Arkansas and and that works for our smaller wineries. It helped us grow from 4 to 25. If you look south in Texas, they've got 500 plus 800 wineries in Texas that have grown over the last 20 some years. Look at Missouri. They've got full support of their state all the way up. They, they are
150 wineries and you know, it's it's a strong, it could be a strong business. It's good for tourism. It's good for taxes, for the for the state, but if we keep getting hurt, There's more of us that are going to go aside and the new wineries that want to come in, this shipping bill that we currently have, the small farm shipping bill, it is a good thing for them because they have a way to get their wine out to the public. And right now, if you're a new winery coming in, it's hard to, it's hard to get in the door to a liquor store. Uh, it's even hard for us that have been here for a long time because of the
different things that have happened in the industry over the years. So, you know, I just, I would. Just ask you to, it does not this this bill does not eliminate those big wineries in size like it's not just the The small boutique wineries that you can get up front. I love wine. I'd like picking it up where I can. Uh, there's different ways to go about it.
And I think if you consider the people involved, look at Northwest Arkansas. You still have some grape growers that have survived their land being bought up, but we depend on those people too. So I, I just ask you for the rest of, you know, our contingent and our industry to consider. Making a modification to this bill. It would mean a lot. This is 145 years that my family's been in business in Arkansas.
And this is also 58 years since the wine Killer restaurant this month, 58 years since the wine Killer restaurant opened. If we weren't diversified with a liquor store vineyard, retail operation in a restaurant. We've been out of business before COVID. So I just ask for your help and consideration to make a modification of this bill for all of
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
22:01
our industry. Right. Any questions from committee to Mr. Whittaker.
Anyone in the audience that wish to speak for
or against the bill? Thank you, sir. Yeah Say no, you, you're close to your
Senator Bart Hester
Unverified
22:29
bill. I'll let you, I'll let you close. Mr. Whittaker. I'm sorry, is that your
Representative Brit McKenzie
Unverified
22:33
last name? Mr. Whitaker coming down. Whittaker as well as posts mean a lot sentimentally to me. I went to school in the River Valley, went to school with the posts children, went, had my senior
prom in your cellar, um, so I understand it, we've worked very diligently to ensure that there is no disruption from the current small small farm winery license to what this new direct shipper license will be. It'll still allow in-state wineries to ship where they'd like. as well as now it allows for out of state wineries to ship to wet areas, so the protection of their product is still is still in place. The other part that that and I appreciate someone who spends their time so much time in the industry and advocates so diligently. Um, we have a brand registration as a
part of this bill, so that's what's going to keep the gallo farms or the larger big manufacturers that are been absorbed into conglomerates away from shipping the wine that we buy in our convenience stations or in our Um, grocery stores are even uh liquor stores from getting that same product shipped. So that's why I say it will be down further down the funnel of the products that are going to be available to our consumers. Uh, to that end, I again, I think this is those who appreciate Arkansas wines will
still have the ability to appreciate Arkansas lines. Those that have an appreciation for Napa Valley wines or um um um Sags leap or whatever that case may be, wherever it is in the country that they have managed to to go to and enjoy that product. Now they'll have the ability to enjoy that same that same wine. So I understand that maybe on this side of the building we have less of the objections about um you know what alcohol means in the role of our society, but what this really, this bill does, it unlocks what our consumers have decided for themselves. It allows them to make choices that
Speaker 85
24:17
fit their preferences, so with that, I would appreciate a good vote.
Speaker 99
24:40
he has a question? So Yeah. My question is from the, the bill that we had that we got last week. It, it, it appeared that the small farm winery was stricken.
Representative Brit McKenzie
Unverified
24:51
From this bill and withdrawn. That is correct. So you would be going and getting the same license and your comment about the the fee structure, we got that flagged initially. It is, so it's $50 to start $25 a year to renew. That stays the same. So you will be taking the same license application and filling it out like everybody else. It just takes the name off of the license of small, small wine farming and changed it to direct shipper. Um, and
Speaker 117
25:15
that doesn't affect any word that we can ship in Arkansas. Any of the wineries in.
Speaker 36
25:25
That's something for us to consider. Thank you. Or any other discussion
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
25:36
from committee. We. Centralized. Yeah, he's close. Yeah, we can
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
25:46
discuss. Discussion between members. Uh, Senator Hester with what he's asking there that was there not a reach out? To the Arkansas
Senator Bart Hester
Unverified
25:58
Why people to discuss this, do you know? Uh, it, it You know, I can't say that someone reached out to them or not. I know that they're representatives were very informed who are have a close relationship with them. So Eubanks was the House chair that this committee went through. We had lots of discussions, in fact, waited weeks after weeks upon the chairman's time, so the chairman could visit with, with, so I guess not directly but indirectly we put off this vote in the House week after week so
that Chairman Eubanks could have time to visit with them about concerns. Uh again, last week we've been on this, I held off a week.
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
26:38
Again, to, to, to be able to hear concerns. I appreciate that and do the chair are you familiar? Was there discussions representative Eubanks, who is a close friend. out with open heart surgery. And down some during that time, so do you know if he was able to talk to the appropriate people to
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
27:01
So there was not unless he he talked to him over the phone because he was hospitalized for a number of days. Uh, with triple bypass
Speaker 36
27:09
surgery, so. OK. I'm not aware of any communication he had. I, I will say
Senator Bart Hester
Unverified
27:14
we delayed the vote until Chairman Eubanks was back full in action and could chair that committee. We'd had the discussions about running on and wide out, and we knew that wouldn't be fair. This is important to him and his district, so we waited till he was back and chairing the committee and had ample time.
Again, this bill was filed months ago and we've really taken a lot of time. I, I understand Mr. Whittaker's concerns, but as you heard, uh, his fee structure wasn't changing, only nothing that they have to do changes. Still, the $25 still the same application. There's just a different title across the top. All right, we have
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
27:54
a motion to pass. We have a second. The second discussion.
Speaker 130
28:05
All those in favor say aye, all opposed? No. Uh, bill passes. Anyone else in the room have, have,
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
28:26
uh, bills. So Who does Representative Klein, you've been waiting. I'll get you that.
Representative Nicole Clowney
Unverified
28:43
Yeah, if you got the other type and recognize yourself. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Nicole Clowney, Representative District 21 in Fayetteville. All right, this is House Bill 1783, um, currently in the state of Arkansas, when you, when your city reaches a population of 2500, you become a city of the first class. However, cities with a population under 5000 are able to opt into being a city of
the second class. All this bill does is it raises that um opt-in threshold to 7500. So under this bill, if it were to pass, cities with a population of 7500 or less would be able to opt into being a city of the second class. The vast majority of the of cities choose to remain classified as the city of the first class, but there are some additional costs imposed on those cities, um, if you're a city of the first class, for instance, you have to have a city attorney. Um, we've got some cities that want to, you know, that don't quite have the
money to make those hires yet, um, and so this bill is just an attempt to kind of continue to encourage growth of our small cities, um, give them a little bit more time before
they've got to make that jump to a city of the first class. That's all it does. I'd be happy to
Speaker 138
30:00
answer any questions. He explanation of the building, any questions?
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
30:07
Anyone in the audience wishes to speak for or against the bill.
Saying none, representative Clay, you're recognized clothes I'd appreciate a good. We
have a motion to pass in a second. In discussion All those in favor say aye, all the post. Congratulations. Thank you. You're next Senator Crow, you are, uh,
Representative Nicole Clowney
Unverified
30:49
Hm Senator Kro District 3. Are you gonna be doing 1901. Yes, sir. OK. You are, uh, if you want
Lindsay Bailey
Unverified
31:08
to go and introduce your guests. Lindsey French
Senator Steve Crowell
Unverified
31:12
Association of Arkansas Counties. OK, uh, 1901, it does not raise any fees. It, it, the federal government sets
fees that can be collected by a passport accepting facility. All this bill does is allow county offices to That that are acting as passport accepted fees typically county clerks to keep the fees in their operation and defray the costs for providing this service. There is no opposition. So would you
Lindsay Bailey
Unverified
31:44
say that there are currently several county clerks and circuit clerks across state who are doing this, and they
feel that the fees that they collect should be used in their office to defray the costs. There's no opposition from county judges or form courts on this bill.
Speaker 70
32:03
OK. Senator Petty, you have a question? Where did the fees currently go
Lindsay Bailey
Unverified
32:07
to that are collected? That's a great question, Senator. If there is not a
specific direction in law then all fees, all revenues collected at the county level go to county general. Correct. Any other questions from the committee?
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
32:25
Anyone in the audience that wish to speak for or against the bill.
Chair
Unverified
32:31
Seeing none, represent uh Sens Crowe, you're recognized too close. I'm close, and I asked for a
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
32:39
very good boat. All right. share with entertain emotion. motion to To pass in discussion. We have a second. All those in favor say aye, all opposed. The bill passes.
Senator Steve Crowell
Unverified
32:59
Senator Steve Crow, District 3. And 1902 is the bill we're going to run now. Uh, 1902 creates a process for a couple, a surviving spouse or their heirs to get a replacement marriage license if the license was lost or destroyed
before it could be returned to the clerk rather than having to pay a $100 bond, it would allow them to get a replacement marriage license for $10 fee and the bond $100 bond would be nullified.
Chair
Unverified
33:31
So Senator Ro should recognize. Do you have a short story you can give us to go along with
Lindsay Bailey
Unverified
33:43
that. She does. Senator Russ, if you will look at page 4. It
is repealing the current provision that is in law about how to have your marriage license restored and it involves having the person who solemnized the marriage, come to the clerk's office, um, typically a
pastor or a JP sometimes these marriages happened long ago and that person can no longer be located or is deceased, so there's really not a workable way for a person who has lost their license and didn't return it to to do this. So we're putting an easy workable process for
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
34:20
For people to get this done. I really want a good story about real people,
Senator Steve Crowell
Unverified
34:25
but that's, believe it or not, on their honeymoons, people do get in fights and they tear up their, their license because they get in their first
fight ever and then they wake up the next morning and go, oh, that was dumb.
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
34:42
OK, we'll end it there. Thank you. True story.
Any other questions from the committee. Say no, cheer with entertain motion. We have a motion to pass and a second discussion. All
those in favor say aye, all opposed. Bill passes Senator Ro.
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
35:06
Centri. Thank you, Mr. Chair. House Bill 1730, Joshua Bryant, Senate District 32. Are you
Speaker 81
35:22
recognized? You want to go ahead and introduce. Morning,
Michael Langley
Unverified
35:29
Senator. My name is Michael Langley. I'm an attorney here in Little Rock and uh represent some entrepreneurs who
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
35:40
have the background on this bill. OK. Taking chair the committee what this bill does is is it repeals the prohibition from issuing new wholesaler permits in the state from 2013, so Progress has been made 12 years to readdress this issue. We've got industry trends, um, towards the consolidation of wholesalers, so it limits market availability, um, property uh products are coming online and
looking for a place to distribute and a lot of our existing wholesalers have limitations on what products can compete with the ones they have exclusive agreements with what this bill would do is allow smaller producers to access. The markets um and then economic opportunities for us the gentleman mentioned for local entrepreneurs that want to basically get into some of these markets where the existing wholesalers don't mind it, don't oppose it, but there's a prohibition on new permits, so what this bill would do is allow alcohol beverage control to
start to re-engage the process to see, you know, what, what the market trends will
allow and allow some of these smaller products into our markets. So with
Michael Langley
Unverified
36:52
that I will let Mr. Langley. Thank you, Senator. I, I think you did a great job of it. This has been vetted, it's not controversial, ran it through the ABC, ran it through the wholesalers. Uh, it just allows the ABC to start issuing permits for wholesaler ships again start
at the effective date with the small wholesaler and then uh on July 1st, 2026, the uh large sailors will be able to do that. That's to provide a runway for the folks that need to get caught up. This is supported by the wholesalers. They, they, some of one of them spoke in favor of this bill in the House. So with that, Mr. Chair, we're glad to take any questions. Any.
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
38:36
Representative Lee Johnson, District 47. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, committee, House Bill 1416, uh, so we have a process in place currently for volunteer fire departments in the county to collect their fire dues with property taxes. They have to petition the Corum Court to get that done. Again, that's a process we've had in statute for a while to try to help our rural fire departments that are volunteer better collect their IDs. When we created that process, one of the things we
didn't consider was our small rural city fire. apartments have several in my district who have their fire districts extend outside the city limits into the county. So they're technically classified as city volunteer fire departments, but they cover parts of the county. They came to me asking to have that same process in place for them so that they could go to the quorum Court, petition the quorum Court to collect fire dues with the property taxes just for the members of their fire district that are in the county, so in the unincorporated parts of the county, not for the people in
the city. the city, it's an essential service and so I'm trying to close that loophole for them and extend them the same service that we do the other volunteer fire departments in the county. I'd be happy to answer any questions on the bill. do the same, the same, yeah, no increase in dues. It's just the process. It's given and they have to go through the same process any county fire department would. They'd have to go to the uh to get the signatures, go to theorum Court, get the permission for the Quorum Court to add the fire
deuce just for those residents that are in the county, but, but in this group's fire district. Yes, sir. Any, any questions from committee or Senator Rice?
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
40:22
Yeah We'll leave a little Education, because I had a contact from a Constituent Just recently and I haven't had
time to research it. Uh And we, we had Senator Hammer had Some excessive
At a fire department. That rural fire department that did what was considered excessive. These And we did something to correct that. What, what is in place right now. That assures that The fire department But you're talking about. Doesn't just come up with
$750. Whatever's in statute right now is going to be currently applying to this. We're not changing that in any way. We're
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
41:10
just changing the do we have a maximum they can charge. These are questions that I don't know the answer to because I don't know what the current statute is around fires, but we're
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
41:21
not doing anything to change whatever current statute is for limitations on fires
think this might apply, uh. is a small town that has a mayor. And a council. That is charging I'm trying to think it's so much
per acre. in the city and part of it's out of the city, but constituent contacted me on. And They've kind of got a dysfunctional. governmental system right now and he was asking, can they do that? So This will allow that. This will allow a small town, whatever
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
42:05
their fire dues are and whatever limitations are currently in statute around what people can
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
42:11
charge for fire duties, they would still apply to these fire services. It wouldn't be any different than a county in his, his case was he had land in the city, he had land out of the city for the portion of land that was out of the city and evidently they've got an agreement to go out there because they, they were charging it. Yes, sir. Yeah, my understanding would be that
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
42:31
They can charge it right now. That's not changed. The only change is how we collect it so they can charge a fire dude to anybody outside the I'm trying to get I wanted your help. No,
yes sir, yeah I had a captive audience. Sure, sure, so, so my understanding is they can charge the fire right
now. That's not changed. This just allows them to correct. It allows and it doesn't do it automatically. They still have to go through all the same checks and balances as any fire department does. They still have to go to the court, collect the signatures, get the, get the Court to agree to add it on to the collection process for the property taxes, but, but the, the fire deuce that they're asking for, they're already out there. They're just wanting some help trying to collect them.
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
43:13
Thank you. I appreciate the information. Senator Bryant
and just to follow on, Senator Rice's concerns because I, I had a significant issue in in a rural district. In the eastern part of the county, they still have to go through a vote like this is, this is just the ability for them to go to the quote unquote to to ask them. To put it on a ballot that the voters have their geographical district that fire district can approve the rate being imposed and just
for comment more than anything is they also have the ability with majority of signatures to bypass the special election. To, to put it on there because I think that's where the issue came where the volunteer fire departments who have time or, you know, going door to door during the day and collecting signatures at an unreasonable rate, um, to cover expenses that the locals really didn't know. They were trying to provide for it, so it really became a backlash, and they asked me to change statute. I don't think this interferes with that
because I think the process worked. But to your knowledge, this doesn't change any of that. It still goes to the vote of the people or a majority of signatures collected and given to
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
44:24
the to the county clerk. That's my understanding of the process. This does not change that process, it just changes to say that this particular group, if you have an area outside the county corporate, you qualify to try to do the process, right? Uh, you know, there may be some room to improve the process and in fact I've heard some things feedback on that as well. I will say this bill originally was drafted a different way, and I,
I amended it because we had Potentially inadvertently opened a loophole to allow municipalities to come in and charge. We closed that, so the current form of this bill is pretty
clean and neat. We're just changing the words to from volunteer fire department to fire department that has unincorporated areas of the county. Uh.
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
45:10
Just again, just for clarity, it talks about a
Fire protection district and then I know there's two areas of this of the code and for volunteers and one for districts, so it looks like we're amending the volunteers to add in the districts. Do they have to identify
a district before, since we're striking volunteer, do they have to identify the
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
45:34
district. I think the districts are already defined based on the service, which is one of the issues
that's brought this forward. So they're, they district is defined geographically for them and it's just so happens that some of these small city apartments have their
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
45:49
district extend out beyond the city. Do you think that district is, is official or do you think that's more of a, this is our turf.
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
45:56
I don't think it's, I mean, I don't know. I don't know that I know the real answer to that question. I think that's something I have to research, my understanding is those are defined. I don't think there's, I think you have a defined area, and this, and that's why they call for support, like if it's outside your defined area, I think it's the same way with the MS services, you know, you have, you have a defined district that you cover, and you're responsible for that district. I believe that's. but I don't know for sure. All right, thank you.
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
46:20
Any other questions from the committee. thing on the audience wished to speak for our guests. And uh Senator Johnson, you're recognized clothes. I'm closed for my bill. Thank you. I appreciate you a vote. entertain emotion. We have motion, Mr. Petty. To pass and a second Senator Bryant. in discussion.
All those in favor say aye, all opposed. People past shows. Anyone else? has a bill. They're pretty cleaned up. We are, we just about cleaned out the docket, so. You can take the rest of the week off till next Wednesday. I wish. I wish.
Alright, we're gonna, we're gonna enjoy. We'll, uh, we'll let you know if we meet Thursday, if any bills pile up, which I'm sure they will. Where's your?
Agenda
CALL TO ORDER
RE-REFERRED TO COMMITTEE
SB520 D. Sullivan TO PROHIBIT DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION OFFICES, OFFICERS, POLICIES, OR PRACTICES IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
REGULAR AGENDA
SB518 Hester TO PROHIBIT A LOCAL GOVERNMENT FROM ENACTING REGULATIONS IN A FLOOD-PRONE AREA THAT ARE MORE RESTRICTIVE THAN THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM IN CERTAIN INSTANCES.
SB531 K. Hammer TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING MUNICIPAL PLANNING; AND TO ALLOW A MUNICIPALITY TO CONTRACT WITH A PROPERTY OWNER OUTSIDE THE MUNICIPAL BOUNDARY FOR MUNICIPAL SERVICES IN CERTAIN INSTANCES.
SB588 C. Penzo TO ESTABLISH A WINERY PRIVATE CLUB PERMIT.
HB1476 B. McKenzie TO AMEND THE DIRECT SHIPMENT OF VINOUS LIQUOR ACT; AND TO ESTABLISH A WINE DIRECT SHIPPER LICENSE.
HB1416 L. Johnson TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING FIRE DEPARTMENTS; AND TO ALLOW A VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT SERVICING UNINCORPORATED AREAS OF THE COUNTY TO LEVY DUES.
HB1730 M. Brown TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE ISSUANCE AND TRANSFER OF WHOLESALE PERMITS.
HB1783 Clowney TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE REDUCTION OF A CITY OF THE FIRST CLASS TO A CITY OF THE SECOND CLASS.
HB1872 Gazaway TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING THE FEES THAT MAY BE COLLECTED BY A COUNTY SHERIFF; AND TO ALLOW A COUNTY SHERIFF TO COLLECT FEES FOR ATTEMPTED SERVICE IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.
HB1901 Milligan TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING PASSPORT FEES COLLECTED BY COUNTY PASSPORT ACCEPTANCE FACILITIES.
HB1902 Milligan TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING A CERTIFICATE OF MARRIAGE AND BOND; AND TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING A LOST, BURNED, OR DESTROYED CERTIFICATE OF MARRIAGE.
DEFERRED BILLS
SB69 A. Clark CONCERNING THE RECORDATION AND FILING OF A DEED OR OTHER INSTRUMENT THAT CONVEYS REAL PROPERTY OR AN INTEREST IN REAL PROPERTY.
SB60 Hill TO PROHIBIT A DIGITAL ASSET MINING BUSINESS FROM BEING LOCATED WITHIN A THIRTY-MILE RADIUS OF A MILITARY FACILITY; AND TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY.
SB10 B. King TO AMEND THE ARKANSAS DATA CENTERS ACT OF 2023; AND TO REGULATE THE IMPACT ON WATER USAGE AND THE ELECTRIC GRID BY BLOCKCHAIN NETWORKS AND DIGITAL ASSET MINING.
HB1686 Childress TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING LICENSES TO CARRY CONCEALED HANDGUNS.
SB399 G. Stubblefield TO CREATE THE ANTI-ATF COMMANDEERING ACT; AND TO PROHIBIT THE PROVISION OF MATERIAL AID AND SUPPORT FOR ENFORCEMENT OF FEDERAL FIREARMS LAWS.
ADJOURNED
Documents
| Title | Type | Pages | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agenda — CITY, COUNTY & LOCAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE - SENATE AND HOUSE, Apr 8, 2025 | Agenda | 2 | Official source ↗ |
Speakers
Senator Dan Sullivan
Unverified
Speaker 8
Senator Gary Stubblefield
Unverified
Speaker 9
Speaker 20
Speaker 25
Speaker 37
Senator Ben Gilmore
Unverified
Senator Joshua Bryant
Unverified
Senator Terry Rice
Unverified
Speaker 58
Speaker 61
Speaker 67
Speaker 32
Chair
Unverified
Speaker 81
Speaker 88
Speaker 89
Senator Bart Hester
Unverified
Representative Brit McKenzie
Unverified
Speaker 99
Speaker 100
Speaker 85
Speaker 115
Speaker 117
Speaker 36
Speaker 130
Representative Nicole Clowney
Unverified
Speaker 138
Lindsay Bailey
Unverified
Senator Steve Crowell
Unverified
Speaker 148
Speaker 70
Michael Langley
Unverified
Speaker 166
Speaker 171
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified