Attorney general again rejects proposed ballot measure to amend Arkansas' direct democracy process
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Today is the last day for ballot initiative supporters to collect signatures to qualify for the November ballot. Petitions must be submitted to the Arkansas Secretary of State's office by Friday. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate)
Arkansas' attorney general on Tuesday rejected for a second time a proposed ballot measure to amend the state's initiative and referendum process.
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin noted in an opinion prepared by Senior Assistant Attorney General Kelly Summerside that while proponents had resolved several issues preventing certification of the initial proposal, one issue remained and others were created.
Little Rock attorney David Couch submitted the revised proposed constitutional amendment on behalf of the League of Women Voters of Arkansas on March 31. State law requires the attorney general to approve or reject a proposed ballot measure within 10 business days, and Tuesday was the deadline.
The League of Women Voters of Arkansas expressed disappointment in Griffin's decision in an emailed statement and reiterated its commitment to submitting a revised proposal.
'Protecting the people's right to propose and vote on laws is foundational to a healthy democracy,' LWV Arkansas President Bonnie Miller said. 'This amendment is necessary to protect and safeguard our constitutional right to direct democracy. We are not giving up.'
Among other things, the initial proposal sought to change the attorney general's role in reviewing ballot titles, but the language of the proposed ballot measure ensured there would be times the AG would be unable to act, Griffin wrote.
In an attempt to remedy the issue, the LWV Arkansas made a few edits to its proposal, including one that would require that the attorney general must only certify that the popular name is not misleading, rather than certify that both the popular name and ballot title are not misleading. This still did not resolve the problem, Griffin wrote.
'Your current submission runs into the same problem as your previous submission: it again misleadingly suggests that the Attorney General will always approve some version of a submitted ballot title, while creating a system that ensures the Attorney General will at times be unable to certify a ballot title,' the opinion states.
Griffin's Tuesday opinion also noted issues with consistency with terms in sections of the state Constitution, as well as grammatical issues.
There is no limit to how many times a group may submit a proposed ballot measure. The attorney general's office has already certified three other ballot title proposals that address education, government transparency and taxes on feminine hygiene products for the 2026 election cycle.
The Legislature can also refer up to three constitutional amendments as ballot measures for 2026. It had not finalized its decisions as of Tuesday.
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