Arkansas attorney general rejects first ballot measure under new law
Arkansans sign petitions in support of proposed ballot initiatives in Little Rock on July 2, 2024. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate)
The League of Women Voters of Arkansas on Wednesday decried the attorney general's rejection of its proposed constitutional amendment under a new law that prohibits ballot titles from being written above an eighth-grade reading level.
This is the third time Attorney General Tim Griffin has rejected the nonpartisan organization's proposal to amend the state's initiative and referendum process and the first time he has rejected any proposed ballot measure under Act 602, which became law last month.
Sponsored by Rep. Ryan Rose, R-Van Buren, Act 602 prohibits the attorney general from certifying a proposed ballot title with a reading level above eighth grade as determined by the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level formula. The test uses word complexity and sentence lengths to calculate what grade of education is needed to comprehend written material.
The law cannot be retroactively applied to proposals that were already certified for circulation before the act's effective date. 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.
Because Act 602 had an emergency clause, it went into effect when the governor signed it into law on April 14. Legislation generally takes effect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns sine die. The 2025 legislative session officially concluded Monday.
The League of Women Voters of Arkansas expressed frustration with Griffin's decision in a statement issued Wednesday.
'Our ballot title has now been rejected three times, and each time we've addressed the Attorney General's concerns,' said Bonnie Miller, president of the League of Women Voters of Arkansas. 'This latest hurdle has nothing to do with accuracy or clarity. It is a technicality designed to keep citizens from having a say.'
The organization is preparing a revised version of its proposal and is exploring legal options to challenge Act 602, according to the statement.
'We're not going anywhere,' Miller said. 'We've seen this kind of pushback before, and we know what's at stake. We will keep working to protect the right of Arkansans to bring issues directly to the ballot.'
The League of Women Voters of Arkansas submitted its first proposal in March with the goal of strengthening direct democracy, according to a press release at that time. Direct democracy is the process by which Arkansans can propose new laws or constitutional amendments and place them on the ballot for a statewide vote. Arkansas is one of 24 states that allow citizen-led initiatives, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
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If approved, the League of Women Voters of Arkansas' proposed constitutional amendment would prohibit the General Assembly from amending or repealing with a two-thirds majority vote a constitutional amendment approved by voters, which it currently has the authority to do.
The group's proposal would also prohibit Article 5, Section 1 — the section of the state constitution that permits citizen-led initiatives and referendums — from being amended by a ballot measure referred to voters by the General Assembly.
State lawmakers can refer up to three proposed constitutional amendments to voters each legislative session. This year legislators referred proposals concerning gun rights, economic development and affirming that only U.S. citizens can vote in Arkansas to the 2026 ballot.
Additional provisions of the LWVA's proposed constitutional amendment include requiring a separate vote for an emergency clause to occur at least 24 hours after the passage of a measure, and to allow for the substitution or rejection of ballot measure language by the attorney general to be immediately reviewable by the Arkansas Supreme Court.
In Monday's opinion, which was prepared by Senior Assistant Attorney General Kelly Summerside, Griffin said the League of Women Voters of Arkansas resolved issues identified with previous submissions, but he must reject their most recent submission because of Act 602. Griffin said the submitted ballot title 'ranks at grade level 12.2,' above the now required eighth-grade reading level, and therefore 'requires significant revisions' to comply with the new law.
'Any ballot title I could substitute would amount to a wholesale rewrite, but it is the sponsor's duty to craft a ballot title that complies with Act 602,' the opinion states. 'As a result, my statutory duty is to reject your popular name and ballot title because it does not comply with the requirements of Act 602 and instruct you to redesign the proposed ballot title in a manner that does not violate the requirements of the Act.'
The opinion noted additional problems with the proposal, including grammatical issues and challenges to the measure's popular name.
'After the Secretary of State assigns a popular name, certain parties 'may contest the popular name.' But your proposed measure does not provide any standards for the popular name or basis upon which it can be challenged,' Griffin wrote. 'Thus, the ballot title misleadingly presents the matter as if there is some basis upon which the popular name could be challenged, even though your proposed measure includes no such basis.'
In addition to its proposed constitutional amendment, the League of Women Voters of Arkansas is also addressing the state's initiative and referendum process through a lawsuit it filed last month that alleges eight new laws governing direct democracy are unconstitutional.
Act 602 is not part of the lawsuit, which challenges another law that would expand the attorney general's existing authority to reject a proposal if it conflicts with the U.S. Constitution or federal statutes. The suit also challenges laws that affect the petition-gathering process by requiring canvassers to file a 'true affidavit' with the secretary of state, to request a photo ID from signers and inform them that petition fraud is a criminal offense, among other things.
Following the 2023 legislative session, the League of Women Voters of Arkansas filed a lawsuit challenging a law that requires ballot initiative groups to gather signatures from 50 counties instead of 15. A final decision in the case is still pending.
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