April 2022
Statewide Ballot Issues
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Marijuana Advocates Switch Petition to 2024
Long-time cannabis activist Melissa Fults filed a new petition to legalize marijuana in Arkansas, but with the 2024 ballot in mind.

Fults filed the Arkansas Marijuana Reform Amendment - 2024 on April 13, signaling the end of her effort to qualify for a spot on the 2022 statewide ballot in November.

"As many of you already know, because we need to fight the cultivator's amendment, I have withdrawn my 2022 amendment and resubmitted one for 2024," Fults wrote on a Facebook post. "I have made some positive changes, but have kept most of what was in the 2022. I added a home grow and PROMISE, it will not be taken back out."

This shift leaves two citizen groups seeking a spot on the November ballot for their own marijuana constitutional amendments. Those groups are Arkansas True Grass and Responsible Growth Arkansas. Their proposals can be found toward the bottom of this newsletter.

Ballot issue groups must publish their proposal's title in newspapers across the state by mid June in order to qualify for the ballot. They must also collect just over 89,000 voter signatures by mid July. The Secretary of State releases the final ballot in late August.

Status of Statewide Ballot Issues
As of April 27, 2022, titles for 11 ballot issue have been filed with the Secretary of State's Office for the November 2022 election. Not every group has started the signature collecting process.

Proposals from the legislature and those filed by citizen groups can be found below.
2022 Arkansas Legislative Proposals
Arkansas representatives and senators voted in spring 2021 to put the three proposed constitutional amendments listed below on the November 2022 General Election ballot. The Secretary of State's Office will assign issue numbers for these measures in the spring.
A constitutional amendment to reform certain measures presented to voters, to be known as the "Constitutional Amendment and Ballot Initiative Reform Amendment”
A constitutional amendment to allow the General Assembly to convene in extraordinary session upon the issuance of a joint written proclamation of the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate or upon the submission of a written proclamation containing the signatures of at least 2/3 of the members of the House of Representatives and at least 2/3 of the members of the Senate to the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate requesting that the General Assembly convene in extraordinary session
A constitutional amendment to create the "Arkansas Religious Freedom Amendment"
2022 Citizen Initiative Proposals
Arkansas is one of 15 states where citizens have the right to put constitutional amendments, state laws and referendums on the ballot for voters to decide.

The citizen initiative process involves filing a ballot title with the Secretary of State's Office, collecting voter signatures across the state and submitting the petitions for verification. The Board of Election Commissioners also must approve the ballot title.

Referendums require voter signatures equaling 6% of the number of people who voted in the last governor's election. State laws require 8%, and constitutional amendments require 10%.
Submitted to the Secretary of State
Act 376 of 2019 requires ballot issue groups to submit a copy of their ballot title to the Secretary of State's Office before collecting voter signatures.

Ballot titles that have been filed for the 2022 ballot include:

Feb. 7, 2022 - A Constitutional Amendment to Repeal the Authorization for Casinos and Casino Gaming in Pope County, Arkansas - A proposal to remove Pope County as one of the locations in Arkansas where casino gaming is allowed under a previous constitutional amendment was submitted by Jim Knight of Fair Play Arkansas 2022. This proposal replaces a July filing, A Constitutional Amendment to Repeal the Authorization for Casino Gaming in Pope County.

Jan. 24, 2022 - Arkansas Adult Use Cannabis Amendment - A proposal to amend the state's existing Medical Marijuana Amendment to allow for personal use and other changes was submitted by Steven Lancaster of Wright, Lindsey, and Jennings on behalf of Responsible Growth Arkansas.

Jan. 10, 2022 - Public Schools Amendment of 2022 - A proposal to increase funding for Arkansas schools, raise teacher salaries, establish how long school districts could be supervised by the state, and to establish the Division of Education as a constitutionally independent entity was submitted. No name is attached to the document, but according to media reports, the citizen initiative group Arkansans for World Class Education back the petition. Julia Taylor is listed as the group's chairman in documents filed with the Arkansas Ethics Commission.

Jan. 4, 2022 - Arkansas Medical Freedom Amendment - A proposal to prohibit the government or a private person from infringing on the medical rights of another person was submitted by Tanya Charlton.

Dec. 28, 2021 - Arkansas Citizens Redistricting Commission Amendment - A proposal to create a citizen-led commission responsible for creating new voting districts for state and federal offices was submitted by David Couch


May 25, 2021 - Arkansas Cannabis Industry Amendment - A proposal to make the cannabis industry legal in Arkansas was submitted by Clair Danner.

May 20, 2021 - The Arkansas Term Limits Amendment - A proposal to change term limits for state legislators was submitted by Arkansas Term Limits.

Feb. 4, 2021 - The Arkansas Township Amendment of 2022 - A proposal that would create another layer of local government - township assemblies - among other things was submitted by Academy of Democracy.

Jan. 5, 2021 - An Amendment Concerning Jurors' Rights - A proposal that would impact the legislature's ability to pass laws regarding jury awards in lawsuits over injury or death was submitted. The person who submitted the proposal did not provide their contact information to the Secretary of State's Office.

May 22, 2020 - The Arkansas Recreational Marijuana Amendment of 2022 - A proposal to legalize adult marijuana use and to allow certain marijuana convictions to be expunged was submitted by Arkansas True Grass.

Public Policy Center | uaex.uada.edu/ballot
The Public Policy Center was established in 2004 to provide Arkansans with timely, credible, unaligned and research-based information and education about public issues. Public issues are defined as pressing and emerging issues that involve multiple points of view and have widespread consequences.

Our goals are to:
  • Increase citizen knowledge, awareness and understanding of public issues;
  • Enhance public participation in decisions regarding public issues, and
  • Help citizens craft, evaluate and implement alternative solutions to public issues.

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