September 2023
State Ballot Issues
Local Ballot Issues
Access Local Election
Voter Resources
Blog & Archive

Research Archive


#ARballot
Group Seeks to End Sales Tax on Tampons, Diapers
Supporters of a state law to remove sales tax from menstrual products turned in a new ballot title Wednesday, and added diapers to the list of items they seek to exempt from local and state taxes.

The Arkansas Period Poverty Project and attorney David Couch made the changes to their proposal after Attorney General Tim Griffin rejected the original 45-word ballot title that sought to remove sales tax from "feminine hygiene products."

Couch said people kept asking the group why diapers weren't included. The group eventually polled followers on social media whether to add diapers.

"As a result of the publicity generated by the AG's denial of the ballot title there were many comments about adding diapers and it convinced us it was needed," Couch said.

Why the AG Rejected The First Ballot Title
The Attorney General's Office is tasked with certifying that ballot measures are free from being misleading to voters. The office is required to respond to citizen ballot issue groups within 10 business days.

In Attorney General Opinion 2023-084, the state's attorney wrote that the definition of "feminine hygiene products" could be confusing.

"Specifically, the text of your proposed measure is ambiguous because it fails to address whether the measure would remove Arkansas from compliance with the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement," the opinion prepared by Senior Assistant Attorney General Kelly Summerside stated.

The Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement referred to in the opinion is an agreement between states on the definition of products that are exempt from sales tax. The ballot title uses the definition of feminine hygiene products, but didn't include the agreement's full statement that says grooming products are not included.

What The New Proposed Title Says
The second attempt at a ballot title - 75 words this time - includes the language telling voters that grooming products are excluded. It also now includes sales tax exemptions for child and adult diapers.


Attempts To Remove Sales Tax on Menstrual Products
In 2021, Rep. Aaron Pilkington submitted a proposal to end sales tax on feminine hygiene products using the exact language in the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement.

A Department of Finance and Administration fiscal impact statement estimated that exempting the products would result in a reduction of $2.3 million in state sales tax and $766,667 less in county and city sales taxes.

The proposal was assigned to the House Committee on Revenue & Taxation, where it was never voted on before adjournment.

Of the 45 states that charge taxes on sales, 25 states have exempted period products, according to the Alliance for Period Supplies.

Citizen Ballot Issues
Citizen ballot issue groups seeking to place constitutional amendments or state laws on next year's ballot will have until July to collect and turn in voter signatures.

There are no citizen-initiated ballot petitions currently in circulation.

A lawsuit over the number of counties where voter signatures must be gathered continues.
On the 2024 Ballot - From the Legislature
For the first time in nearly 40 years, Arkansas legislators have referred only one constitutional amendment to voters. Election Day is Nov. 5, 2024. 

Issue 1 - A constitutional amendment to provide that lottery proceeds may be used to fund or provide scholarships and grants to Arkansas citizens enrolled in vocational-technical schools and technical institutes.
2024 Election-Related Dates to Know
  • Feb. 5, 2024 - Deadline to register to vote ahead of March 5 elections.

  • March 5, 2024 - Primary elections for state and federal office; election day for city offices and state supreme court judges; school board elections; local ballot issues. Filing for offices elected by political party and for court positions starts Nov. 6, 2023.

  • Oct. 7, 2024 - Deadline to register to vote ahead of Nov. 5 elections. 

New Election Laws Take Effect
Of the 890 new Arkansas laws passed this year, several involve elections and voting. Below are links to some of those new laws. We will continue to share more new laws in coming months.

Act 276 - School Board - Sets the candidate filing period for November school board elections as a one-week period ending at noon 90 days before the election.

Act 424 - School Board - Repeals a 1994 law that requires school board members to be elected by single-member zones in communities where more than 10% of the population is considered a minority. (After the 2020 Census, more than 140 Arkansas school districts faced changing their boards to zones to be in compliance with Arkansas Code 6-13-631, which was repealed by Act 424.)

Act 547 - School Board - Allows voters to decide whether school board members should come from single-member zones, at-large within the district, or a combination of the two types of representation. The act also increased length of school board terms from three years to four years.
Public Policy Center | uaex.uada.edu/ballot
Did someone share this email with you? 
Subscribe to get Arkansas Ballot Issues News & Notes in your inbox every month.
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.

We are part of the Community, Professional and Economic Development unit at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service in Little Rock.

News & Notes Volume 10, Issue 11. This e-mail newsletter is shared with Cooperative Extension Service agents, subscribers from the general public and election officials or educators identified by the Public Policy Center. To unsubscribe, click below on "instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe."

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.