Amendment review

Every two years Arkansans are asked to vote on issues and this year there are five statewide ballot measures certified for the Nov. 4 ballot. Three of the five were referred to the public by the Legislature.

Two of the questions/initiatives – one an initiated constitutional amendment and the other an initiated state statute – have been certified for the ballot. There would have been three other questions on the ballot by similar initiatives but these groups failed to submit signatures by the prescribed deadline.

Issues that will appear on the ballot in the order include:
Issue No. 1
Administration of State Government. This will require legislative review and approval of changes to state agencies' administrative rules. Currently, state agencies may after a state wide public notice and hearing change the rules of the division of government. The agencies then go to the legislature later to approve these rule changes.

For example: The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality proposes a rule change in the time required for an air permit be raised from three months to six months. After posting the notice of the rule change, a hearing on the proposed rule change, the ADEQ can implement the new extended time period rule. The Legislature committee overseeing government rules and regulations when meeting in its bi-annual session will then be asked to approve the already enacted rules. Legislators in the past, most notable former Sen. Percy Malone of Arkadelphia, were a foe of agency rule changes prior to legislative approval.

Issue 2
Its often called the “Direct Democracy” Amendment. This sets a rule that in an initiated act from the public, a threshold of 75% would be required of petition signature collectors to obtain additional time for signature collection. Some groups who initiate ballot initiatives say this could be an undue burden to those who seek to change the laws by the petition process.

Issue 3
“The Term Limits and Ethics” initiative. This is the longest and most complex of the five issues on the ballot. While the issue extends the length of time state legislators can stay in office up to 16 years, it does limit lobbying and creates an independent elected officials salary commission.

The amendment will allow either a state House or state Senate members to serve up to 16 years total – up from the present six years in the House and up to 10 years in the state Senate.

Arkansas voters, by an initiated act in 1992, voted in term limits for all state elected officials. This amendment does not affect U.S. Congressional or U.S. Senate terms for office, which are set in the U.S. Constitution, not the Arkansas Constitution.

Issue 4
The statewide Alcohol Vote: This act not only allows alcohol establishments statewide, but there would be no more “dry” counties under this act. There are now 37 of the state’s 75 counties which do not allow the sale of alcoholic beverages at the retail level. The initiative also legalizes manufacture, transportation and sale of alcohol statewide, a change in state laws. It does attempt to change some of the state’s oldest and outdated alcohol laws. This would be a major overhaul of some of the state’s alcohol laws, but much more would be needed in the regular session, critics say.

Issue 5
This is the Minimum Wage Initiative. It seeks to increases the state’s minimum wage from $6.25 to $8.50 per hour by 2017. Arkansas is one of only a few states with a state minimum wage below the federally mandated minimum wage of $7.50 for certain size businesses.

Critics say passage would hurt the small business that need more less skilled labor to operate. Proponents say it would help Arkansans who are trapped in a minimum wage job.

Since 1996, an average of four measures have appeared annually on the ballot in Arkansas. The number of measures on a statewide ballot since 1996 has ranged from one to six. And since 1996, 25 of 37, or 68%, of Arkansas ballot measures have been approved by voters.

Of the five amendments on the Nov. 4 ballot, many give the Minimum Wage Amendment, the best hope of passage by voters.

I agree with that statement.