Arkansas House approves package of bills; debates accessory dwelling units and university raffles

LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas House of Representatives approved a broad set of bills on March 6, 2025, including legislation to expand accessory dwelling units (House Bill 15 03) and a bill authorizing university-run sports raffles (House Bill 16 34), while also advancing measures affecting agriculture enforcement, public-records management and pension coverage for port employees.

The ADU bill, House Bill 15 03, was presented by Representative Clowney as a response to statewide housing shortages and passed on a 67-19-7 vote. "ADUs offer a powerful way to address the housing shortage that we know is facing us," Representative Clowney said during floor remarks, describing accessory dwelling units as a way to increase housing supply while allowing homeowners to house family members or earn rental income.

House Bill 16 34, the Arkansas Sports Raffle Act, drew extended debate about constitutional limits and the role of private vendors. Representative Hawk said, "This bill would allow for Arkansas universities in the state to be able to hold raffles for fundraising efforts for NIL scholarships to general support of sports teams or the maintenance and construction of facilities at their said university." After floor discussion and questions about safeguards, the House passed the bill, including the emergency clause, by a vote of 79-7-4.

Other bills discussed at length included House Bill 15 16, which updates enforcement language and penalties for the Department of Agriculture's law enforcement functions; Representative Richmond said the changes were intended to "add some teeth" to enforcement and to protect livestock and the state's broader agricultural interests. That bill passed 94-1-0.

Lawmakers also debated and acted on bills addressing pharmacy benefit manager practices, county office consolidation, municipal vacancy procedures, updates to fire-service reimbursement rates, and records retention rules for historically significant documents. Several of those measures were passed by voice or recorded votes during the session; the clerk recorded tallies for each vote.

Votes at a glance (selected bills recorded on the floor) - Concurrence with Senate amendment to House Bill 12 79 (concurrence on amendment): concurred 94-0-0. - House Bill 15 75 (prohibiting conflicts of interest on solid-waste boards): passed 93-0-0. - House Bill 16 10 (clarifying protections for doctors acting in good faith under Arkansas statutes cited in debate): passed 96-0-0. - House Bill 10 68 (include Metropolitan Port Authority employees in state employees retirement): passed 85-7-4. - House Bill 1,600 (municipal law enforcement leave and leave-time clarifications): passed 96-0-0. - House Bill 15 03 (accessory dwelling units; property-rights/ADU expansion): passed 67-19-7. - House Bill 15 90 (combine treasurer and collector, Woodruff County): passed 95-0-0. - House Bill 15 91 (combine treasurer and tax collector in Arkansas County): passed 96-0-0. - House Bill 15 55 (uniform procedures for filling municipal office vacancies): passed 92-0-0. - House Bill 15 89 (modernize county treasurer duties and financial reporting): passed 96-0-0. - House Bill 14 14 (update FEMA-based equipment rates for fire-service claims): passed 91-0-2. - House Bill 15 16 (amendments to Department of Agriculture enforcement and penalties): passed 94-1-0. - House Bill 13 85 (require the Oil and Gas Commission to notify legislators of certain permit hearings): passed 90-1-1. - House Bill 15 95 (insurance department technical updates): passed 94-0-0. - House Bill 15 87 (clarify any-willing-provider language to include pharmacies and pharmacists): passed 94-0-0. - House Bill 12 98 (modify payment for arbitrated amounts under the federal No Surprises Act so payments go to providers): passed 94-0-0. - House Bill 15 24 (procurement code alignment for Parks and Heritage): passed 95-0-0. - House Bill 14 10 (prohibited activities by public servants; surprise-inspection notice prohibitions): passed 88-2-3. - House Bill 16 07 (create Office of Outdoor Recreation in Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism): passed 95-1-0. - House Bill 16 08 (require Arkansas State Archives approval before destruction of certain records): passed 81-3-10. - House Bill 16 14 (quarterly reporting by criminal justice grant advisory board): passed 94-0-0. - House Bill 16 34 (Arkansas Sports Raffle Act; emergency clause included): passed 79-7-4 (bill and emergency clause passed).

Where vote tallies were recorded on the transcript, they are reported above exactly as read on the floor. For measures where a floor tally or final outcome was not printed verbatim in the provided transcript excerpt, the entry is marked "not specified" or omitted; the House clerk's record should be consulted for complete vote histories.

Context and next steps Remarks and questions on the ADU bill reflected concerns about local control and how many units a municipality could allow beyond the one the bill guarantees; Representative Clowney said municipalities retain authority for additional units beyond the single ADU allowed by the measure. Questions during the sports-raffle debate focused on constitutional constraints (Arkansas Amendment 84), the role of third-party vendors, and whether raffles would be tied to live sporting events rather than to game outcomes.

The House adjourned until 1:30 p.m. Monday and several committees announced follow-up meetings.