Arkansas Senate Committee Hears SJR 15 Term‑Limits Proposal; Amendment Adopted by Voice Vote

LITTLE ROCK — Lawmakers, municipal officials and petition‑drive organizers traded arguments on SJR 15 on the floor of the Senate committee as the body debated whether to replace Arkansas’s prior six‑and‑eight year limits with a 12‑year/consecutive model and constrain future citizen-initiated changes.

“I'm Senator Allen Clark,” the bill sponsor said as he resumed the hearing, defending the consecutive cooling‑off approach and arguing it strikes a balance between fresh leadership and experienced lawmakers. “It’s a good compromise…four years requires more of a break,” Clark said, urging the committee to consider how other states have implemented cooling‑off periods.

Why it matters: The measure would change how long lawmakers may serve and whether voters may later submit amendments addressing term limits. Supporters said a longer consecutive limit gives legislators time to master complex state issues; opponents said the proposal would make it harder for citizens to place revisions on the ballot and would run counter to prior statewide votes on term limits.

Tom Steele, chairman of Arkansas Term Limits, told the committee the proposal “completely ignore[s] the will of the people,” citing a history of statewide votes on term limits and warning that raising petition thresholds and restricting who may propose future revisions would erode citizen access under Article 5, Section 1 of the state constitution. “The will of the people is very, very clear on term limits,” Steele said.

Several senators pressed both technical and philosophical points. Senator Hickey defended longer limits as necessary to gain experience and to check administrative branches, saying, “We do not live in a democracy” in the sense that a republic requires deliberative lawmakers who have time to learn complex portfolios. Other senators and witnesses, including Mayor Swan, Mac Faulkner and Travis Porter, urged the committee to protect voters’ right to propose constitutional changes and questioned the bill’s ballot‑threshold language.

Opponents flagged a clause that would require future revisions to be proposed only by the General Assembly. “That part of the bill…prohibits the people,” one witness warned, and several senators said the wording could be misleading and should be reworked before a final vote.

Committee action: Near the close of the hearing Senator Bond moved to adopt an amendment that fills out the shell bill, describing the 12‑year limit; a second was heard and the chair called a voice vote. The transcript records the motion, a second and the voice call (“All in favor, say aye. All opposed, say no.”) but does not record roll‑call tallies. The chair then adjourned the committee.

What remains: Committee members asked the sponsor to work with colleagues on judiciary language, ballot‑threshold mechanics and clearer title language. Several senators expressed willingness to find compromise language and to consult former legislators and agency officials before returning the measure for further consideration.

Speakers: Direct quotations and attributions in this report come from the committee hearing transcript, including Senator Allen Clark (bill sponsor), Tom Steele (chairman, Arkansas Term Limits), Senator Hickey, Mayor Swan, Travis Porter and Mac Faulkner.

Authorities and history: Witnesses and senators referenced Article 5, Section 1 of the Arkansas Constitution and past statewide term‑limits actions (1992, 2004, 2018) and an earlier ethics bill referenced in committee discussion. The committee did not record a final roll‑call vote in the transcript.