This year, Arkansas voters will weigh in on two proposed constitutional amendments; one about casinos (Issue 2) and another about expanding the state’s lottery scholarship (Issue 1). Both are a little bit different than proposals Arkansas has seen previously.
Rule changes
During the 2023 legislative session, lawmakers passed a law making it harder to put amendments and initiatives on the ballot for voters. This is the first election cycle where that law has been in effect. Proposals once required signatures from 15 counties; now, you need signatures from 50 counties.
Critics of the law say it makes it more difficult for grassroots movements to place measures on the ballot; it takes a lot of time to take off work and collect signatures, often in extreme heat and cold. And many ballot initiatives put forward by the voters are often thrown out over technicalities. We saw that this year when a ballot initiative on abortion was thrown out after sponsors made a paperwork error.
Lawmakers who supported the change said they were worried their constituents may be voting on legislation they don’t fully understand. Rep. Kendon Underwood, R-Cave Springs, said he was trying to keep out-of-state special interest groups from amending the constitution in Arkansas.
“By passing this bill, we can assure that more Arkansans have a chance to participate in this process,” he said in a 2023 legislative meeting. “It helps us avoid having well-funded, out-of-state special interest groups trying to change our laws and change our constitution.”
The opposing argument came from Democrats who pointed out that issues that end up on the ballot have historically been ones the legislature is opposed to, like marijuana legalization. They noted that Arkansans have previously voted against proposals that would make it harder to put things on the ballot.
“This seems, on my reading, like it would make it much harder for the average Arkansan to get something done,” said Rep. Nicole Clowney, D-Fayetteville. “It’s going to make it so it’s only extremely well-funded, out-of-state interest groups to afford the kind of work that goes into this number of signatures.”
There were seven ballot initiatives that Little Rock Public Radio tracked that voters tried to put forward this election cycle.
Of those, only one made it to the ballot.
Many of them would have made it if not for this new state law. And the one that made it, as well as another that almost made it to the ballot, both had something in common; they were backed by well-funded special interest groups from out-of-state.
The casino amendment, Issue 2, was backed by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Another proposal which would have expanded medical marijuana was sponsored by pro-cannabis groups. Both groups spent millions on advertising and hiring canvassers.
The Arkansas Legislature is allowed to put three constitutional amendments on the ballot for each session. Last session, the legislature only put forward one; Issue 1, which concerns lottery scholarships.
Last week, the Arkansas Supreme Court threw out an amendment to expand medical marijuana at the eleventh hour. The court felt the popular name and ballot title were insufficient. The ruling was split 4-3.
One of the more controversial aspects of this decision is that two Supreme Court justices recused themselves from the case for unknown reasons. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders then appointed two special justices to oversee the case, one of whom previously ruled against a proposal to legalize recreational marijuana in her capacity as a member of the State Board of Election Commissioners.
A different paperwork error ultimately proved fatal for the abortion amendment, but the Supreme Court actually rejected the same claim for the marijuana amendment; instead it was thrown out because of its popular name and ballot title.
Casino Amendment (Issue 2)
This amendment would vacate a casino license in Pope County, and prohibit Arkansas counties from building a casino that wasn’t approved by a majority of the county’s voters. It comes out of an amendment passed in 2018 to create four casinos in Arkansas; one each in Crittenden, Garland, Pope, and Jefferson counties.
Of those, only the one slated to be built in Pope County hasn’t yet been built. And while the 2018 amendment passed by 54% of the vote statewide, 60% of Pope County voters said no.
For the casino in Pope County, there was a public bidding process and one of the applicants was the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. The racing commission declined their application, deciding instead to choose Cherokee Nation Businesses.
The amendment to stop the casino in Pope County is being funded by the Choctaw Nation. They say their reasoning for supporting the amendment is because they want people in a county to decide whether to build a casino. But again they only held that position after they lost the bid.
Aside from requiring local approval of new casinos, Issue 2 would also vacate the existing license for the casino in Pope County, which again was awarded to the Cherokee Nation.
Lottery Scholarships (Issue 1)
When you buy a lottery ticket in Arkansas, some of the money, about 92 cents on the dollar, goes to college scholarships. The program started in 2009. The lottery scholarship boasts that they have given out 770,000 scholarships to the tune of $1.4 billion.
If passed, this proposal will expand the lottery scholarship to apply to students seeking to attend career and technical schools. Rep. Robin Lundstrum, R-Elm Springs, was a sponsor of the proposal.
“We like our electricians, plumbers, we like our air conditioning to work,” she said. “We need good jobs, and this is an important component that has been left off.”
Lundstrum says the logistical details of the bill, like whether it will apply to for-profit colleges, will be worked out in the rulemaking process if Issue 1 passes.
Note: Reporter Josie Lenora received a lottery scholarship in college.
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Publish date : 2024-10-30 01:13:00
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