ACT is hopeful that the changes in this Amendment address the concerns the Attorney General expressed in his Opinion of December 11. As we said at that time, we do not consider this Amendment to be partisan, but rather a declaration of the right of all Arkansans to transparency and openness at every level of government. Arkansas has had one of the strongest Freedom of Information Acts in the country for 56 years and it is our hope that, with this Amendment, it will continue to serve as a model for government transparency for the nation many more years to come.

Furthermore, the group has worked to address the Attorney General’s concern that “government transparency” was not defined in the initial text. On behalf of the citizens of Arkansas, we hope that the Attorney General finds the proposed language in this version suitable for acceptance.

The drafting group is reviewing the Attorney General’s Opinion on the Initiated Act and plans to resubmit a new version of the Act in the coming days.

The full text of the revised Amendment may be found at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YH7TecnCjtDoWKxSTaKsp3JNvMpsBd-X/view

To learn more or become involved, visit https://arcitizens4transparency.org/

To make a secure online donation to help cover the costs of getting the Amendment on the 2024 ballot, visit https://goodchange.app/donate/arfortransparency

Members of the drafting committee include Sen. Clarke Tucker, Chairman; Nate Bell; David Couch; Jennifer Waymack Standefer; Robert Steinbuch; John E. Tull, III; and Ashley Kemp Wimberley.