Ark. Code Ann. § 14-51-201 (2026)
Appointment of members
- In all cities of the first class having a civil service system, the city's governing body shall name by ordinance five (5) upright and intelligent citizens of their cities as a board of civil service commissioners for the police and fire departments or the nonuniformed employees.
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The commissioners shall hold office as follows:
- One shall hold office until the first Monday in April of the second year after his or her appointment;
- One shall hold office until the first Monday in April of the fourth year after his or her appointment;
- One shall hold office until the first Monday in April of the sixth year after his or her appointment;
- One shall hold office until the first Monday in April of the eighth year after his or her appointment; and
- One shall hold office until the first Monday in April of the tenth year after his or her appointment.
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- In all cities of the first class having a civil service system, the governing body may add by ordinance two (2) more members to its civil service commission. The law applicable to the commission shall apply to the additional members, except that in each such city the first two (2) additional members appointed pursuant to this subsection shall serve staggered terms to be determined by lot so that one (1) will serve a three-year term and one (1) a six-year term, and their successors shall serve six-year terms.
- In all cities having a population of one hundred thousand (100,000) or more persons and having a civil service system, the governing body may add by ordinance four (4) more members to its civil service commission. The law applicable to the commission shall apply to the additional members, except that in each such city the first four (4) additional members appointed pursuant to this subsection shall serve staggered terms to be determined by lot so that two (2) will serve a three-year term and two (2) a six-year term, and their successors shall serve six-year terms.
History. Acts 1949, No. 326, § 1; 1971, No. 166, § 1; A.S.A. 1947, § 19-1601.1; Acts 1993, No. 206, § 2; 1997, No. 1221, § 2.
Case Notes
De Facto Commissioners.
Where plaintiffs filed representative suit in behalf of all city police officers of Little Rock whose employment was cut off by service in the war, against members of Little Rock Civil Service Commission and asked that commissioners be permanently enjoined from acting as commissioners on theory that 1933 act authorized cities of first class to create a civil service commission for police officers and fire fighters only, and 1937 act authorized cities of more than 75,000 to create a second civil service commission for employees other than fire fighters and police officers, that hence members of the commission had violated law prohibiting members from holding more than one political office, court properly sustained demurrer to the complaint, as even though plaintiffs were right in their theory that commissioners were serving on two commissions, the defendants would still have been de facto commissioners and equity had no authority to decide whether defendants were also de jure officers. Smith v. Little Rock Civil Serv. Comm'n, 214 Ark. 765, 218 S.W.2d 366 (1949) (decision under prior law).
Ordinances.
Ordinance appointing an individual to civil service commission was not legislation subject to referendum under Ark. Const. Amend. 7, inasmuch as the ordinance in questioning was merely a procedural device for administering a previous ordinance adopted pursuant to this section. Greenlee v. Munn, 262 Ark. 663, 559 S.W.2d 928 (1978).