Ark. Code Ann. § 7-9-601 (2026)
Hiring and training of paid canvassers — Definition
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- A person shall not provide money or anything of value to another person for obtaining signatures on a statewide initiative petition or statewide referendum petition unless the person receiving the money or item of value meets the requirements of this section.
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Before a signature is solicited by a paid canvasser the sponsor shall:
- Provide the paid canvasser with a copy of the most recent edition of the Secretary of State's initiatives and referenda handbook;
- Explain the Arkansas law applicable to obtaining signatures on an initiative or referendum petition to the canvasser;
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- Provide a complete list of all paid canvassers' names and current residential addresses to the Secretary of State.
- If additional paid canvassers agree to solicit signatures on behalf of a sponsor after the complete list is provided, the sponsor shall provide an updated list of all paid canvassers' names and current residential addresses to the Secretary of State; and
- Submit to the Secretary of State a copy of the signed statement provided by the paid canvasser under subdivision (d)(3) of this section.
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Upon filing the petition with the Secretary of State, the sponsor shall submit to the Secretary of State a:
- Final list of the names and current residential addresses of each paid canvasser; and
- Signature card for each paid canvasser.
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- To verify that there are no criminal offenses on record, a sponsor shall obtain, at the sponsor’s cost, from the Division of Arkansas State Police, a current state and federal criminal record search on every paid canvasser to be registered with the Secretary of State.
- The criminal record search shall be obtained within thirty (30) days before the date that the paid canvasser begins collecting signatures.
- Upon submission of the sponsor’s list of paid canvassers to the Secretary of State, the sponsor shall certify to the Secretary of State that each paid canvasser in the sponsor’s employ has passed a criminal background check in accordance with this section.
- A willful violation of this section by a sponsor or paid canvasser constitutes a Class A misdemeanor.
- As used in this section, “paid canvasser” means a person who is paid or with whom there is an agreement to pay money or anything of value before or after a signature on an initiative or referendum petition is solicited in exchange for soliciting or obtaining a signature on a petition.
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Before obtaining a signature on an initiative or referendum petition as a paid canvasser, the prospective canvasser shall submit in person or by mail to the sponsor:
- The full name and any assumed name of the person;
- The current residence address of the person and the person's permanent domicile address if the person's permanent domicile address is different from the person's current residence address;
- A signed statement taken under oath or solemn affirmation stating that the person has not pleaded guilty or nolo contendere to or been found guilty of a criminal felony offense or a violation of the election laws, fraud, forgery, or identification theft in any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, or any other United States protectorate;
- A signed statement that the person has read and understands the Arkansas law applicable to obtaining signatures on an initiative or referendum petition; and
- A signed statement that the person has been provided a copy of the most recent edition of the Secretary of State's initiatives and referenda handbook by the sponsor.
- A sponsor shall maintain the information required under this section for each paid canvasser for three (3) years after the general election.
- Signatures incorrectly obtained or submitted under this section shall not be counted by the Secretary of State for any purpose.
History. Acts 2013, No. 1413, § 21; 2015, No. 1219, § 4; 2017, No. 1104, § 6; 2019, No. 376, § 13.
Amendments. The 2015 amendment rewrote (b); redesignated former (c) as (e) and former (d) as (c); and inserted (d).
The 2017 amendment added (a)(3); substituted “before the date that the paid canvasser begins collecting signatures” for “prior to the registration of the paid canvasser” in (b)(2); substituted “background check” for “background search” in (b)(3); and made stylistic changes.
The 2019 amendment, in (a)(1), inserted the first occurrence of “petition” and inserted the second occurrence of “statewide”; added (a)(2)(D); redesignated (b)(5) as (f); and added “for any purpose” in (f).
Research References
Ark. L. Rev.
Lauren G. Summerhill, Legislative Note: Hugh Jazz Supports the Scholarship Lottery: The Arkansas General Assembly Wrecks the Right to Ballot Initiative with Act 1413, 67 Ark. L. Rev. 781 (2014).
Case Notes
Constitutionality.
Provisions of Acts 2013, No. 1413, codified at this section, that prohibit a sponsor from providing money or anything of value to a canvasser unless the canvasser meets certain requirements, do not act as unwarranted restrictions on the rights granted in Ark. Const. Art. 5, § 1. McDaniel v. Spencer, 2015 Ark. 94, 457 S.W.3d 641 (2015).
Provisions of Acts 2013, No. 1413, codified at this section, that prohibit a sponsor from providing money or anything of value to a canvasser unless the canvasser meets certain requirements, do not infringe on the right to engage in core political speech under Ark. Const. Art. 2, § 4 or Ark. Const. Art. 2, § 6. McDaniel v. Spencer, 2015 Ark. 94, 457 S.W.3d 641 (2015).
Provisions of Acts 2013, No. 1413, codified at this section, that prohibit a sponsor from providing money or anything of value to a canvasser unless the canvasser meets certain requirements, do not violate the right to equal protection under Ark. Const. Art. 2, § 3 on the basis that the provisions treat paid canvassers differently than volunteer canvassers, as there is a rational basis for the differing treatment of paid canvassers. McDaniel v. Spencer, 2015 Ark. 94, 457 S.W.3d 641 (2015).
Under precedent, the term “current residence address” as used in this section was not unconstitutionally vague because, when juxtaposed with “permanent domicile address”, the phrase was sufficiently clear. Zook v. Martin, 2018 Ark. 306, 558 S.W.3d 385 (2018).
Effective Date of 2019 Amendment.
Emergency clause of Acts 2019, No. 376 was defective where the stated basis was “to avoid confusion in petition circulation”; Act 376 added additional requirements for getting a referendum on the election ballot, and the prospect of affording those who seek to file a ballot petition additional notice of new requirements for that petition, especially when the people would not be voting on any such initiatives or referenda for at least another 15 months, did not amount to an emergency under Ark. Const., Art. 5, § 1. Safe Surgery Ark. v. Thurston, 2019 Ark. 403, 591 S.W.3d 293 (2019) (sub. op.).
As the emergency clause of Acts 2019, No. 376 was ineffective and Act 376’s new requirements were not in effect at the time petitioner filed its proposed referendum and supporting signatures, mandamus was granted directing the Secretary of State to address petitioner's referendum filings (seeking a referendum on Acts 2019, No. 579) under the pre-Act 376 legal framework for initiatives and referenda. Safe Surgery Ark. v. Thurston, 2019 Ark. 403, 591 S.W.3d 293 (2019) (sub. op.).
Signatures Disqualified.
Certain initiative petition signatures were excluded based on the plain language of this section because the canvassers were not disclosed to the Secretary of State. Benca v. Martin, 2016 Ark. 359, 500 S.W.3d 742 (2016).
Certain initiative petition signatures were excluded based on the plain language of this section because the signatures were collected by paid canvassers before the canvassers were disclosed to the Secretary of State; also, the plain statutory language requires that the designation of “paid canvasser” be made before the canvasser collects any signatures. Benca v. Martin, 2016 Ark. 359, 500 S.W.3d 742 (2016).
Certain initiative petition signatures were excluded based on the plain language of this section because the sponsor did not obtain state police background checks on the canvassers. Benca v. Martin, 2016 Ark. 359, 500 S.W.3d 742 (2016).
Certain initiative petition signatures were excluded based on the plain language of this section because the sponsor did not obtain canvassers' background checks before placing those canvassers on the list given to the Secretary of State. Benca v. Martin, 2016 Ark. 359, 500 S.W.3d 742 (2016).
Initiative petition signatures gathered by two canvassers were invalid because the canvassers did not execute sworn statements before collecting signatures as paid canvassers. Zook v. Martin, 2018 Ark. 306, 558 S.W.3d 385 (2018).
Initiative petition signatures were not counted because the sponsor did not timely file a list of paid canvassers with the Secretary of State, as a list that was timely filed was password protected and therefore inaccessible. Zook v. Martin, 2018 Ark. 306, 558 S.W.3d 385 (2018).
Initiative petition signatures were excluded because the canvasser who gathered the signatures had a felony conviction. Zook v. Martin, 2018 Ark. 306, 558 S.W.3d 385 (2018).