Rep. David Ray

Maddy summaryHouse Bill 1891 (now Act 715) amends the law concerning how candidates for nonpartisan judicial offices can use their titles when filing. Previously, only judges who had been elected to their position could use their judicial title as a prefix. This bill expands that allowance to include individuals currently serving as an appointed Justice of the Supreme Court, Judge of the Court of Appeals, circuit judge, or district judge. To qualify, an appointee must have served in that judicial position for at least twelve months.

Maddy summaryHB 1526 authorizes Arkansas' Department of Military and Arkansas National Guard to form public-private partnerships (e.g., with businesses for facility maintenance or training support) while adding transparency requirements. It directly affects the military department, National Guard, and private entities entering such agreements. The bill requires the department to report partnerships valued between $10,000-$50,000 annually or $350,000 total to the Legislative Council or Joint Budget Committee for review, and mandates full committee review for partnerships exceeding those thresholds. This updates existing gift rules to cover partnership agreements, ensuring legislative oversight of significant military spending without creating new funding.

Maddy summaryHB 1515 (now Act 574) amends Arkansas law to expand the authority of the Adjutant General to order the Arkansas National Guard into active service. It specifically authorizes the Guard for two purposes: (1) supporting military justice proceedings when federal duty orders are unavailable, and (2) providing voluntary state active-duty support to address critical security staffing shortages in military operations. The bill directly affects the Arkansas National Guard and state military justice processes. This change became law on April 14, 2025, after passing both chambers of the legislature.

Maddy summaryHB 1713, now Act 602, requires ballot titles for citizen-initiated measures to be written at or below a specific grade-level reading standard. This law directly affects voters and initiative proponents by mandating that ballot titles use simple, accessible language to improve public understanding. The key mechanism sets a standardized readability threshold (using a "Grade Level formula" per the amended bill) for all such titles. The bill was passed quickly with an emergency declaration and is now law, aiming to make ballot measures clearer for all voters.

Maddy summaryThis resolution designates March 29, 2025, as Vietnam War Veterans Day and March 2025 as Vietnam Era Veterans Month in Arkansas. It formally recognizes the sacrifices and contributions of Vietnam War veterans through state-level ceremonial observance. The resolution does not create new laws, programs, or benefits - it serves solely as a symbolic gesture of appreciation. It affects Arkansas residents by establishing official dates for state-level recognition of veterans' service.

Maddy summaryHB 1498 amends the law governing military-type canteens and exchanges to restrict their merchandise offerings. The bill specifically prohibits these establishments from selling automobiles, household appliances, furniture, building products, motorcycles, or bicycles. This change directly affects military canteens and exchanges operating under the current law, limiting their product range. The bill was enacted as Act 507 on April 10, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 1638 updates Arkansas state law to include the United States Space Force in all references to the armed forces and uniformed services. It corrects outdated language by replacing "branch" with "regular" in multiple sections and removing obsolete phrases like "United States Marine Corps, United States Space Force" to standardize military service listings. This technical update ensures state legal documents align with the current U.S. military structure, which established the Space Force as a separate service in 2019. The bill does not create new policies or affect military operations - it only modernizes existing statutory language.

Maddy summaryHB 1571 amends Arkansas' Adult Diploma Program Act to restructure payments to approved adult education programs based on specific student achievements. Programs now receive $250 for half high school credits or basic employability certifications, $500 for workforce credentials requiring 50-100 hours of training, $750 for credentials requiring over 100 hours, and $1,000 for full high school diplomas. The bill defines new milestones including "employability skills certification" and clarifies payment tiers for workforce credentials based on training hours. This directly affects all approved adult diploma programs in Arkansas that serve students seeking high school diplomas or workforce credentials.

Maddy summaryHB 1636 would phase out Arkansas' soft drink tax by gradually eliminating it based on sales tax collections from soft drink sales. The bill proposed replacing the current tax with a system tied directly to existing sales tax data, ensuring a smooth transition. This change would directly affect soft drink retailers (who collect the tax) and consumers (who pay it). The legislation aimed to replace an outdated tax structure with one aligned to current sales tax reporting practices.

Maddy summaryThis bill (HB 1561) is a technical amendment to remove all references to "the State of Qatar" from existing state laws. It deletes phrases like "or the State of Qatar" or "from the State of Qatar" from 17 different sections of the code, correcting outdated or erroneous text. The bill does not create new policies, affect any individuals or groups, or change legal requirements. It was passed by both chambers and became law as Act 473 on April 8, 2025, solely to update legal references.