(a) Upon conviction, a person commits a Class A misdemeanor if the person knowingly: (1) Changes a signature other than his or her own signature on a petition;(2) Erases or otherwise removes a signature other than his or her signature on a petition;(3) Intentionally destroys or discards a signature other than his or her own signature on a petition;(4) Pays a person any form of compensation in exchange for not signing a petition as a petitioner;(5) Accepts or pays money or anything of value for the purpose of not obtaining signatures on a petition when the person is included on the sponsor's list filed with the Secretary of State under § 7-9-601;(6) Misrepresents the purpose and effect of the petition or the measure affected for the purpose of causing a person to not sign a petition when acting as a canvasser; or(7) Pays a person any form of compensation in exchange for destroying a signature on a petition.(b) A person may be charged with a Class A misdemeanor for each violation under subsection (a) of this section.(c)(1) A ballot question committee organized to support a ballot initiative may destroy or discard signatures or petitions collected as a result of its efforts if: (A) subsection (a) of this section.(c)(1) A ballot question committee organized to support a ballot initiative may destroy or discard signatures or petitions collected as a result of its efforts if: (A) The reason for the destruction or discard is documented; or(B) The petition did not obtain enough signatures to qualify to appear on the ballot.(2) Actions taken by a ballot question committee under subdivision (c)(1) of this section shall not be considered a violation of this section.Added by Act 2023, No. 766,§ 1, eff. 8/1/2023.
Arkansas Legal Code