Constitution of Arkansas (2025 publisher edition) — Article 14

Publisher edition notice: This collection preserves the complete constitutional appendix of the Secretary of State’s 2025 Election Laws and Constitution compilation: its preamble, twenty original articles, schedule and 104 published amendments, including annotations and explicit repealed notices. Repealed notices remain historical publisher context. Later amendments have not been independently verified.

Article 14

ARTICLE 14
EDUCATION
SECTION .
1. Free school system.
2. School fund — Use — Purposes.
SECTION.
3. School tax — Budget — Approval of tax rate.
4. Supervision of schools.
§ 1. Free school system.
Intelligence and virtue being the safeguards of liberty and the bulwark of a free and good
government, the State shall ever maintain a general, suitable and efficient system of free public
schools and shall adopt all suitable means to secure to the people the advantages and
opportunities of education. The specific intention of this amendment is to authorize that in
addition to existing constitutional or statutory provisions the General Assembly and/or public
623 Art. 14, § 1 EDUCATION

-- 636 of 883 --

school districts may spend public funds for the education of persons over twenty-one (21) years
of age and under six (6) years of age, as may be provided by law, and no other interpretation shall
be given to it. [As amended by Const. Amend. 53.]
Publisher’s Notes. Before amendment this section
read: “Intelligence and virtue being the safeguards of
liberty, and the bulwark of a free and good government, the
State shall ever maintain a general, suitable and efficient
system of free schools, whereby all persons in the State,
between the ages of six and twenty-one years, may receive
gratuitous instruction.”
§ 2. School fund — Use — Purposes.
No money or property belonging to the public school fund, or to this State, for the benefit of
schools or universities, shall ever be used for any other than for the respective purposes to which
it belongs.
§ 3. School tax — Budget — Approval of tax rate.
(a) The General Assembly shall provide for the support of common schools by general law. In
order to provide quality education, it is the goal of this state to provide a fair system for the
distribution of funds. It is recognized that, in providing such a system, some funding variations
may be necessary. The primary reason for allowing such variations is to allow school districts, to
the extent permissible, to raise additional funds to enhance the educational system within the
school district. It is further recognized that funding variations or restrictions thereon may be
necessary in order to comply with, or due to, other provisions of this Constitution, the United
States Constitution, state or federal laws, or court orders.
(b) (1) There is established a uniform rate of ad valorem property tax of twenty-five (25) mills
to be levied on the assessed value of all taxable real, personal, and utility property in the state
to be used solely for maintenance and operation of the schools.
(2) Except as provided in this subsection the uniform rate of tax shall not be an additional levy
for maintenance and operation of the schools but shall replace a portion of the existing rate of tax
levied by each school district available for maintenance and operation of schools in the school
district. The rate of tax available for maintenance and operation levied by each school district on
the effective date of this amendment shall be reduced to reflect the levy of the uniform rate of tax.
If the rate of tax available for maintenance and operation levied by a school district on the
effective date of this amendment exceeds the uniform rate of tax, the excess rate of tax shall
continue to be levied by the school district until changed as provided in subsection (c)(1). If the
rate of tax available for maintenance and operation levied by a school district on the effective date
of this amendment is less than the uniform rate of tax, the uniform rate of tax shall nevertheless
be levied in the district.
(3) The uniform rate of tax shall be assessed and collected in the same manner as other school
property taxes, but the net revenues from the uniform rate of tax shall be remitted to the State
Treasurer and distributed by the state to the school districts as provided by law. No portion of the
revenues from the uniform rate of tax shall be retained by the state. The revenues so distributed
shall be used by the school districts solely for maintenance and operation of schools.
(4) The General Assembly may by law propose an increase or decrease in the uniform rate of
tax and submit the question to the electors of the state at the next general election. If a majority
of the electors of the state voting on the issue vote For the proposed increase or decrease in the
uniform rate of tax, the uniform rate of tax shall be increased or decreased as approved. If a
majority of the electors of the state voting on the issue vote Against the proposed increase or
decrease in the uniform rate of tax, the uniform rate of tax shall continue to be levied at the rate
for the year in which the election is held.
(c) (1) In addition to the uniform rate of tax provided in subsection (b), school districts are
authorized to levy, by a vote of the qualified electors respectively thereof, an annual ad valorem
property tax on the assessed value of taxable real, personal, and utility property for the
maintenance and operation of schools and the retirement of indebtedness. The Board of Directors
624 Art. 14, § 2 CONSTITUTION OF ARKANSAS

-- 637 of 883 --

of each school district shall prepare, approve and make public not less than sixty (60) days in
advance of the annual school election a proposed budget of expenditures deemed necessary to
provide for the foregoing purposes, together with a rate of tax levy sufficient to provide the funds
therefor, including the rate under any continuing levy for the retirement of indebtedness. The
Board of Directors shall submit the tax at the annual school election or at such other time as may
be provided by law. If a majority of the qualified voters in the school district voting in the school
election approve the rate of tax proposed by the Board of Directors, then the tax at the rate
approved shall be collected as provided by law. In the event a majority of the qualified electors
voting in the school election disapprove the proposed rate of tax, then the tax shall be collected
at the rate approved in the last preceding school election. However, if the rate last approved has
been modified pursuant to subsection (b) or (c)(2) of this section, then the tax shall be collected
at the modified rate until another rate is approved.
(2) The tax levied by a school district pursuant to subsection (c)(1) of this section may be
reduced pursuant to procedures provided by law if the tax would cause the state or district to be
out of compliance with any other provision of this Constitution, the United States Constitution,
state or federal law, or court order.
(3) No tax levied pursuant to subsection (c)(1) of this section shall be appropriated to any other
district than that for which it is levied.
(d) For the purposes of this section, “maintenance and operation” means such expenses for the
general maintenance and operation of schools as may be defined by law. [As amended by Const.
Amend. 11; Const. Amend. 40; Const. Amend. 74.]
Publisher’s Notes. Before amendment, this section
read: “The General Assembly shall provide, by general
laws, for the support of Common Schools by taxes, which
shall never exceed in any one year two mills on the dollar
on the taxable property of the State; and by an annual per
capita tax of one dollar, to be assessed on every male
inhabitant of this State over the age of twenty-one years;
Provided, The General Assembly may, by general law,
authorize school districts to levy, by a vote of the qualified
electors of such district, a tax not to exceed five mills on the
dollar in any one year for school purposes; Provided fur-
ther, That no such tax shall be appropriated to any other
purpose, nor to any other district than that for which it was
levied.”
An amendment adopted in 1906 (see Acts 1905, p. 833)
raised the two-mill state tax to three mills and raised the
authorized five-mill district tax to seven mills.
An amendment adopted in 1916 (see Acts 1917, p. 2304)
raised the authorized seven-mill district tax to twelve
mills.
As amended by Ark. Const. Amend. 11, this section read:
“The General Assembly shall provide by the general laws
for support of common schools by taxes, which shall never
exceed in any one year three mills on the dollar on the
taxable property in the state, and by an annual per capita
tax of one dollar, to be assessed on every male inhabitant of
this State over the age of twenty-one-years. Provided that
the General Assembly may, by general law, authorize
school districts to levy by a vote of the qualified electors of
such districts a tax not to exceed eighteen mills on the
dollar in any one year for the maintenance of schools, the
erection and equipment of school buildings and the retire-
ment of existing indebtedness for buildings.
“Provided further that no such tax shall be appropriated
for any other purpose nor to any other district than that for
which it was levied.”
As amended by Ark. Const. Amend. 40, this section read:
“The General Assembly shall provide for the support of
common schools by general law, including an annual per
capita tax of one dollar, to be assessed on every male
inhabitant of this State over the age of twenty-one years;
and school districts are hereby authorized to levy by a vote
of the qualified electors respectively thereof an annual tax
for the maintenance of schools, the erection and equipment
of school buildings and the retirement of existing indebt-
edness, the amount of such tax to be determined in the
following manner:
“The Board of Directors of each school district shall
prepare, approve and make public not less than sixty (60)
days in advance of the annual school election a proposed
budget of expenditures deemed necessary to provide for the
foregoing purposes, together with a rate of tax levy suffi-
cient to provide the funds therefor, including the rate
under any continuing levy for the retirement of indebted-
ness. If a majority of the qualified voters in said school
district voting in the annual school election shall approve
the rate of tax so proposed by the Board of Directors, then
the tax at the rate so approved shall be collected as
provided by law. In the event a majority of said qualified
electors voting in said annual school election shall disap-
prove the proposed rate of tax, then the tax shall be
collected at the rate approved in the last preceding annual
school election.
“Provided, that no such tax shall be appropriated for any
other purpose nor to any other district than that for which
it is levied.”
Ark. Const. Amend. 74, which amended this section, was
proposed by S.J.R. 10 of 1995 and was adopted at the
general election on November 5, 1996, and approved by a
vote of 407,719 for and 378,017 against.
Ark. Const. Amend. 74, § 2, provided: “Nothing in this
amendment shall be construed to diminish the authority of
school districts over the supervision of public schools.”
Ark. Const. Amend. 74, § 3, provided: “Any provision of
the Constitution of the State of Arkansas in conflict with
this Amendment is repealed in so far as it is in conflict with
this Amendment.”
Effective Dates.
Ark. Const. Amend. 74, § 4: effective on adoption and shall
apply to taxes due in 1997 and thereafter.
625 Art. 14, § 3 EDUCATION

-- 638 of 883 --

§ 4. Supervision of schools.
The supervision of public schools, and the execution of the laws regulating the same, shall be
vested in and confided to, such officers as may be provided for by the General Assembly.