Did the Arkansas AG certify Dinwiddie's third attempt at a ballot title for an initiated act lowering the antique-vehicle registration age from 45 to 25 years?
Plain-English summary
David Dinwiddie has been trying to get an initiated act on the Arkansas ballot that would let any vehicle 25 years or older be registered and tagged as an antique automobile. Current law sets the threshold at 45 years. The AG had already rejected his first two attempts (Opinion Nos. 2023-098 and 2023-103) as inadequately drafted. This is the third rejection.
The AG's reasoning is short and structural: Dinwiddie's draft never actually delivers the new law in proper statutory form. Two specific problems:
1. The enacting clause is followed by junk. The Arkansas Constitution requires every initiated act to contain "Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Arkansas." Everything that follows that clause becomes the law. Dinwiddie put a number of confusing items after his enacting clause:
- A repeat of the popular name and ballot title
- A dotted line that extends across the page
- A narrative description of what would happen if the proposal were enacted
- Excerpts from existing state statutes
Are all of these supposed to be enacted? If yes, that contradicts the cleaner versions of the popular name and ballot title. If no, why are they there? The AG could not make sense of the structure, which made it impossible to ensure the ballot title was not misleading.
2. Narrative style instead of legislative drafting. A bill is supposed to read like a statute: clean prose, often with strikethroughs and underlines showing what's being added or removed from existing code, organized in sections and subsections. Dinwiddie's text reads like an explanation of what the proposal would do, not a draft of the actual statutory language. The AG had to explain that the text "never actually provides the language that would become the new law."
The AG suggested that Dinwiddie look at examples of bills filed by legislators and drafted by professional drafters (available on the Arkansas General Assembly's website) to see how proper legislative drafting indicates additions and deletions to existing statutes.
This opinion is part of a series. After this third rejection, Dinwiddie would file Opinion No. 2023-119 (a fourth attempt, also rejected, this time for inconsistent terminology and missing statute text) and continue from there.
What this means for you
Antique car collectors and the Arkansas Vintage Vehicle Owners
The age threshold for antique-vehicle registration in Arkansas remains 45 years. Until either the legislature amends A.C.A. §§ 27-15-2201 et seq. or a properly drafted initiated act passes, that age threshold stays in place.
If you support a lower threshold, the path forward is either (a) work with a legislator to file a bill in a regular session, or (b) get a sponsor to draft a competent initiated act and run it through the certification process. The recurring rejections of the Dinwiddie drafts illustrate why ballot initiatives need professional legislative drafting, not narrative descriptions.
Ballot initiative sponsors generally
The recurring drafting failures here are a useful warning. Two non-negotiable rules:
- Place only the actual statutory text after your enacting clause. No popular name repeats, no horizontal dividers, no narrative explanations, no statute excerpts that are not part of the proposed change. Everything past "Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Arkansas" must be law you intend to enact.
- Draft like a legislator drafts. Use the format you can find by pulling any recent bill from the Arkansas General Assembly's website. Identify what code section is being amended, show the existing language with strikethroughs for deletions and underlines for additions, and use formal section structure (SECTION 1, SECTION 2, etc.).
If you are not a lawyer or do not have legislative drafting experience, hire someone who does. The AG's review process is rigorous, and informal drafts will not survive it.
County revenue officers and DMV staff
No change to current registration policy. The 45-year threshold for antique vehicle classification under A.C.A. §§ 27-15-2202 and 27-15-2209 remains in effect.
Common questions
What is an initiated act?
A proposed statute that the people place on the ballot directly through the initiative process under Arkansas Constitution amendment 7. Initiated acts are different from initiated constitutional amendments because they propose a change to ordinary statutory law, not to the state constitution.
Why does the enacting clause matter so much?
Because it is the constitutional dividing line between the law and the explanation. Anything after "Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Arkansas" is what the people are voting to make law. If non-statutory text comes after the clause, voters cannot tell what they are actually enacting.
What's a "narrative style" text?
A description that tells the reader what the law would do (e.g., "If this passes, owners of cars 25 years or older could register as antiques"), rather than text that becomes the law (e.g., "Section 1. A.C.A. § 27-15-2202(a) is amended to read as follows: ..."). A narrative description is fine for a brochure or a campaign flier, but not for the actual text of the proposed statute.
Can Dinwiddie keep trying?
Yes. Sponsors can refile after rejection, and the redesign-and-resubmit cycle is normal under § 7-9-107. Other ballot initiative drafters in Arkansas have gone through five or more rounds before reaching certification.
Is the AG required to substitute a corrected ballot title?
Not when the underlying text is itself defective. A.C.A. § 7-9-107(d)(1) lets the AG substitute a more suitable title in some cases, but if the text itself is unclear or improperly structured, the AG cannot reliably summarize what the proposal would do, so the AG must reject and instruct the sponsor to redesign.
What is Amendment 7?
The constitutional amendment that gives Arkansas voters the right to propose statutes (initiated acts) and constitutional amendments and to refer enacted laws to a popular vote.
Background and statutory framework
A.C.A. § 7-9-107. Governs AG review and certification of ballot initiatives. Subsection (e) provides for rejection when the title is misleading or when the text is structurally unclear.
Ark. Const. amend. 7. The people's right of initiative and referendum.
Ark. Const. art. 5, § 1. Requires that all initiated acts include the enacting clause "Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Arkansas."
A.C.A. §§ 27-15-2201 et seq. Arkansas's antique automobile registration statutes. The current age threshold for antique classification is 45 years; Dinwiddie's proposal would lower it to 25 years.
Prior opinions in this saga. Opinion No. 2023-098 (first rejection); Opinion No. 2023-103 (second rejection); Opinion No. 2023-112 (this opinion, third rejection); Opinion No. 2023-119 (fourth rejection).
Citations
- A.C.A. § 7-9-107 (AG review of ballot initiatives)
- A.C.A. § 27-15-2202 (antique vehicle registration)
- A.C.A. § 27-15-2209 (related antique vehicle provisions)
- Ark. Const. amend. 7 (initiative and referendum)
- Ark. Const. art. 5, § 1 (enacting clause)
- Ark. Att'y Gen. Op. 2023-098, 2023-103 (prior rejections in this series)
Source
Original opinion text
Opinion No. 2023-112
December 7, 2023
Mr. David E. Dinwiddie
8608 Princeton Pike
Pine Bluff, Arkansas 71602
Dear Mr. Dinwiddie:
I am writing in response to your request, made under A.C.A. § 7-9-107, that I certify the popular name and ballot title for a proposed initiated act. In Opinion Nos. 2023-098 and 2023-103, I rejected prior versions of your proposed initiated act. You have now revised your proposal and submitted it for certification.
My decision to certify or reject a popular name and ballot title is unrelated to my view of the proposed measure's merits. I am not authorized to consider the measure's merits when considering certification.
- Request. Under A.C.A. § 7-9-107, you have asked me to certify the following popular name and ballot title for a proposed initiated act:
Popular Name: A Bill to allow any person who owns an automobile that is a model year Twenty-Five (25) years or older to register the vehicle as an Antique and Apply for Antique Automobile License Tags.
Ballot Title: A Bill to allow any person who owns an automobile that is a model year Twenty-Five (25) years or older to register the vehicle as an Antique and Apply for Antique Automobile License Tags.
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Rules governing my review. In Opinion No. 2023-098, I explained the rules governing my review and the specific rules governing popular names and ballot titles. Rather than repeat those rules here, I refer to you to that opinion, which I have attached for your reference.
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Application. Having reviewed the text of your proposed initiated act, as well as your proposed popular name and ballot title, I have concluded that I must reject your proposed ballot title as misleading because of ambiguities in the text of your proposal. Specifically, the text of your proposal contains two significant problems that prevent me from ensuring its provisions are adequately summarized in a ballot title:
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Enacting clause: As I noted in Opinion No. 2023-098, our state constitution requires the following language be included in the text of all statewide initiated acts: "Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Arkansas." Your first submission lacked this clause entirely, and your second submission used it in a way that rendered your intent unclear. You have not yet resolved the problem I noted in your second submission. Everything that follows an enacting clause is the law to be enacted. You have placed several confusing sections after your enacting clause: (1) a repeat of your popular name and ballot title; (2) a dotted line that extends across the page; (3) a narrative description of what would happen if your proposal were enacted; and (4) excerpts from existing state statutes. It is unclear to me whether you intend all the foregoing to be enacted. And if that is your intent, then it is inconsistent with the popular name and ballot tile as you have submitted them. Such an inconsistency itself would render your intent unclear. This lack of clarity prevents me from ensuring that your ballot title, or any ballot title I would substitute, is not misleading.
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Narrative description: One reason I rejected the second version of your proposed measure is that the text was written in a narrative style that appeared to be an attempt to explain what would happen if your proposal were enacted. You have continued to use this narrative style in the third version of your proposed measure, yet your text never actually provides the language that would become the new law.
The foregoing issues are sufficient grounds to reject your proposed popular name and ballot title. As I noted in response to your second submission, since you are proposing what Amendment 7 refers to as a "bill," you may wish to review examples of bills filed by legislators and drafted by professional drafters. These examples, which are available at the legislature's website, demonstrate how proposed statutes indicate the provisions of current law to be stricken and what new provisions will be added. This manner of legislative drafting provides the clarity needed to ensure your ballot title is not misleading.
Deputy Attorney General Ryan Owsley prepared this opinion, which I hereby approve.
Sincerely,
TIM GRIFFIN
Attorney General