What is the Arkansas fiscal session?

Arkansas moved to annual sessions when voters approved Amendment 86 in 2008. Before that, the Legislature met in regular session every other year. Since 2010, the odd-year regular session is open to any bill, and the even-year fiscal session is built around the budget.

The rules in the Constitution

When

Every even-numbered year. The Constitution names the second Monday in February and lets the Legislature change the date.

What it considers

Appropriation bills, which authorize state spending.

Other bills

Allowed only if two-thirds of the members of each house approve considering the bill.

Length

Up to 30 calendar days.

Extension

Once, by no more than 15 days, with a three-fourths vote of the members elected to each house.

New bills

No new bill may be introduced in the last three days.

Source: Ark. Const. art. 5, §§ 5, 17 and 34.

When it actually meets

The Constitution names February, but the Legislature has used its power to move the start date. State law ties the fiscal session to the month of the preferential primary: when the primary is in March, the session convenes at 12:00 noon on the second Wednesday in April. Act 405 of 2025 moved Arkansas's preferential primary to March and changed the fiscal session date to match, so recent and upcoming fiscal sessions open in April.

Bill filing for the 2026 fiscal session began Monday, March 9, 2026. Under the second-Wednesday-in-April rule, the next fiscal session would convene Wednesday, April 12, 2028. That date is our reading of the statute, not an announced date.

Budget work before the session

Most of the budget review happens before the fiscal session opens. State agencies present their requests in budget hearings held by the Arkansas Legislative Council, with members of the Joint Budget Committee sitting with it. The Joint Budget Committee then considers the appropriation bills during the session. The same pre-session hearings happen ahead of regular sessions too: for 2027 they run October 6 to November 6, 2026.

Appropriation bills usually need a three-fourths vote to pass, which is 75 votes in the House and 27 in the Senate. See votes needed for where that rule comes from.

Getting a non-budget bill heard

A bill that is not an appropriation can move in a fiscal session only after both chambers approve considering it by two-thirds. The joint rules handle this with identical resolutions filed in each house, one for each bill. Under the joint rules as the BLR summarizes them, identical resolutions may not be filed later than the first day of the session, and the general bill may not be filed later than the 15th day, after the resolutions are approved. Appropriation bills are due by the 15th day too, unless two-thirds vote to extend. Constitutional amendments can be referred to voters only in a regular session.

1. File a resolution. Identical resolutions in the House and Senate ask permission to consider the bill.
2. Two-thirds of each house. 67 votes in the House and 24 in the Senate approve consideration.
3. File the bill. It then follows the normal path through committee and the floor.

Questions

What is a fiscal session in Arkansas?

A session held in each even-numbered year to consider appropriation bills, which make up the state budget. Other bills need approval from two-thirds of each house before they can be considered.

How long is the Arkansas fiscal session?

Up to 30 calendar days. Three-fourths of the members elected to each house can extend it once, by no more than 15 days.

When was the 2026 fiscal session?

It convened Wednesday, April 8, 2026, and adjourned sine die Wednesday, April 29, 2026.

Is there a fiscal session in 2027?

No. 2027 is a regular session year, and the regular session convenes January 11, 2027. The next fiscal session is due in 2028.

Why does the fiscal session start in April instead of February?

The Constitution lets the Legislature change the start date. State law sets the second Wednesday in April for years when the preferential primary is held in March, and Act 405 of 2025 moved the primary to March.

Can a fiscal session pass a constitutional amendment?

No. Proposed constitutional amendments are referred to voters only from a regular session.