Little Rock — With 2025 rapidly approaching, two Arkansas laws are set to go into effect.
Both the Protect Arkansas Act and the LEARNS Act were passed in 2023.
The Protect Arkansas Act eliminates parole eligibility for people convicted of certain violent crimes and allocates nearly half a billion dollars to increase prison capacity.
It was part of Governor Sarah Sanders’s 2023 crime-fighting package, which also included an overhaul of the state parole system.
Beginning in 2025, individuals convicted of first-degree murder will be required to serve their entire prison sentence without the option of early release.
While most offenders will be ineligible for parole, some may be eligible for release after serving 85% of their sentence.
In addition, the Arkansas Learns Act, which was signed into law in 2023, will go into effect in 2025.
Under this law, the Department of Education, in collaboration with other state agencies, will create an app by January to assist Arkansans in searching for jobs and accessing various training opportunities.
Beginning with the next school year, all Arkansas students will be able to apply for “education freedom accounts,” which allow state tax dollars to be used for private schooling or at-home education.
The LEARNS Act has caused some controversy.
Teachers and students at Little Rock Central High School, along with the NAACP, sued the state earlier this year, hoping to overturn Section 16, which prohibits Arkansas students from being indoctrinated with certain ideologies, specifically critical race theory, which is becoming increasingly popular in African American studies curricula.
