Summary — HB 1726
Status: Died in Conference (final recorded action: 2025-03-29)
Introduced: January 2, 2025
Primary sponsor(s): Rep. Gramlich (and others listed); companion/related: SB 885
Classification/Subject tags (as recorded): Appropriations; Forestry Commission
Note on source material: The packet provided includes text from multiple distinct HB 1726 drafts across jurisdictions (an Arkansas “Kids Online Safety Act”, an Illinois property‑tax amendment, and a large appropriation amendment for a State Forestry Commission with language consistent with Mississippi budget bills). Legislative history indicates major amendments replaced the original content; this summary focuses on the appropriation/amendment version that became the substantive text before the bill died in conference, while also noting the original policy proposal it displaced.
Purpose and intent
- As amended, HB 1726 functioned as an annual appropriation bill to fund a State Forestry Commission for Fiscal Year 2026 (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026). Its intent was to provide operating and program funding, authorize positions, set performance targets, and establish certain spending and personnel controls.
- Originally (prior to amendments), HB 1726 was introduced as the “Arkansas Kids Online Safety Act,” a policy bill aimed at regulating online platforms’ interactions with minors (definitions, prohibitions on individualized advertising to minors, covered platform exclusions, etc.). That substantive policy text was later struck and replaced by the appropriation language.
Key provisions (appropriation/amendment version)
- General Fund appropriation (Section 1): the text appropriates funds for the State Forestry Commission (line-item amount in amendment: $17,274,665.00 appears in the inserted language).
- Special fund appropriation (Section 2): additional appropriation from special/source funds to the Forestry Commission (line-item amount shown: $13,495,131.00).
- Authorized headcount (Section 3): authorizes 246 permanent positions (time-limited positions also referenced).
- Personnel and fiscal controls: numerous directives require the agency to manage personal‑services costs so Fiscal Year 2027 personal services do not exceed FY2026 levels unless approved; restrictions on using vacancy funds; reporting and accounting requirements; payroll and hiring oversight tied to the State Personnel Board and Department of Finance and Administration.
- Performance measures (Section 5): establishes FY2026 targets for forestry programs (examples in the amendment: average suppression time 2.80 hours; acres burned under prescribed burn program 15,000; percent of fires suppressed at 100 acres or less — 95%; acres regenerated/improved, acres monitored, re‑inventory targets).
- Directed transfers and program funding: $200,000 earmarked (Section 6) to Department of Agriculture and Commerce for Beaver control/eradication during FY2026.
- Procurement and other policy language: preferences for Mississippi Industries for the Blind when procurement bids are equal; restrictions on replacing federal funds with state appropriations; reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Who would be affected
- The State Forestry Commission (agency-level funding, staffing, and program operations).
- Agencies receiving transfers (e.g., Dept. of Agriculture for Beaver program).
- Vendors and contractors through procurement preferences and personnel/hiring processes.
- Citizens indirectly through funded forestry programs (fire suppression, prescribed burning, forest management and monitoring).
Procedural/timeline aspects and final outcome
- The bill underwent substantial amendment that replaced the original policy content with appropriation language.
- It advanced through readings and committee action but ultimately “Died In Conference” on 2025-03-29 — meaning the conference committee did not produce an agreed, enacted measure; the appropriations did not become law via this bill.
- Given the mixed-source document (policy text for an online‑safety act and appropriation language), stakeholders should confirm the jurisdiction and final text in the official legislative journals or the legislature’s bill-tracking site for accurate, authoritative status and amounts.
