Governor boundary on ballot; Issue 2 lets leader travel, run state

Gov. Asa Hutchinson is shown in this file photo.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson is shown in this file photo.

For the second time in 14 years, Arkansas voters will decide the fate of a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow the governor to retain his powers when he travels out of state.

The amendment is listed as Issue 2 on the ballot for the Nov. 8 general election. It was proposed by the Legislature.

The Arkansas Constitution, first adopted in 1874, requires the governor to relinquish his power once he leaves the state's borders. Amendment 6, which took effect in 1926, established the lieutenant governor as first in the line to become acting governor. If there is no lieutenant governor or if that official also is out of state, then the president pro tempore of the Senate becomes acting governor. Next in line is the House speaker.

In the 2002 election, Arkansans rejected a proposal similar to Issue 2. Then-Lt. Gov. Win Rockefeller, a Republican, said he opposed that amendment. The vote was 359,941 against the amendment and 298,080 for it.

Fourteen years ago, then-state Sen. David Malone, D-Fayetteville, who sponsored the amendment that the Legislature referred to voters, said technology allowed a governor to keep in touch with the goings-on in Arkansas from long distances.

At that time, Rockefeller said the part of the proposal that "gave me heartburn" was that "it did not clearly delineate a line of succession if the governor is really inaccessible." Rockefeller died in 2006 from complications of a rare blood ailment.

Issue 2 is on the ballot because the Legislature decided last year to refer to voters a proposed constitutional amendment sponsored by state Sen. Eddie Joe Williams, R-Cabot.

Republican Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin said he supports Issue 2.

"Reforming government is a priority for me and the current law is outdated, so I began pushing for this change even before I was sworn in as lieutenant governor," Griffin said in a written statement. "Why would I push to reduce my office's authority? With today's technology, the governor can stay connected from anywhere, so changing the law is common sense, more efficient and good for Arkansas taxpayers."

The lieutenant governor still would preside over the state Senate when it's in session.

In an 80-0 vote in the House and a 30-1 vote in the Senate in 2015, the Legislature adopted the resolution that referred the proposal to voters. Sen. Alan Clark, R-Lonsdale, cast the only "no" vote.

Clark said he voted against that proposal because he considered a proposal on tort laws to be a higher priority.

Clark said he supports Issue 2.

"It solves a problem, but it's not very weighty," he said. "I would rather it gave some time limit [for the period a governor would retain his powers when he's out of state]. How many weeks could a governor remain gone?"

But Williams said: "That doesn't concern me. Communication is so readily available and seamless, that really isn't a factor."

Williams said his proposed amendment is "a common-sense thing to do," and he said he's even run into some people who mistakenly believed the governor retains his powers when he travels out of state.

Plus, "historically, there have been some shenanigans pulled when the governor was out of state," Williams said.

In December 1992, then-Lt. Gov. Jim Guy Tucker became governor when Bill Clinton resigned to become president. When Tucker left the state to attend Clinton's inauguration, then-Sen. Jerry Jewell, D-Little Rock, the Senate president pro tempore, became acting governor for a few days in January 1993.

Jewell used the authority to grant clemency to Billy Ray Davis, who was convicted of murder in 1971 and sentenced to life in prison. Jewell also pardoned Tommy McIntosh, who was convicted of cocaine possession in 1987 and given a 50-year sentence. Tommy McIntosh was the son of political activist and restaurateur Robert "Say" McIntosh. The men were released from prison. Jewell also pardoned two men who were already free on parole.

Other acting governors have used their time in charge to take action.

In 1987, then-Sen. Nick Wilson, D-Pocahontas, fired Clinton's chief of staff, Betsey Wright, while the governor and lieutenant governor were out of state. Wilson also vetoed a handful of bills. Upon Clinton's return, Wright was rehired.

In 2013, then-Lt. Gov. Mark Darr, a Republican, signed a bill as acting governor to exempt all information about holders of concealed-weapon permits from disclosure under the state Freedom of Information Act. Then-Gov. Mike Beebe, a Democrat, called the signing inappropriate.

Generally, the longest that a governor goes outside the state is between seven and 10 days for an international trip, Williams said. In the United States, a governor is usually gone for a few days, he said.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson said he supports Issue 2.

"Passage of amendment 2 is long overdue," the Republican governor said in a written statement.

"It simply allows the governor to travel out of the state and not lose the authority as governor. This provision may have made sense in the 19th century but not in today's world. A governor should not lose the power of office just because he or she crosses the river into Memphis," Hutchinson said.

A Section on 10/24/2016

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