Senate Bill 117 Summary

• Establishes maximum of 592 regular employees for Arkansas Agriculture Department for fiscal year 2014-2015 with salary ranges from $104,964 to $116,126 for department heads and various grade levels for other positions

• Appropriates $17,433,912 total from Department of Agriculture Fund Account for operations including $10,326,450 for regular salaries, $3,758,747 for personal services matching, and $2,824,052 for maintenance and general operations

• Appropriates $77,131 for Livestock and Poultry Commission operations and $1,601,443 for animal disease control and eradication program including $350,000 vaccination grant and $100,000 brucellosis depopulation fund

• Appropriates funding for multiple specialized programs including Plant Board administration ($9,570,113), State Forestry Commission operations ($11,240,742), and various forestry-related initiatives totaling approximately $3.7 million

• Authorizes 172 temporary or part-time "Extra Help" employees and contains special language provisions for fund transfers, pest eradication, livestock indemnities, and reporting requirements with emergency clause effective July 1, 2014