AR HB1984

Changes negligent violations of Freedom of Information Act provisions from Class C misdemeanor to requiring proof of negligence, while creating new specific offense categories for executive session violations.

Creates "unlawful calling of an executive session" as a Class A misdemeanor for knowingly requesting an executive session in violation of § 25-19-106, with automatic employment termination and impeachment eligibility for public officials.

Creates "unlawful participation in an executive session" as a Class A misdemeanor for knowingly discussing prohibited matters in executive sessions, with same employment termination and impeachment consequences.

Creates "negligent calling" and "negligent participation" offenses as Class C misdemeanors for negligent violations related to executive sessions.

Provides affirmative defenses if the executive session did not convene or if the defendant objected to improper discussion and immediately left the session.