AR SB238

Establishes that elected public officials (Governor, Attorney General, legislators, etc.) forfeit their Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System credited service for their term of office upon conviction or guilty plea for felonies involving abuse of public trust, abuse of office, or fraud committed in their official capacity.

Requires court clerks to notify the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System Executive Director when an elected official is convicted, pleads guilty, or has conviction/plea upheld on appeal for felonies arising from official actions.

Upon final conviction or plea determination, the retirement system must immediately stop annuities based solely on official service or reduce annuities by the amount attributable to official service, and refund accumulated contributions minus any annuity already received.

If a court orders accumulated contributions be paid as restitution, the retirement system shall reduce the refund by that amount and direct the restitution to the court.

Applies to persons elected on or after January 1, 2020, and to those elected before that date if the felony-related actions occurred after the bill's effective date; the act becomes effective immediately upon Governor's approval or without approval.