§ Ark. Code § 7-6-216Registration and reports by exploratory committees

(a)(1) An exploratory committee shall register with the appropriate filing office within fifteen
(15) days after receiving contributions during a calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed five
hundred dollars ($500).
(2)(A) For a state or district office, the place of filing shall be the Secretary of State’s office.
(B) For a county, municipal, township, or school district office, the place of filing shall be the
county clerk’s office.
(3) Registration shall be on forms provided by the Secretary of State and the contents therein
shall be verified by an affidavit of an officer of the committee.
(b) An exploratory committee shall disclose on the registration form the name, address, and,
where available, phone number of the committee and each of its officers. It shall also disclose the
individual person who, upon becoming a candidate, is intended to receive campaign contributions
from the committee.
(c) No later than twenty (20) days after the end of each month, an exploratory committee shall
file a report with the appropriate filing office indicating:
(1) The total amount of contributions received during the filing period;
(2) The name and address of each person who has made a contribution which, in the aggregate,
exceeds two hundred dollars ($200), along with the contributor’s principal place of business,
employer, occupation, and the amount contributed; and
(3) The total amount of expenditures made and, for each single expenditure that exceeds one
hundred dollars ($100), an itemization, including the amount of the expenditure, the name and
address of the person to whom the expenditure was made, and the date the expenditure was
made.
(d)(1)(A) The first report shall be filed for the month in which the committee files its
registration. The final report shall be filed within thirty (30) days after the end of the month
in which the committee either transfers its contributions to a candidate’s campaign or no
longer accepts contributions.
(B) The reports required by this section shall be filed in electronic form through the official
website of the Secretary of State.
(C) The Arkansas Ethics Commission shall approve the format used by the Secretary of
State for the filing of exploratory reports in electronic form to ensure that all required
information is requested.
(D) The official website of the Secretary of State shall allow for searches of exploratory
committee report information filed in electronic form.
(2) An exploratory committee under this section may file reports in paper form under this
section if:
(A) The exploratory committee does not have access to the technology necessary to submit
reports in electronic form; and
(B) Submitting reports in electronic form would constitute a substantial hardship for the
exploratory committee.
(3) The committee shall not accept contributions after the filing of a final report.