Grading State Disclosure 2008 Logo Graphic

A r k a n s a s

Grade
Rank
D+
34

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Subcategories
Grade
Rank
Campaign Disclosure Law
C
35
Electronic Filing Program
F
38
Disclosure Content Accessibility
D+
34
Online Contextual & Technical Usability
C-
27

Grading Process green cube Subcategory Weighting green cube Methodology green cube Glossary

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The State of Disclosure in Arkansas

Arkansas earned its first passing grade in Grading State Disclosure 2008, and was among the top five most improved states since 2007. Arkansas also became the second most improved state in the Disclosure Content Accessibility category with the addition of a searchable database of campaign contributions to the Secretary of State’s web site.

Arkansas earned a C and ranked 35th again in the Campaign Disclosure Law category in 2008. Candidates must report detailed information about contributors of $50 or more, including occupation and employer data. Expenditures over $99 are also disclosed, but reports do not include subvendor details. Independent expenditure disclosure is weak in that reports do not include who benefits from such expenditures or the cumulative amount spent. While candidates file monthly election year campaign finance reports, last-minute contributions and last-minute independent expenditures are not reported until after Election Day. In the summer of 2007, Arkansas implemented a voluntary electronic filing program and an impressive 30 percent of legislative candidates took advantage of this option in the program’s first year.

Arkansas improved from an F to a D+ and moved nine places up in the accessibility rankings since 2007 due to the addition of a searchable database of campaign contributions on the Secretary of State’s web site. Contribution data that has been filed electronically can be searched by donor name and contribution amount and results can be sorted online and downloaded for offline analysis. The main drawback of the new database is that it is difficult to find on the site; it is linked from a list of candidates rather than as a link from the main disclosure search page. Electronically-filed reports and paper-filed reports are both presented as PDF files on the site, but the electronic reports are much easier to read than the scanned reports due to handwriting and scan quality issues. Both paper and electronic reports are accessible online the same day they are filed with the Secretary of State’s office.

Improved contextual information and a stronger usability test performance helped Arkansas jump 15 places in the web site usability rankings and move from an F to a C- since 2007. Usability testers reported lower levels of confusion with the site than those reported last year and all testers reported confidence with the data this year. The disclosure site now provides better information about which types of filings are available and instructions for accessing the data. The site could be further enhanced by labeling amended reports within the index of a candidate’s filing history and by providing tools for comparing the totals raised and spent by competing candidates.

Quick Fix: Provide a direct link from the disclosure site’s “Search Reports”/”Quick Search” page to the searchable database of campaign contributors.

Editor’s Pick: Each database search field is accompanied by a “?” that is linked to an explanation of that search field’s requirements. View image

Disclosure Agency: Secretary of State
Disclosure Web Site:
http://www.sosweb.state.ar.us

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First published September 17, 2008
| Last updated September 17 2008
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Campaign Disclosure Project. All rights reserved.