HB1317

House Bill 1317 amends Arkansas law to explicitly include fraud against state-supported retirement systems under the statutes governing fraud against the government. The bill establishes that knowingly making material false statements or falsifying records to defraud a state-supported retirement system constitutes a Class D felony. It grants the executive directors of these retirement systems the authority to refer suspected fraudulent activity to the Attorney General or the Sixth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney. Additionally, the bill upgrades existing penalties for such fraudulent acts against specific retirement systems, such as the Arkansas Public Employees' Retirement System and the State Police Retirement System, from misdemeanors to Class D felonies. The bill includes an emergency clause to ensure these protections take effect immediately upon the Governor's approval.