SB249

Senate Bill 249 amends Arkansas law regarding the regulation of professional foresters. It shifts the primary enforcement mechanism for unauthorized forestry practices from a purely criminal classification to include civil penalties. Specifically, the bill grants the Arkansas Forestry Commission the authority to impose civil penalties of up to $5,000 for various violations, such as practicing forestry without proper registration, providing false information, or misrepresenting one's credentials. While adding these civil penalties, the bill retains the provision that such violations also constitute a Class A misdemeanor upon conviction. Additionally, the bill authorizes the Arkansas Forestry Commission to establish a formal penalty matrix through administrative rulemaking to govern how these penalties are assessed.