During its 2021 regular session, the Arkansas Legislative Assembly adopted Act 1003, which added a subchapter to Arkansas Code Title 22, Chapter 3: “The Arkansas State Capitol and Historical Monument Protection Act.”
This subchapter states that: “A historical monument shall not be relocated, vandalized, damaged, destroyed, removed, altered, renamed, rededicated, or otherwise disturbed.”
However, it also recognizes that occasions may arise when a historical monument must be moved or otherwise altered, either temporarily or permanently.
In such instances, waivers to the protection by the Act may be requested by state, county or local governmental entities that own such monuments and on whose public properties these monuments are located.
The Arkansas History Commission, an advisory board associated with the Arkansas State Archives, is tasked under Act 1003 with evaluating applications for such waivers. The staff of the Arkansas State Archives serve in a support role both for the Commission and for applicants.
The deadline to submit a waiver is two weeks before the next Arkansas History Commission meeting. The upcoming deadlines to submit a waiver are:
- August 31, 2023
- November 30, 2023
- February 22, 2024
- May 30, 2024
- August 29, 2024
- November 28, 2024
Government entities seeking to determine the protected status of a commemorative feature, apply for a waiver (either permanent or temporary), or register a newly-constructed commemorative feature as a protection-eligible historical monument will find information on this page, including: