On June 18, 2024, the Arkansas Senate convened and voted to request Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders submit her appointments to the Game and Fish Commission for Senate approval.
They also approved 23 appointments to various state boards and commissions, with one appointment sent back to the Senate Rules, Resolutions, and Memorials Committee.
Governor Sanders appointed Chris Caldwell to the Game and Fish Commission, filling the seat of the expired term of Chairman Stan Jones. Caldwell, a political consultant and Sanders’ campaign manager, will serve until 2031.
The Senate must approve most gubernatorial appointments according to Act 794 of 2023, which mandates meetings every three months to consider these appointments.
While some past governors referred all Game and Fish Commission appointments to the Senate, Sanders’ predecessor only did so once in eight years.
Legal counsel for the Senate indicated that a 2003 opinion by former Attorney General Mike Beebe supports the Senate’s right to confirm such appointments, though the authority is not explicitly stated in the Arkansas Constitution.
The Senate unanimously passed the motion to request future Game and Fish Commission appointments be submitted for Senate review.
There was some dissent regarding the appointment of Tammy Browning to the Arkansas Real Estate Commission, with concerns raised about the process.
Additionally, Sen. Ben Gilmore abstained from voting on his father’s appointment to the Osteopathic Rural Medical Practice Student Loan and Scholarship Board.
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