---
type: "Bill"
title: "TO CREATE A MEANS BY WHICH STUDENTS WHO QUALIFY FOR REDUCED-PRICE MEALS AT SCHOOL RECEIVE FREE MEALS AT SCHOOL."
description: "TO CREATE A MEANS BY WHICH STUDENTS WHO QUALIFY FOR REDUCED-PRICE MEALS AT SCHOOL RECEIVE FREE MEALS AT SCHOOL."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ar"
legislature: "Arkansas Legislature"
session: "2023"
identifier: "SB 477"
citation: "Arkansas SB 477 (2023)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["J. Dismang", "Vaught"]
version_count: 4
action_count: 23
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2023-03-24T17:49:16+00:00"
last_action: "2023-04-11T21:02:29+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/10d099f6-a610-4f4a-8a72-a05d22feafad"
source_url: "ftp://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/SessionInformation/LegislativeMeasures.txt"
source_hash: "e6611d5bf59ccb0276042ed4af6c3d4cc07c91891144c04f417c38530be5ce17"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ar"]
---

# Arkansas SB 477 (2023) — TO CREATE A MEANS BY WHICH STUDENTS WHO QUALIFY FOR REDUCED-PRICE MEALS AT SCHOOL RECEIVE FREE MEALS AT SCHOOL.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Act 656** (committee substitute) — [source](http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Acts/FTPDocument?path=%2FACTS%2F2023R%2FPublic%2F&file=656.pdf&ddBienniumSession=2023%2F2023R)
2. **Amendment S1** (committee substitute) — [source](http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Home/FTPDocument?path=%2FAMEND%2F2023R%2FPublic%2FSB477-S1.pdf)
3. **Amendment S2** (committee substitute) — [source](http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Home/FTPDocument?path=%2FAMEND%2F2023R%2FPublic%2FSB477-S2.pdf)
4. **SB 477** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/assembly/2023/2023R/Bills/SB477.pdf)

## Votes

- Read the third time and passed and ordered transmitted to the Senate. — **89–0** (pass) · lower
- Read the third time and passed. — **32–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- J. Dismang — primary (person)
- Vaught — primary (person)
- A. Clark — cosponsor (person)
- A. Collins — cosponsor (person)
- Achor — cosponsor (person)
- Andrews — cosponsor (person)
- B. Davis — cosponsor (person)
- B. Johnson — cosponsor (person)
- Barker — cosponsor (person)
- Beaty Jr. — cosponsor (person)
- Breaux — cosponsor (person)
- Brooks — cosponsor (person)
- C. Fite — cosponsor (person)
- C. Penzo — cosponsor (person)
- C. Tucker — cosponsor (person)
- Caldwell — cosponsor (person)
- Cavenaugh — cosponsor (person)
- Clowney — cosponsor (person)
- Cozart — cosponsor (person)
- Crawford — cosponsor (person)
- Crowell — cosponsor (person)
- D. Ferguson — cosponsor (person)
- D. Garner — cosponsor (person)
- D. Sullivan — cosponsor (person)
- D. Wallace — cosponsor (person)
- D. Whitaker — cosponsor (person)
- Dalby — cosponsor (person)
- Dees — cosponsor (person)
- Duffield — cosponsor (person)
- Eaves — cosponsor (person)
- Ennett — cosponsor (person)
- Eubanks — cosponsor (person)
- Evans — cosponsor (person)
- F. Love — cosponsor (person)
- Flippo — cosponsor (person)
- G. Leding — cosponsor (person)
- Gazaway — cosponsor (person)
- Gilmore — cosponsor (person)
- Gramlich — cosponsor (person)
- Haak — cosponsor (person)
- Hawk — cosponsor (person)
- Hester — cosponsor (person)
- Hickey — cosponsor (person)
- Hill — cosponsor (person)
- Holcomb — cosponsor (person)
- Hudson — cosponsor (person)
- Irvin — cosponsor (person)
- J. Boyd — cosponsor (person)
- J. Bryant — cosponsor (person)
- J. Dotson — cosponsor (person)
- J. English — cosponsor (person)
- J. Moore — cosponsor (person)
- J. Payton — cosponsor (person)
- J. Petty — cosponsor (person)
- J. Richardson — cosponsor (person)
- Joey Carr — cosponsor (person)
- John Carr — cosponsor (person)
- K. Brown — cosponsor (person)
- K. Hammer — cosponsor (person)
- K. Moore — cosponsor (person)
- L. Chesterfield — cosponsor (person)
- Lynch — cosponsor (person)
- M. Berry — cosponsor (person)
- M. Brown — cosponsor (person)
- M. Johnson — cosponsor (person)
- M. McKee — cosponsor (person)
- M. Shepherd — cosponsor (person)
- Maddox — cosponsor (person)
- McClure — cosponsor (person)
- McCullough — cosponsor (person)
- McGrew — cosponsor (person)
- Milligan — cosponsor (person)
- Nicks — cosponsor (person)
- Painter — cosponsor (person)
- Pearce — cosponsor (person)
- Perry — cosponsor (person)
- Pilkington — cosponsor (person)
- Puryear — cosponsor (person)
- R. Murdock — cosponsor (person)
- Rice — cosponsor (person)
- Richmond — cosponsor (person)
- Rose — cosponsor (person)
- S. Flowers — cosponsor (person)
- S. Meeks — cosponsor (person)
- Scott — cosponsor (person)
- Steimel — cosponsor (person)
- Stone — cosponsor (person)
- T. Shephard — cosponsor (person)
- Tosh — cosponsor (person)
- V. Flowers — cosponsor (person)
- Walker — cosponsor (person)
- Wardlaw — cosponsor (person)
- Warren — cosponsor (person)
- Wooldridge — cosponsor (person)
- Wooten — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-03-24T17:49:16+00:00** Filed `introduction`
- **2023-03-24T20:48:48+00:00** Read first time, rules suspended, read second time, referred to EDUCATION COMMITTEE - SENATE `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2023-03-29T18:37:02+00:00** Returned by the Committee with the recommendation that it Do Pass as amended, Amendment # 1 `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-03-29T20:28:53+00:00** Rules suspended.
- **2023-03-29T20:28:57+00:00** Placed on second reading for purpose of amendment.
- **2023-03-29T20:29:02+00:00** Amendment # 1 read the first time, rules suspended, read the second time and adopted, ordered engrossed.
- **2023-03-29T22:29:55+00:00** REPORTED CORRECTLY ENGROSSED
- **2023-03-30T21:33:51+00:00** Rules suspended.
- **2023-03-30T21:34:14+00:00** Placed on second reading for purpose of amendment.
- **2023-03-30T21:34:19+00:00** Amendment # 2 read the first time, rules suspended, read the second time and adopted, ordered engrossed.
- **2023-03-30T23:37:35+00:00** REPORTED CORRECTLY ENGROSSED
- **2023-03-31T00:17:54+00:00** Read the third time and passed. `passage, reading-3`
- **2023-03-31T00:18:05+00:00** Ordered immediately transmitted to the House.
- **2023-03-31T01:11:11+00:00** RECEIVED FROM THE SENATE
- **2023-03-31T01:45:56+00:00** Read the first time, rules suspended, read the second time and referred to the Committee on EDUCATION COMMITTEE- HOUSE `reading-1, reading-2, referral-committee`
- **2023-04-04T22:51:43+00:00** Returned by the Committee Do Pass `committee-passage`
- **2023-04-06T00:50:24+00:00** Read the third time and passed and ordered transmitted to the Senate. `passage, reading-3`
- **2023-04-06T00:50:31+00:00** Returned To the Senate as passed.
- **2023-04-06T03:22:38+00:00** Returned from the House as passed.
- **2023-04-06T03:22:41+00:00** ORDERED ENROLLED
- **2023-04-06T14:58:05+00:00** Reported correctly enrolled and ordered delivered to the Governor.
- **2023-04-06T14:58:06+00:00** DELIVERED TO GOVERNOR. `executive-receipt`
- **2023-04-11T21:02:29+00:00** Notification that SB477 is now Act 656 `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/10d099f6-a610-4f4a-8a72-a05d22feafad`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Arkansas legislature records).