---
type: "Bill"
title: "TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING EXAMINATIONS, INVESTIGATIONS, AND POSTMORTEM EXAMINATIONS; AND TO AMEND THE LAW REQUIRING A POSTMORTEM EXAMINATION WHEN A DEATH IS BY APPARENT DRUG, ALCOHOL, OR POISON TOXICITY."
description: "TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING EXAMINATIONS, INVESTIGATIONS, AND POSTMORTEM EXAMINATIONS; AND TO AMEND THE LAW REQUIRING A POSTMORTEM EXAMINATION WHEN A DEATH IS BY APPARENT DRUG, ALCOHOL, OR POISON TOXICITY."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ar"
legislature: "Arkansas Legislature"
session: "2025"
identifier: "HB 1568"
citation: "Arkansas HB 1568 (2025)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Childress", "K. Hammer"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 16
vote_count: 0
first_action: "2025-02-24T22:12:38+00:00"
last_action: "2025-03-12T22:09:31+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/c0bbfef3-160c-45b6-a23f-28e58bac5885"
source_url: "https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Bills/FTPDocument/?path=%2fSessionInformation%2LegislativeMeasures.txt"
source_hash: "1e893d466df687c10d5a6831e27b56325c59a8798a8c4d6aaeb8bad1a7d02a58"
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 HB 1568 (2025) — TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING EXAMINATIONS, INVESTIGATIONS, AND POSTMORTEM EXAMINATIONS; AND TO AMEND THE LAW REQUIRING A POSTMORTEM EXAMINATION WHEN A DEATH IS BY APPARENT DRUG, ALCOHOL, OR POISON TOXICITY.

## Version chain

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

1. **Act 289** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Acts/FTPDocument?path=%2FACTS%2F2025R%2FPublic%2F&file=289.pdf&ddBienniumSession=2025%2F2025R)
2. **Amendment H1** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Home/FTPDocument?path=%2FAMEND%2F2025R%2FPublic%2FHB1568-H1.pdf)
3. **HB 1568** (committee substitute) — [source](https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/assembly/2025/2025R/Bills/HB1568.pdf)

## Sponsors

- Childress — primary (person)
- K. Hammer — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2025-02-24T22:12:38+00:00** Filed `introduction`
- **2025-02-24T22:54:04+00:00** Read the first time, rules suspended, read the second time and referred to the Committee on STATE AGENCIES & GOVT'L AFFAIRS- HOUSE `reading-1, reading-2, referral-committee`
- **2025-02-26T16:38:58+00:00** Returned by the Committee with the recommendation that it do pass as amended 1 `committee-passage`
- **2025-02-27T14:35:50+00:00** Placed on second reading for the purpose of amendment.
- **2025-02-27T14:35:52+00:00** Amendment No. 1 read and adopted and the bill ordered engrossed. `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage`
- **2025-02-27T17:54:24+00:00** REPORTED CORRECTLY ENGROSSED
- **2025-03-03T19:55:59+00:00** Read the third time and passed and ordered transmitted to the Senate. `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-03-03T21:40:58+00:00** Received from the House.
- **2025-03-03T21:41:08+00:00** Read first time, rules suspended, read second time, referred to STATE AGENCIES & GOVT'L AFFAIRS-SENATE `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2025-03-06T19:51:14+00:00** Returned by the Committee, with the recommendation that it Do Pass `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2025-03-10T19:59:47+00:00** Read the third time and passed. `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-03-10T19:59:57+00:00** Returned to the House as passed.
- **2025-03-10T21:12:31+00:00** Returned from the Senate as passed.
- **2025-03-10T21:12:33+00:00** TO BE ENROLLED
- **2025-03-11T13:26:07+00:00** Correctly enrolled and ordered transmitted to the Governor's Office.
- **2025-03-12T22:09:31+00:00** Notification that HB1568 is now Act 289 `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/c0bbfef3-160c-45b6-a23f-28e58bac5885`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Arkansas legislature records).