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Arkansas group seeks to scale back state's lawsuit immunity

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - A group has proposed a ballot measure that would allow the Arkansas Legislature to scale back the state's immunity from lawsuits. If successful, the effort would reverse a ruling from the state's highest court that critics say gives state agencies blanket protections from any legal challenges.

The Committee to Restore Arkansans' Rights announced Wednesday it had filed a proposed constitutional amendment allowing lawmakers to waive the state's sovereign immunity. The state attorney general must approve the language of the measure before the committee can begin gathering signatures to place it on the November ballot.

The proposal comes less than a week after justices ruled a 2006 measure allowing lawsuits against the state for violating its minimum wage law conflicted with the Arkansas constitution's granting of sovereign immunity from suits.