Arkansas Secretary of State

What Arkansas Secretary of State does

The Arkansas Secretary of State is a constitutional office of the State of Arkansas, established in 1836 upon Arkansas's admission to the Union and headquartered in Room 256 of the State Capitol at 500 Woodlane Avenue, Little Rock. The office is led by Secretary of State Cole Jester (in office since 2023) and is constitutionally responsible for election administration, business and commercial services regulation, notarial commissions, and State Capitol operations, serving all Arkansas residents, businesses, notaries public, political candidates, educators, students, and capitol visitors. Functional operations are organized into four internal divisions: Business & Commercial Services (BCS) for corporate filings, UCC, notary/eNotary, apostille, and trademarks; the Elections Division for voter registration, absentee voting, ethics filings, candidate filings, and election results (data archive from 1976 to present); the Education Division for K-12 civics programming and Capitol field trips; and State Capitol Operations for visitor services, events, and Capitol Police. The office runs a multi-channel service architecture consisting of two physical service centers in Little Rock (Capitol Executive Office and Victory Building BCS office) and one in Fayetteville, a self-serve online portal at sos.arkansas.gov with specialized sub-sites for franchise tax (sos-franchise.ark.org) and financial disclosures, and a distribution layer of 75 county clerks handling voter registration and absentee ballot administration. Election administration is standardized statewide through a single integrated voting equipment vendor, Election Systems and Software. The office collects statutory transaction and license fees (e.g., $16 UCC filings, $20 notary commissions, $50 trademarks, $150 annual UCC system subscriptions, $500 biennial athlete agent registrations, and franchise tax under A.C.A. 26-54-101) but is funded through state appropriations and is not a revenue-generating commercial entity. Marketing and outreach are conducted via a broad social media presence (Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, Flickr), a 6-part Election Video Series, classroom presentations, and news releases, with claimed first-in-the-nation ranking for election integrity following 2024 reforms.

Name

Arkansas Secretary of State

Legal name

Arkansas Secretary of State

Website

https://sos.arkansas.gov

Company type

Public

Founded year

1836

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Arkansas Secretary of State is a constitutional state office established in 1836 that administers elections, business entity filings, notarial commissions, UCC and franchise tax filings, trademark registration, and Capitol and civics education services for the residents and businesses of Arkansas, operating from Little Rock and Fayetteville with a statewide county clerk distribution network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

State Government Administration

NAICS

Public Administration (92), Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities (922), Administration of Economic Programs (926)

akta.pro primary industry

Governor/Executive Office & Cabinet Administration (BPAIABAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

City Clerk/Records, Elections & Civic Engagement (BPAIACAB)

Keywords

• Election administration
• Business filings
• Voter registration
• Notary services
• Corporate filings

Headquarters

HQ city

Little Rock

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Business Filing Fees: Fees for business entity filings including articles of incorporation, amendments, mergers, dissolutions, and annual reports. Most filings completed within two business days.
2. Franchise Tax Collection: Privilege tax imposed on corporations, banking/insurance entities, LLCs registered in Arkansas, and foreign corporations transacting business in Arkansas per A.C.A. 26-54-101.
3. Notary Commission Fees: $20 application fee for traditional notary commission (10-year term). eNotary additional $20 filing fee plus $5 convenience fee.
4. Athlete Agent Registration: $500 for new registration or renewal (valid 2 years). $100 fee for reciprocal registration from another state.
5. Trademark/Service Mark Filing: $50 fee per new and renewal application for trademark/service mark registration.
6. UCC Filing Fees: $16 new filing, $6 continuation/termination, $6 search with or without results.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

The Arkansas Secretary of State is a state constitutional office that administers statewide election operations, processes business entity and UCC filings, commissions notaries public (including eNotary), registers trademarks and athlete agents, issues apostilles, collects franchise taxes, files financial disclosures, and operates civics education and Capitol visitor programs for Arkansas residents and businesses.

Product overview

The Arkansas Secretary of State operates a unified government services platform providing election administration, business filings, notary services, and civic education. The core services include the Elections portal for voter registration and management, Business & Commercial Services for corporate filings and UCC transactions, a Notary & eNotary commission system, Financial Disclosure filing, and educator programs. These services are integrated through the main sos.arkansas.gov website with dedicated portals for specific functions like franchise tax filing and ethics disclosures.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Elections Services Comprehensive election administration services including voter registration, polling information, absentee voting, election results, ethics filings, and candidate filing management for Arkansas voters, candidates, and election officials.
• Voter Registration & Voting Portal Online portal providing Arkansas voters with voter registration lookup, polling location lookup, registration status verification, and absentee ballot request services through VoterView.
• Business & Commercial Services (BCS) Corporate filing services for Arkansas businesses including articles of incorporation, amendments, mergers, dissolutions, franchise tax filing, and certificate of good standing issuance, serving corporations, LLCs, nonprofits, and foreign entities.
• UCC & Commercial Services Uniform Commercial Code filing system for financing statements, continuations, amendments, and terminations filed electronically by Arkansas secured parties and lenders.
• Notary & eNotary Services Notary public commission management including online application filing, exam processing, commission renewal, and electronic notarization (eNotary) capabilities for qualified Arkansas notaries.
• Apostille & Certification Authentication and apostille services for documents to be used internationally, certifying signatures and seals of Arkansas notaries public and other officials.
• Trademark Registration Registration of trademarks and service marks for Arkansas businesses, including application filing and conflict search services.
• Educator Services Civics education programs for Arkansas K-12 schools including traveling classroom presentations, free educational materials, Capitol field trips, and professional development workshops for teachers.
• Capitol Visitor Services Arkansas State Capitol tours, event planning services, and visitor information for tourists, educators, and business groups visiting the Capitol.
• Financial Disclosure Filing System Online system for filing campaign finance reports, statements of financial interest, lobbyist reports, and PAC reports as required by Arkansas law.
• Athlete Agent Registration Registration and renewal system for athlete agents operating in Arkansas, including complaint filing and agent search capabilities.
• Election Results System Comprehensive election results database containing current, historical, and archived election data from 1976 to present, including primary, general, and special elections in Arkansas.

Quantifiable outcome

• Ranked first state for election integrity

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Election Systems and SoftwarecoreTechnology or IntegrationStatewide vendor selected for voting equipment across all Arkansas counties. Every county uses one integrated voting system for election administration.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• California Secretary of State: State-level Secretary of State office overseeing California elections (Cal-Access), business filings (bizfile), and notary commissions. Direct peer in scope of services despite much larger jurisdiction.
• Florida Department of State: Equivalent state-level constitutional office administering elections, corporate filings (Sunbiz), UCC, and notarial services for Florida. Closely comparable in service mix and online portal approach.
• Georgia Secretary of State: State-level office administering Georgia elections, business registrations (eCorp), and professional licensing. Comparable in online-service sophistication and election administration profile.
• North Carolina Secretary of State: Constitutional office responsible for North Carolina business filings, UCC, securities, and notarial acts — closely mirrors the Business & Commercial Services division of the Arkansas office.
• Texas Secretary of State: Performs identical constitutional functions — elections administration, business filings, UCC, notary commissions — for the State of Texas. Most direct functional peer given matched scope of statutory responsibilities, though operating at materially larger scale.
• Pennsylvania Department of State: Handles Pennsylvania elections, corporation bureau filings, and professional licensing — overlapping core SoS functions (elections + business filings) at the state level.
• Ohio Secretary of State: Constitutional office administering Ohio elections, business filings, and UCC. Comparable in service breadth and online portal structure.

Emerging players

• Corporation Service Company (CSC): Private-sector provider of business entity formation, UCC filing, and registered-agent services that interfaces with state SoS offices. Comparable in the specific domain of corporate filing/UCC services that Arkansas's BCS division performs.

Regional players

• Missouri Secretary of State: Adjacent-state SoS with elections, business services, and librarian/notary functions. Useful regional benchmark for Arkansas service-level comparisons.
• Tennessee Secretary of State: Neighboring state's Secretary of State performing identical election, business filing, and notary functions. Regional comparable, especially relevant for cross-border filer behavior and reciprocal arrangements.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ARSecofState

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Arkansas Secretary of State