When does the Arkansas 25 mph school zone speed limit apply? Does it apply during ball games or other school events outside instructional time?

Plain-English summary

Representative Joe Farrer asked when the 25 mph school zone speed limit in Ark. Code Ann. § 27-51-212(a) actually applies. The statute says no person shall exceed 25 mph "when passing a school building or school zone during school hours when children are present and outside the building." Farrer's specific subquestions were:

1. During school hours, do children actually have to be present, or does the law trigger any time school is in session?
2. Does the law apply during school events like ball games when children are present?
3. Does an officer have to personally see children in close proximity to the school zone?
4. In other words, is the trigger the presence of children or the event that might have children present (school in session, ballgames, etc.)?

AG Leslie Rutledge gave a tight statutory reading. The statute's three conditions are conjunctive (linked by "and"): school hours, children present, and children outside the building. All three must be true. No one element by itself triggers the rule. So:

• "Children" must be present and outside the building. School "being in session" alone is not enough; if the children are inside the building all day, the statute does not apply.
• "School hours" is the open term. The statute does not define it. Neither does case law. The AG follows the office's long-standing rule against creating controlling definitions of undefined statutory terms.
• The legislature did define "school day" elsewhere as a day on which classes are in session and students receive at least six hours of instructional time (§ 6-16-102(a)(1)). The legislature chose not to define "school hours" the same way, and "school hours" is clearly a different concept than "school day."

The AG read "school hours" as likely covering more than just instructional time. Practical reality: children are most likely to be outside the building during arrival and departure, which sits outside instructional time. So the term covers arrival time, instructional time, and departure time at minimum. It may flexibly extend to before-school and after-school extracurriculars (drop-off for early activities, pick-up after sports practice, evening band events). The AG declined to draw a hard line on after-school events because the further from the conventional school day, the more vulnerable the application becomes to an as-applied due-process challenge under the vagueness doctrine.

On Question 3, the AG declined to answer because whether an officer must personally see children in close proximity is a fact-specific evidentiary question that prosecutors and trial courts must decide case by case based on the proof available.

The AG closed with a reminder that even when the school-zone statute does not apply, motorists in Arkansas are on notice under § 27-51-104 (careless driving) and at common law (Thomas v. Newman) to "keep a constant lookout to avoid injury to pedestrians" and to exercise care "commensurate with the danger reasonably to be anticipated."

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2016. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Background and statutory framework

The three conjunctive conditions

Section 27-51-212(a) reads: "No person shall operate a motor vehicle in excess of twenty-five miles per hour (25 m.p.h.) when passing a school building or school zone during school hours when children are present and outside the building." The three conditions, joined by "and," all must be present:

1. Passing a school building or school zone. A "school zone" is the 300 feet on either side of a school building or school grounds under § 27-51-213(a)(1).
2. During school hours. The statute's open term, discussed below.
3. Children present and outside the building. Both presence and out-of-building status are required. Children in the cafeteria do not trigger the rule.

A motorist who satisfies the first condition (passing a school zone) but fails either of the other two is not in violation.

Why "school hours" matters

Section 27-51-212 is a penal statute. The penalties are in § 27-51-214 (fines, jail, or both). Penal statutes must be strictly construed (State ex rel. Sargent v. Lewis) and must provide ascertainable standards of guilt under due-process principles, so that "persons of average intelligence" need not guess at the statute's meaning (State v. Torres; Holloway v. State Board of Architects).

The Arkansas Supreme Court has tolerated some flexibility in penal statutes under Torres: "flexibility, rather than meticulous specificity or great exactitude, in a statute is permissible as long as its reach is clearly delineated in words of common understanding." But "the earlier in the morning or later in the evening that a school speed limit is enforced, the more susceptible it will be to an as-applied due process challenge," as the AG put it.

Why the AG would not define "school hours"

The AG's office has long held that, "in the absence of a legislatively or judicially formulated definition of a [statutory] term, it is inappropriate for the Attorney General, being a member of the executive branch of government, to formulate a controlling definition." Op. Att'y Gen. 1998-05. The AG cited prior opinions applying that rule (2013-139, 2010-002, 2005-294, 2000-338). For "school hours," the AG would offer a description of what the term likely encompasses but would not draw a hard boundary; that is the legislature's or the courts' job.

Implications for ball games and after-school events

The AG's Q2 answer was that ball games and similar events might fall within "school hours" if they are held during the flexible boundaries the AG described. But the term's elasticity has limits. A 9:00 PM Friday night football game pushes against the outer edge. The AG declined to draw the line, leaving it to prosecutors to make case-by-case calls and to courts to review them.

The careless-driving statute and common-law duty of care fill in the gaps. Even when the 25 mph school-zone limit does not apply, a motorist driving past a school where children are visible cannot drive carelessly. Thomas v. Newman puts the rule plainly: a motorist must "keep a constant lookout to avoid injury to pedestrians, and should anticipate their presence."

Common questions

Q: When does the 25 mph school zone speed limit apply in Arkansas?
A: All three conditions must be met simultaneously: you are passing a school building or school zone, it is during school hours, and children are both present and outside the building. If any one of the three is missing, the statute does not apply.

Q: Does "school in session" by itself trigger the 25 mph limit?
A: No. Children must be present and outside the building. If students are all inside during instructional time, the speed limit does not apply.

Q: Does the limit apply when school is closed but children are outside playing on the school grounds on a Saturday?
A: Probably not, because it would not be "school hours." But under § 27-51-104 and common-law principles, the motorist still has to drive carefully when children are visible.

Q: Does the 25 mph limit apply during evening sports events at the school?
A: It depends on whether the event falls within "school hours." The AG flagged the after-school side of the day as the most contested. A late evening game would be vulnerable to a due-process challenge under the vagueness doctrine. A prosecutor pursuing such a case has to be prepared to defend the application.

Q: Does an officer have to actually see children in close proximity to write a ticket?
A: The AG declined to answer this. It is a fact-specific evidentiary question. The prosecutor or city attorney has to assess whether the available proof meets the burden of proof on the elements.

Q: What is the school zone speed limit penalty?
A: Section 27-51-214 sets fines and jail time. The AG did not specify the amounts in this opinion; current amounts should be verified against the statute as in effect.

Q: Is the rule different for "school day" versus "school hours"?
A: Yes. The legislature defined "school day" in § 6-16-102(a)(1) as a day with classes in session and at least six hours of instructional time. "School hours" is undefined and a different concept. The AG cannot import the "school day" definition into "school hours."

Citations and references

Statutes:

• Ark. Code Ann. § 27-51-212(a) (Repl. 2010) (25 mph school zone speed limit)
• Ark. Code Ann. § 27-51-213(a)(1) (Repl. 2010) (300-foot school zone definition)
• Ark. Code Ann. § 27-51-214 (Repl. 2010) (speeding-in-school-zone penalties)
• Ark. Code Ann. § 27-51-104 (Repl. 2010) (careless driving)
• Ark. Code Ann. § 6-16-102(a)(1) (Repl. 2013) (definition of "school day")

Cases:

• MacSteel Div. of Quanex v. Arkansas Oklahoma Gas Corp., 363 Ark. 22, 210 S.W.3d 878 (2005) (rules of statutory interpretation)
• City of N. Little Rock v. Montgomery, 261 Ark. 16, 546 S.W.2d 154 (1977) (natural import of legislative language)
• State ex rel. Sargent v. Lewis, 335 Ark. 188, 979 S.W.2d 894 (1998) (penal statutes strictly construed)
• Trice v. City of Pine Bluff, 279 Ark. 125, 649 S.W.2d 179 (1983) (criminal statutes interpreted for what they say)
• State v. Torres, 309 Ark. 422, 831 S.W.2d 903 (1992) (vagueness and flexibility in penal statutes)
• Holloway v. Arkansas State Bd. of Architects, 352 Ark. 427, 101 S.W.3d 805 (2003) (vagueness doctrine)
• Davis v. Smith, 266 Ark. 112, 583 S.W.2d 37 (1979)
• Thomas v. Newman, 262 Ark. 42, 553 S.W.2d 459 (1977) (motorist's duty to anticipate pedestrian presence)

Source

• Landing page: https://arkansasag.gov/divisions/opinions-foia/attorney-general-opinions-search/

Official summary

Are provisions of the Arkansas school zone speed law, codified at Ark. Code Ann. 27-51-212, applicable only during school hours? Q2) Is the school zone speed law triggered by the presence of children? Q3) Is the school zone speed law in effect during school events, such as ball games, where children are also present? Q4) Does an officer actually have to see children in close proximity to the speed zone area? RESPONSE: In my opinion, the school-zone speed limit law applies when a motorist is passing a school building or school zone during school hours when children are present and are outside of the school building. While State law does not provide a definition of "school hours," the term likely includes student arrival time, instructional time, and departure time. The term also may be flexible enough to encompass time for some before-school or after-school extracurricular events, but I cannot define the precise boundaries of "school hours." I must decline to answer Question 3 as that presents a fact-specific, evidentiary question for the attorney prosecuting an alleged violation to consider.

Original opinion text

Opinion No. 2016-005
March 31, 2016
The Honorable Joe Farrer
State Representative
199 Lewisburg Road
Austin, AR 72007-9455
Dear Representative Farrer:
STATE OF ARKANSAS
ATTORNEY GENERAL
LESLIE RUTLEDGE
You have requested my opinion on several questions concerning Ark. Code Ann. §
27-51-212, which establishes a 25-mph speed limit for motor vehicles passing
through a school zone. Your main question is: When does the school-zone speed
limit law apply? As follow up, you have posed the following event-specific
questions:

1. During school hours while the speed limit is 25 [mph], do
   children have to be present or is the law triggered by school
   being in session?
2. Is the school-zone speed law in effect during school events, such
   as ball games, where children are also present?
3. Does an officer actually have to see children in close proximity
   to the speed-zone area?
4. In other words, is the law triggered by the presence of children or
   an event at which children might be present, e.g., school in
   session, ballgames, after-school events, etc.?
   RESPONSE
   In my opinion, the school-zone speed limit law applies when a motorist is passing
   a school building or school zone during school hours when children are present
   and are outside of the school building. While State law does not provide a
   definition of "school hours," the term likely includes student arrival time,
   instructional time, and departure time. The term also may be flexible enough to
   encompass time for some before-school or after-school extracurricular events, but
   I cannot define the precise boundaries of "school hours." I must decline to answer
   Question 3 as that presents a fact-specific, evidentiary question for the attorney
   prosecuting an alleged violation to consider.
   DISCUSSION
   [The full original walks through rules of statutory interpretation, the conjunctive structure of § 27-51-212, the absence of a definition for "school hours," the legislature's separate definition of "school day" in § 6-16-102(a)(1), the policy of declining to formulate controlling definitions, the Torres vagueness framework, and the careless-driving and common-law backstops in § 27-51-104 and Thomas v. Newman. The complete original is preserved as scraped; the substantive analysis is summarized in the sections above. See the linked landing page for the official source.]
   Sincerely,
   LESLIE RUTLEDGE
   Attorney General