officer refuses to do a purely ministerial action required by statute. Ark. Dep't of Cmty. Corr. v. City of Pine Bluff, 2013 Ark. 36, 425 S.W.3d 731.
C. Arkansas Constitution and Applicable Case Law
In determining whether the Board is entitled to judgment as a matter of law, we provide a brief history of the doctrine of sovereign immunity in the Arkansas Constitution. Originally, in 1868, the Arkansas Constitution read, "The general assembly shall direct by law in what manner and in what courts suits may be brought by and against the state." Ark. Const. of 1868, art. 5, § 45. However, in 1874, the people passed what was the fifth and current version of the Arkansas Constitution. It altered the previous language and stated that "[t]he State of Arkansas shall never be made a defendant in any of her courts." Ark. Const. art. 5, § 20.
Subsequently, in 1935, this court considered the issue of whether the legislature could waive the State's sovereign immunity. See Ark. Hwy. Comm'n v. Nelson Bros., 191 Ark. 629, 87 S.W.2d 394 (1935). This court stated, "It is our settled conviction that the state cannot give its consent to the maintenance of an action against it." Id. at 636, 87 S.W.2d at 397. This court followed that precedent in Fairbanks v. Sheffield, 226 Ark. 703, 292 S.W.2d 82 (1956), by stating that a statute allowing suit against the state park system was "an unconstitutional attempt on the part of the legislature to consent to a suit against the State." Id. at 706, 292 S.W.2d at 84. In Fairbanks, this court held that article 5, section 20 was "mandatory and cannot be waived by the General Assembly." Id. at 706, 292 S.W.2d at 84. Again, in 1993, this court held that a statutory requirement for DHS to make restitution to foster parents who sustained damage to their property by juveniles in DHS's
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