Regulation
Arkansas Lawmakers Pass Bills Regulating Cryptocurrency Mining, Awaiting Governor’s Approval
Two proposed laws to regulate cryptocurrency mining operations in Arkansas will head to the governor’s desk after passing the House on Wednesday without little debate or opposition.
Senate Bill 78 would impose noise limits on crypto mines, prohibit them from being owned by certain foreign entities, and allow local governments to pass ordinances regulating mining. Senate Bill 79 would require crypto mines to be licensed by the National Oil and Gas Commission under the Ministry of Energy and Environment.
These bills were among the few non-budget pieces of legislation passed during the fiscal session, with a plan to increase the salaries of all state employees up to 3%, which is also headed to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk.
Cryptocurrency regulation became a priority for lawmakers after Law 851 of 2023or Arkansas Data Centers Act, was introduced and passed during the final week of the 2023 legislative session. The law limited the ability of local governments to regulate crypto mines, which are large groups of computers that harvest digital currency and are often located in rural areas due to the space they occupy.
“What we have here … is an emerging industry,” said Rep. Jeremiah Moore, R-Clarendon, SB79’s legislative sponsor. “We’ve never seen anything like this in our state before.”
There are cryptocurrency mines in DeWitt, Moore District, and in the community of Bono near Greenbrier. An out-of-state entity attempted to start a crypto mine near Harrison.
Sen. Bryan King of Green Forest and Rep. Ron McNair of Alpena, both Republicans who represent Harrison, voted for SB79 and against SB78. King sponsored six resolutions to introduce its own cryptocurrency mining legislation, but none received the required approval from two-thirds of lawmakers in each chamber.
Rep. Stephen Meeks, R-Greenbrier, has repeatedly expressed support for crypto regulations on behalf of the Bono community, where residents have filed a complaint over noise pollution from the local crypto mine.
Meeks said he and local Faulkner County officials contacted the people behind the mine and asked them to reduce its volume.
“They put up a soundproofing wall on one side, but that just reflected the sound to someone else,” Meeks said. “They weren’t willing to do what was necessary to be good neighbors, and frankly, I think that’s because they just didn’t care.”
Both bills would result in “prohibited foreign-controlled business” exactly one year after policies to divest from ownership of an Arkansas crypto mine were enacted. Sen. Joshua Bryant, R-Rogers, is a sponsor of both bills and said Tuesday that the language was in both bills in case one of them does not become law.
Each bill passed the House with 93 votes in favor. Reps. Andrew Collins, D-Little Rock, and Justin Gonzales, R-Okolona, were the only members to vote against both bills.
Collins said foreign ownership terms concerned him Tuesday before voted against the bills on the House Municipal, County and Local Affairs Committee.
Bills Would Ban Ownership of Crypto Mines According to List of Foreign Countries Including Federal Government Regulations on international trafficking in arms prohibits imports, exports, sales or a combination of the three. Collins argued that the bills would impose unfair, even unconstitutional, restrictions on citizens of countries who live in the United States or Americans who live in those countries.
Meanwhile, Gonzales said in an interview Wednesday that he doesn’t have a problem with the language on foreign ownership, but also believes Act 851 doesn’t need to be changed.
Gonzales said he believes the bills would allow local governments “to discriminate against a business simply because of what they are.” Bryant said the legislation was meant to prevent that from happening.
Several lawmakers, including Gonzales and Bryant, have said there will likely be more crypto mining legislation proposed in the 2025 legislative session.
Sanders will sign SB78 and SB79, his spokeswoman Alexa Henning said in an email.
“The governor was the first in the nation to expel a Chinese communist company from his state and strongly supports banning foreign adversaries from owning crypto mines in Arkansas, while protecting and empowering rural communities to crack down on bad actors,” Henning said. .
Last year, Sanders ordered a Chinese government-owned agricultural company to divest itself of 160 acres of Craighead County farmland and pay a $280,000 fine to the state. Cryptocurrency mines are believed to be owned by Chinese entities.
Editor’s Note: This story Proposed Arkansas Crypto Mining Regulations Head to Governor’s Desk appeared first on Arkansas defender.