Stone County
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Act 851 of 2023, the Arkansas Data Centers Act of 2023, took effect Aug. 1, 2023. It kept local governments from holding crypto mining facilities to different rules than other data centers, from rezoning land to single them out and from capping their noise; county officials said this left them without tools against noisy mines. (Association of Arkansas Counties, 2024; Arkansas Advocate, May 1, 2024) Acts 173 and 174 of 2024 (SB78 and SB79, fiscal session), signed May 9, 2024 with emergency clauses, amended the 2023 act: Act 173 restored local power to regulate crypto mine noise and zoning, set noise-reduction requirements and barred ownership by prohibited foreign parties; Act 174 created a state permit system for digital asset mining businesses run by the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission and also barred prohibited foreign ownership. (Plural Policy (Open States), May 9, 2024; Plural Policy (Open States), May 9, 2024; Association of Arkansas Counties, 2024; Arkansas Advocate, May 1, 2024) Act 819 of 2023 (HB1654) created a state sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers covering equipment, eligible construction and related costs, services and electricity, for facilities investing at least $500 million within five years and paying at least $1 million a year in in-state compensation, with Arkansas Economic Development Commission approval; the state finance department lists it as effective Oct. 1, 2023. (Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, 2023; Sales Tax Institute, April 25, 2023; Ryan LLC, April 19, 2023) Act 548 of 2025, signed April 10, 2025, widened the data center exemption at Ark. Code § 26-52-456: it lowered the investment floor to $100 million, added a 'qualified large data center' tier for linked multi-site campuses ($2 billion investment, $3 million in compensation), excluded facilities mainly used for crypto mining, required a positive AEDC cost-benefit finding and shifted administration to the Department of Finance and Administration; a law firm summary expected it to apply from Oct. 1, 2025. (Kutak Rock LLP, April 28, 2025; Sales Tax Institute, Oct. 8, 2025; Arkansas Senate, May 27, 2025) Act 373 of 2025 (SB307), the Generating Arkansas Jobs Act of 2025, enacted in March 2025 with an emergency clause, lets electric utilities start recovering the cost of new generation while it is being built, through a rider reviewed by the Public Service Commission; backers pointed to data centers and other power-hungry industries, though the bill's sponsor said its goals went beyond data centers. (LegiScan, March 20, 2025; Arkansas Advocate, March 17, 2025; Arkansas Senate, May 27, 2025) Under Act 373, the Public Service Commission approved Entergy Arkansas's strategic investment rider with revisions in October 2025 (Docket 25-049-TF); it took effect Dec. 2, 2025 as Rate Schedule No. 73, Generating Arkansas Jobs Act Rider, and requires Entergy to report the Arkansas jobs tied to each strategic investment. (Entergy Arkansas, Dec. 2, 2025; Entergy Corporation (SEC Form 10-Q, period ended Sept. 30, 2025), Nov. 2025) No general large-load or data center tariff for Entergy Arkansas or SWEPCO was found. Data center power has been handled contract by contract: in September 2025 Entergy Arkansas asked the PSC to approve a long-term special rate contract with Altitude LLC, an Alphabet subsidiary, for the West Memphis campus, and PSC staff testified in October 2025 that it was in the public interest. (Entergy Corporation (SEC Form 10-Q, period ended Sept. 30, 2025), Nov. 2025; Talk Business & Politics, Sept. 7, 2025) Proposed, August 2026: Sen. Fred Love offered the Arkansas Legislative Council a non-binding interim resolution urging a statewide data center moratorium, and it was referred to the House and Senate Insurance and Commerce committees. (Arkansas Advocate, Aug. 24, 2026) Arkansas data centers →