Two bills regulating cryptocurrency mining operations in Arkansas passed the state Senate on Wednesday and will be considered in the House of Representatives.
Senate Bill 79 It was passed with 32 votes in favor and zero votes against. Senate Bill 78 It passed with 26 votes in favor and 3 votes against. Several senators abstained from voting on one or both bills.
SB78 would place noise limits on crypto mines, ban ownership by certain foreign companies, and allow local governments to pass ordinances regulating mines. Bill sponsor Sen. Joshua Bryant (R-Rogers) said he hopes this is an “administrative solution.” Act 851 of 2023or the Arkansas Data Center Act.
“It’s not perfect, but I don’t want perfection to get in the way of good things,” he said.
Act 851, also sponsored by Bryant, was introduced and passed in the final week of the 2023 legislative session. This law limited the ability of local governments to regulate cryptocurrency mines. Cryptocurrency mines are large groups of computers that collect digital currency, and are often located in rural areas due to the space they occupy.
Officials have expressed frustration that Act 851 was passed by Congress too quickly and have raised concerns about possible foreign ownership of the mine and national security risks.
There are crypto mines in the Bono community near DeWitt and Greenbrier, and an out-of-state group is looking to start a crypto mine near Harrison. Sen. Brian King (R-Green Forest) represents Mr. Harrison and is one of the most vocal advocates for cryptocurrency regulation in Congress.
Six of eight virtual currency mining resolutions in the Arkansas House of Representatives remain unreached.
Dr. King sponsored six resolutions that passed the Senate; failed in parliament This means that within the past two weeks, he has failed to submit his own set of cryptocurrency regulation proposals during the fiscal session, which focused on the national budget.
King voted against SB78 and reiterated that its proposed regulations were not strong enough. Although he voted for SB79, he said he has concerns about the bill, which contains much of the same language as SB78 and is sponsored by Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View.
The resolution authorizing the drafting of SB79 included language requiring the state Department of Energy and Environment to approve cryptocurrency mines. This bill would place that responsibility in the hands of the State Oil and Gas Commission.
Both bills would grant “prohibited foreign party-controlled operations” exactly one year after the enactment of a policy stripping ownership of cryptocurrency mines in Arkansas.
Dr. King asked Bryant why the bill would give businesses so much time to sell. Bryant said the provision was based on advice from Attorney General Tim Griffin's office.
Irvin issued a similar statement to the Senate City, County and Local Affairs Committee on Tuesday before the committee passed a revised version of SB79.
The Bono community is located in Irvine, where local residents are suing the community alleging noise pollution from a local cryptocurrency mine.
In addition to King, Democratic Sen. Greg Reading of Fayetteville and Sen. Stephanie Flowers of Pine Bluff also voted against SB78.
King and Flowers both said Congress should hold a special session this year to consider further crypto regulation.
“My concern is…that we're going to end up ignoring the rules and regulations,” King said.
Flowers represents a part of Arkansas that is home to a cryptocurrency mine near DeWitt, and she said her constituents told her SB78 was a “bad bill.”
“We don't know the full story of these centers,” she says. “…It smells kind of unpleasant.”
Bryant said he will ask Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders to call a special legislative session if SB78 and SB79 are passed into law and the public's concerns about crypto mining are not resolved.
Both bills include emergency provisions and would go into effect immediately if signed by Sanders.
