Arkansas legislation · 95th General Assembly (2026 Fiscal)
Arkansas SR8: TO AUTHORIZE THE INTRODUCTION OF A NONAPPROPRIATION BILL TO REQUIRE A DIGITAL ASSET MINING BUSINESS TO PAY A FEE FOR EXTRAORDINARY ELECTRICAL ENERGY USAGE AND TO IMPLEMENT OVERSIGHT PROCEDURES
Status: Failed, April 29, 2026
What the bill says
A bill which as introduced will read substantially as follows: "title an act to amend the arkansas data centers act of 2023; to require a digital asset mining business to pay a fee to the department of energy and environment for extraordinary electrical energy usage; to implement oversight and monitoring procedures for a digital asset mining business; and for other *mbm257* 04/06/2026 3:00:34 pm mbm257 sr8 purposes. subtitle to require a digital asset mining business to pay a fee to the department of energy and environment for extraordinary electrical energy usage.
From the introduced text, April 6, 2026:
a bill which as introduced will read substantially as follows: "Title AN ACT TO AMEND THE ARKANSAS DATA CENTERS ACT OF 2023; TO REQUIRE A DIGITAL ASSET MINING BUSINESS TO PAY A FEE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT FOR EXTRAORDINARY ELECTRICAL ENERGY USAGE; TO IMPLEMENT OVERSIGHT AND MONITORING PROCEDURES FOR A DIGITAL ASSET MINING BUSINESS; AND FOR OTHER *MBM257* 04/06/2026 3:00:34 PM MBM257 SR8 PURPOSES. Subtitle TO REQUIRE A DIGITAL ASSET MINING BUSINESS TO PAY A FEE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT FOR EXTRAORDINARY ELECTRICAL ENERGY USAGE. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 14, Chapter 1, Subchapter 6, is amended to add an additional section to read as follows: 14-1-607. Digital asset mining business -- Extraordinary electrical energy usage fee -- Oversight and monitoring procedures. (a) A digital asset mining business or business utilizing a blockchain network that is in operation as of the effective date of this act shall pay a fee to the Department of Energy and Environment on an annual basis for each instance of extraordinary electrical energy usage generated during the preceding calendar year according to the following scale: (1) Twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for each one megawatt (1 MW) to two and forty-nine hundredths megawatts (2.49 MW) of electrical energy …