07-03-2025
Amendment may bolster Arkansas legislation restructuring electrical utilities
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A 62-page legislation package to impact Arkansans who pay for electricity continues to raise questions in the Senate.
Senate Bill 307 would impact the relationship between electrical utilities and the Public Service Commission (PSC) from the current model. Called the Generate Arkansas Jobs Act of 2025, it would alter long-standing precedent, in turn impacting electric bills.
Bill in Arkansas legislature intends to promote expansion of electric power infrastructure, could cause rate increase
Sponsor Sen. Jonathan Dismang (R-Searcy) pointed out that, as the bill was introduced, Arkansas was about to lose two of its five coal-fired power plants by 2030, leading to a loss of capacity for the state. Less capacity means that the electricity available will be worth and cost more, leading to higher electric bills for consumers.
Under the bill's terms, utilities could bill consumers as new projects—such as those replacing coal plants—as they are constructed, leading to an incremental increase in electricity costs as a project progresses. Under the current model, consumers are charged after a project is completed, leading to a sticker-shock-inducing sudden jump in the electric bill.
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Senators who opposed the bill in a Wednesday vote, where it failed 17-11 with four abstaining, were concerned that under the bill's terms, oversight would be taken from the PSC and left with the utilities, a point Dismang disputed.
Through a Senate procedure, Dismang reintroduced the legislation after it failed.
On Thursday, Sen. Jimmy Hinkey (R-Texarkana), who had voted against the bill, introduced a Senate amendment for the PSC to review the bill and submit its considerations to the Senate by 9 a.m. Monday. After the amendment had passed, Hinkey told the chamber that the bill was, in his opinion, one of the bigger pieces of legislation the body had ever faced. He also said that a Committee of the Whole should be considered for its next hearing.
The rarely-used Committee of the Whole allows both houses to participate in the debate and bring in outside people as witnesses.
Arkansas electric utility bill fails Senate vote, due to return later
The amendment was passed unanimously by voice vote.
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