2025 AR Legislative Scorecard

HB1918 updates Arkansas law on specie and legal tender, authorizing the use of bullion depositories and a precious-metals–backed electronic payment system. The act defines terms such as bullion, specie, and transactional gold and silver, and allows gold and silver to be used as legal tender for private debts, taxes, and fees if accepted by the receiving government. It exempts the exchange or sale of specie from taxation, and clarifies that such assets are not personal property for tax or regulatory purposes. The Chief Fiscal Officer must establish rules for approving depositories and electronic payment vendors, ensuring security, fraud prevention, and fair conversion between bullion and dollars.

The Arkansas State Senate passed HB1918 on April 14, 2025 by a vote of 33 to 0. We have assigned pluses to the ayes because this bill is an important step toward restoring sound, constitutional money and reestablishing the role of gold and silver as legal tender, in accordance with Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution.

SB478 declares that the federal government has no constitutional authority to regulate diesel engines operating solely within Arkansas. The act asserts the state’s 10th Amendment-protected rights, prohibiting any state agency or local government from enforcing federal rules requiring the use of diesel exhaust fluid or other federal emissions mandates on intrastate engines. It allows for the manufacture, sale, and use of diesel engines that do not require diesel exhaust fluid (“exempt engines”) within Arkansas, and deems any federal regulation of such engines invalid in the state. Violations by state entities can result in civil fines up to $5,000, suspension of regulatory authority for 12 months, or termination and a five-year employment ban for individual violators.

The Arkansas State Senate passed SB478 on April 8, 2025 by a vote of 35 to 0. We have assigned pluses to the ayes because the several states have both the right and duty to interpose on behalf of their citizens and nullify unconstitutional federal actions. The U.S. Constitution created a federal government of limited, enumerated powers, reserving all others to the states or the people under the 10th Amendment. When the federal government exceeds those bounds, interposition and nullification are the proper remedies. SB478 rightly defends Arkansas’ sovereignty, reasserts the federal government’s limits under Article I, Section 8, and upholds constitutional federalism.

SB520 prohibits "diversity, equity, and inclusion" (DEI) offices, officers, policies, and practices within Arkansas local governments, including counties, cities, and towns. The law bans local officials and employees from establishing or participating in DEI initiatives that promote preferential or differential treatment based on race, sex, ethnicity, color, or national origin, or that compel individuals to affirm such beliefs. It also forbids requiring “diversity statements” in hiring or promotion, and allows Arkansas citizens to file civil suits against local governments that violate the law after a 30-day notice period, with courts authorized to grant injunctive relief and attorney fees.

The Arkansas State Senate passed SB520 on April 8, 2025 by a vote of 22 to 7. We have assigned pluses to the ayes because the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) movement promotes divisive myths and false historical narratives propagated by critical race theorists, feminists, and LGBTQIA+ activists. It is nothing but a modern and subtle outgrowth of efforts by earlier Marxist radicals to alter or destroy the American way of life through a “long march through the institutions.”  The goal is a complete disruption of our moral, social, and political order so as to impose conformity on citizens and end all opposition to the welfare state—the modus operandi of totalitarian regimes for centuries. Justice in the hands of “social justice” warriors seeking parity in every aspect of life will only lead to tyranny. DEI must die, along with any other vain attempts to compel “equal outcomes.” Our Constitution’s Bill of Rights and 14th Amendment were written to promote the “general Welfare” of all Americans by means of securing each person’s “unalienable Rights” to life, liberty, and property.

HB1444 updates the state’s sales-and-use tax exemption for data centers. The law broadens what qualifies as “data center equipment” to include software, cooling systems, power infrastructure, and related services. It establishes new investment and compensation thresholds for companies to qualify: at least $500 million and $1 million in payroll for standard data centers, and $2 billion and $3 million in payroll for large multi-site data centers. It also shifts program administration from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission to the Department of Finance and Administration, which now issues and monitors incentive certificates. Firms must meet investment and compensation requirements within specified timeframes to maintain their tax exemption; failure to do so will result in revocation.

The Arkansas State Senate passed HB1444 on March 31, 2025 by a vote of 24 to 4. We have assigned pluses to the nays because government should not be in the business of picking economic winners and losers. By granting selective tax exemptions to large corporations, the state unfairly advantages certain industries at the expense of smaller competitors and ordinary taxpayers. Such favoritism violates the Declaration of Independence’s principle that all men are created equal, and undermines the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection under the law. True economic growth does not come from targeted incentives or subsidies, but from removing government interference, lowering taxes broadly, and allowing businesses to thrive—or fail—through the voluntary forces of the free market.

SB59 requires all public schools to offer every student one free breakfast per day starting in the 2025-26 school year, regardless of income. It creates a Food Insecurity Fund to cover costs using general revenues, private grants, and tax revenue from medical marijuana sales.

The Arkansas State Senate passed SB59 on February 17, 2025 by a vote of 24 to 1. We have assigned pluses to the nays because feeding and educating children are duties of parents, not government. By using taxpayer dollars to provide “free” meals, the state expands the unconstitutional welfare system and fosters dependency rather than self-reliance. SB59 also aligns with the United Nations’ Agenda 2030 “Zero Hunger” initiative, which promotes government control over food distribution and social policy—objectives wholly foreign to America’s constitutional framework. Neither Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution nor any other provision authorizes government to provide meals or social services. Such programs divert funds from legitimate functions, increase public debt, and erode parental responsibility. Instead of empowering families, SB59 further entrenches government dependency within an already failing public-education system.