Arkansas 2025 Regular Session

Arkansas House Bill HB1976 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
2		-	Act 883 of the Regular Session
3	2		ZRC118 04/02/2025 1:01:56 PM ZRC118
4	3		State of Arkansas 1
5	4		95th General Assembly A Bill 2
6	5		Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1976 3
7	6		4
8	7		By: Representative Nazarenko 5
9	8		By: Senator J. Dotson 6
10	9		7
11	10		For An Act To Be Entitled 8
12	11		AN ACT CONCERNING VERTIPORTS; TO CREATE THE OPEN 9
13	12		ACCESS TO PUBLIC-USE VERTIPORTS ACT; AND FOR OTHER 10
14	13		PURPOSES. 11
15	14		12
16	15		13
17	16		Subtitle 14
18	17		CONCERNING VERTIPORTS; AND TO CREATE THE 15
19	18		OPEN ACCESS TO PUBLIC -USE VERTIPORTS 16
20	19		ACT. 17
21	20		18
22	21		BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 19
23	22		20
24	23		SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 14 is amended to add an additional 21
25	24		chapter to read as follows: 22
26	25		CHAPTER 365 23
27	26		VERTIPORTS 24
28	27		25
29	28		Subchapter 1 — General Provisions [Reserved.] 26
30	29		27
31	30		Subchapter 2 — Open Access to Public -Use Vertiports Act 28
32	31		29
33	32		14-365-201. Title. 30
34	33		This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Open Access to 31
35	34		Public-Use Vertiports Act". 32
36	35		33
37	36		14-365-202. Definitions. 34
38	37		As used in this subchapter: 35
39	38		(1) "Political subdivision" means a county, municipality, or any 36 HB1976
40	39
41	40		2 04/02/2025 1:01:56 PM ZRC118
42	41		other unit of local government in the state; 1
43	42		(2) "Public-use vertiport" means a vertiport that is: 2
44	43		(A) Intended to be used for public purposes; 3
45	44		(B) Under the control of a public agency; and 4
46	45		(C) Located on property that is publicly owned; and 5
47	46		(3) "Vertiport" means infrastructure or a system with supporting 6
48	47		services and equipment intended for the take -off, landing, and ground -7
49	48		handling of crewed or uncrewed vertical take -off and landing aircraft, 8
50	49		including without limitation a: 9
51	50		(A) Public-use airport; and 10
52	51		(B) Private airport. 11
53	52		12
54	53		14-365-203. Purpose. 13
55	54		It is the policy of the state to promote the development of a network 14
56	55		of public-use vertiports that will provide equitable access to citizens of 15
57	56		this state who may benefit from advanced air mobility operations for cargo 16
58	57		and passenger service and to avoid any public -use vertiport monopolization or 17
59	58		discrimination by: 18
60	59		(1) Funding the planning for and construction of vertiports with 19
61	60		funding appropriated by the General Assembly; 20
62	61		(2) Encouraging local zoning and other land use authorities to 21
63	62		ensure an adequate number and a varied location of public -use vertiports to 22
64	63		serve citizens throughout the state; and 23
65	64		(3) Promoting competition and equity of access by prohibiting 24
66	65		the state or a political subdivision from granting an exclusive right of 25
67	66		access to one (1) or more vertiport operators at any public -use vertiport. 26
68	67		27
69	68		14-365-204. Applicability. 28
70	69		This subchapter applies to a vertiport that is operated by an advanced 29
71	70		air mobility operator authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration to 30
72	71		engage in passenger or cargo services in scheduled or nonscheduled service in 31
73	72		or affecting interstate commerce. 32
74	73		33
75	74		14-365-205. Vertiport safety. 34
76	75		(a) Each vertiport design shall comply with any rule or advisory 35
77	76		circular published by the Federal Aviation Administration that contains 36 HB1976
78	77
79	78		3 04/02/2025 1:01:56 PM ZRC118
80	79		standards for vertiport design and performance characteristics. 1
81	80		(b) A vertiport owner or operator shall submit a vertiport layout plan 2
82	81		to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration in the form and 3
83	82		manner determined by the administrator, and operations shall not be conducted 4
84	83		at the vertiport until the vertiport layout plan is approved by the 5
85	84		administrator. 6
86	85		7
87	86		14-365-206. Prohibited zoning. 8
88	87		(a) A political subdivision shall not use its zoning and land use 9
89	88		authority to grant or permit an exclusive right to one (1) or more vertiport 10
90	89		owners or operators. 11
91	90		(b) A political subdivision shall use its zoning and land use 12
92	91		authority to promote reasonable access to advanced air mobility operators and 13
93	92		public-use vertiports within the jurisdiction of the political subdivision. 14
94	93		15
95	94		14-365-207. Subchapter supplemental — Severability. 16
96	95		(a) This subchapter is supplemental to any provision of federal law 17
97	96		pertaining to the design, construction, operation, or maintenance of a 18
98	97		vertiport designed or constructed with a grant under 49 U.S.C. § 47101 et 19
99	98		seq. 20
100	99		(b) A provision of this subchapter found in conflict with or otherwise 21
101	100		preempted by federal law shall be null and void without invalidating any 22
102	101		other provision of this subchapter, and to this end the provisions of this 23
103	102		subchapter are severable. 24
104	103		25
105	104		26
106		-	~~APPROVED: 4/17/25~~ 27
	105	+	27
107	106		28
108	107		29
109	108		30
110	109		31
111	110		32
112	111		33
113	112		34
114	113		35
115	114		36