Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, makes a motion on Senate Bill 307 while his colleagues (from top) Sens. Jonathan Dismang, Ricky Hill and Missy Irvin listen on March 6, 2025. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate)
The Arkansas Senate on Thursday asked the state’s utility regulator to provide suggestions on a bill that would change the process for building electricity-generating plants.
Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, made the motion for the Arkansas Public Service Commission to provide the requested analysis of Senate Bill 307 by 9 a.m. Monday.
The goal of the 62-page bill, lead sponsor Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, told his colleagues Wednesday, is to mitigate the sharp increase in rates expected as a result of generating or purchasing energy to meet the demand that will be created by at least two of the state’s coal-fired plants going offline in a few years.
Hickey made his motion Thursday after SB 307 failed to garner enough support to advance Wednesday. Noting that he had spoken to Dismang ahead of time, Hickey told senators they were allowed to make this request because the Arkansas Supreme Court has previously defined the PSC as “a quasi legislative and executive agency.”
“I believe that this has the potential of one of the largest fiscal impacts, at least monetary, for the whole state that we’ve seen in years, and I believe that we need to give it its utmost importance, and this is an attempt to do that,” he said.
Hickey’s motion specifically requested that the PSC recommend:
- How to best use a model to provide protection for ratepayers, and also provide expediency to maintain and efficiently expand energy generation.
- How to define “strategic investment” allowed under the bill.
- How to quickly determine the feasibility of projects and whether they’re providing a positive cost benefit to the state.
- How to structure additional aspects of the bill that the PSC may deem problematic.
Hickey also asked that Doyle Webb, current PSC chairman and former Republican Party of Arkansas chairman, create an environment that will allow the document to be prepared without the influence of the legislative and executive branches, and utilities, industry or other parties that “may have a vested interest in the bill.”
Crossett Republican Sen. Ben Gilmore asked Hickey about requesting the PSC to weigh in on policy that it will have to make decisions on, noting that while chairing the energy committee, he heard its representatives say they were “policytakers not policymakers.”
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The Arkansas Legislature and governor will remain the policymakers because they’ll ultimately decide how to direct the language of the bill, Hickey said.
In response to Benton Republican Sen. Kim Hammer’s question of whether Monday’s deadline allowed enough time for the PSC to comply with the Senate’s request, Hickey said the agency is already familiar with the bill, and the deadline was reasonable.
“The importance of this and what it means for Arkansas, I just think we’re going to have to find that time,” he said.
After the Senate unanimously approved Hickey’s motion on a voice vote, the Texarkana Republican suggested that his colleagues consider debating the bill on the Senate floor as a committee of the whole, which would allow people to give sworn testimony and to help the bill to move quickly through the Legislature.
“I just think that that’s going to be the most prudent and efficient way to handle a bill of this size,” Hickey said. “So again, I’m not making that a thing, that is just food for thought for you all to think about over the weekend so that you’re not blindsided.”
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