Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official PDF posted by the Arkansas General Assembly, fetched 2026-07-23. Page and line markers are part of the official record; nothing is edited or removed. The official bill page.
Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
1 State of Arkansas A Bill
2 95th General Assembly
3 Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1976
4
5 By: Representative Nazarenko
6 By: Senator J. Dotson
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT CONCERNING VERTIPORTS; TO CREATE THE OPEN
10 ACCESS TO PUBLIC-USE VERTIPORTS ACT; AND FOR OTHER
11 PURPOSES.
12
13
14 Subtitle
15 CONCERNING VERTIPORTS; AND TO CREATE THE
16 OPEN ACCESS TO PUBLIC-USE VERTIPORTS
17 ACT.
18
19 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
20
21 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 14 is amended to add an additional
22 chapter to read as follows:
23 CHAPTER 365
24 VERTIPORTS
25
26 Subchapter 1 -- General Provisions [Reserved.]
27
28 Subchapter 2 -- Open Access to Public-Use Vertiports Act
29
30 14-365-201. Title.
31 This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Open Access to
32 Public-Use Vertiports Act".
33
34 14-365-202. Definitions.
35 As used in this subchapter:
36 (1) "Political subdivision" means a county, municipality, or any
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HB1976
1 other unit of local government in the state;
2 (2) "Public-use vertiport" means a vertiport that is:
3 (A) Intended to be used for public purposes;
4 (B) Under the control of a public agency; and
5 (C) Located on property that is publicly owned; and
6 (3) "Vertiport" means infrastructure or a system with supporting
7 services and equipment intended for the take-off, landing, and ground-
8 handling of crewed or uncrewed vertical take-off and landing aircraft,
9 including without limitation a:
10 (A) Public-use airport; and
11 (B) Private airport.
12
13 14-365-203. Purpose.
14 It is the policy of the state to promote the development of a network
15 of public-use vertiports that will provide equitable access to citizens of
16 this state who may benefit from advanced air mobility operations for cargo
17 and passenger service and to avoid any public-use vertiport monopolization or
18 discrimination by:
19 (1) Funding the planning for and construction of vertiports with
20 funding appropriated by the General Assembly;
21 (2) Encouraging local zoning and other land use authorities to
22 ensure an adequate number and a varied location of public-use vertiports to
23 serve citizens throughout the state; and
24 (3) Promoting competition and equity of access by prohibiting
25 the state or a political subdivision from granting an exclusive right of
26 access to one (1) or more vertiport operators at any public-use vertiport.
27
28 14-365-204. Applicability.
29 This subchapter applies to a vertiport that is operated by an advanced
30 air mobility operator authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration to
31 engage in passenger or cargo services in scheduled or nonscheduled service in
32 or affecting interstate commerce.
33
34 14-365-205. Vertiport safety.
35 (a) Each vertiport design shall comply with any rule or advisory
36 circular published by the Federal Aviation Administration that contains
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HB1976
1 standards for vertiport design and performance characteristics.
2 (b) A vertiport owner or operator shall submit a vertiport layout plan
3 to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration in the form and
4 manner determined by the administrator, and operations shall not be conducted
5 at the vertiport until the vertiport layout plan is approved by the
6 administrator.
7
8 14-365-206. Prohibited zoning.
9 (a) A political subdivision shall not use its zoning and land use
10 authority to grant or permit an exclusive right to one (1) or more vertiport
11 owners or operators.
12 (b) A political subdivision shall use its zoning and land use
13 authority to promote reasonable access to advanced air mobility operators and
14 public-use vertiports within the jurisdiction of the political subdivision.
15
16 14-365-207. Subchapter supplemental -- Severability.
17 (a) This subchapter is supplemental to any provision of federal law
18 pertaining to the design, construction, operation, or maintenance of a
19 vertiport designed or constructed with a grant under 49 U.S.C. � 47101 et
20 seq.
21 (b) A provision of this subchapter found in conflict with or otherwise
22 preempted by federal law shall be null and void without invalidating any
23 other provision of this subchapter, and to this end the provisions of this
24 subchapter are severable.
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3 04/02/2025 1:01:56 PM ZRC118Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.