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Committee approves amended bill updating penalties, reporting intervals for utilities and DOT
Summary
Senators passed SB 492 as amended after negotiations with utilities and the Department of Transportation to remove permit‑withholding language, adjust civil‑penalty timing and change monthly reporting to every two months, proponents said.
A Senate committee approved SB 492 as amended after the sponsor said the latest amendment resolved concerns raised by utilities and the Arkansas Department of Transportation.
Committee discussion traced weeks of negotiation. The sponsor told the committee the amendment removed a provision that allowed withholding of permits, adjusted when civil penalties would attach, changed reporting frequency from monthly to every two months and otherwise retained previously adopted language. The change followed meetings between utilities and ARDOT, which the sponsor said left “all sides...comfortable with this language.”
Supporters said the revision addresses prior opposition and clarified administrative and penalty language. A motion to adopt the amendment passed, and the committee later approved the bill as amended by voice vote. The chair announced the bill passed out of committee.
Committee comments indicated the amendment narrowed the original bill and left intact several prior provisions; no opposition speakers were recorded in the transcript after the amendment was circulated. The committee did not record a roll‑call tally in the transcript.
Votes at a glance: SB 492 — Amendment adopted by voice vote; motion to pass as amended approved by voice vote.
