Senate committee rejects 30‑mile ban on crypto mining near five Arkansas military sites

Senator Ricky Hill introduced Senate Bill 60 in the City, County & Local Affairs Committee — Senate, proposing to prohibit digital asset (crypto) mining facilities within a 30‑mile radius of five listed military sites in Arkansas. The list named Little Rock Air Force Base, Camp Joe T. Robinson, Ebbing Air National Guard, Fort Chaffee and Pine Bluff Arsenal. The committee considered the bill, heard testimony from industry and stakeholders, and the motion to pass as amended failed on a roll call.

Hill said the measure was a narrow safety provision and not an attack on the crypto industry. “This is, senate bill 60, which is a crypto bill. I know we've all debated crypto left and right… What I'm here to discuss today is a little safety mechanism to put in every crypto,” Senator Ricky Hill said, adding that Arkansas covers “roughly 53,000 square miles” and that the bill would create buffer zones around the five facilities.

The bill’s main operative elements as discussed included: a 30‑mile exclusion zone around the five named facilities; a cross‑reference to permitting language the committee earlier placed under the Oil and Gas Commission’s rulemaking; and an emergency clause asserting risk from digital asset mining, including unspecified threats to national security.

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