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Senate panel reviews Nucor-backed bill to extend InvestArk deadlines amid COVID delays
Summary
Senate Bill 566 would give qualifying projects approved under the InvestArk sales‑tax credit program an extra 24 months to finish work delayed by the COVID pandemic. Nucor and DFA witnesses said credits won’t be paid unless the Arkansas Economic Development Commission finds a positive state revenue impact; committee deferred final action pending a revised DFA fiscal impact.
Senate Bill 566, sponsored at the hearing by Senator Dave Wallace (District 22), would allow qualifying projects approved under the InvestArk sales‑tax credit program additional time to complete investments that were delayed by the COVID‑19 pandemic.
Wallace told the Senate Revenue & Tax Committee that some projects approved before InvestArk’s 2017 sunset could not be completed on time because of pandemic‑related disruptions and that the amendment the committee adopted extends project completion deadlines by 24 months. "We only need 24 months to finish these projects," Wallace said, adding that credits cannot be claimed until work is complete and until the Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC) verifies a positive economic impact to the state.
David Reinhardt, controller at Nucor Steel Arkansas, testified in support of the bill and described the company’s pandemic response. "In more than five decades of steelmaking, including our 30 years in Arkansas, Nucor has never laid off a teammate at one of our steel mills," Reinhardt said, noting delays in supply chains and restricted vendor access that disrupted project schedules. He said Nucor would not seek credits until the investment is complete and that the company has more than $2.7 billion invested in Arkansas since 1987.
Paul Gehring of the Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) told the committee that DFA’s earlier fiscal estimate for the bill showed an approximate $9.8 million reduction to state sales tax and about $6.12 million to general revenue. Gehring said the amendment adopted during the hearing reduces the near‑term fiscal impact and that DFA would issue a revised fiscal impact statement within 24 hours.
Several senators praised Nucor as a major employer and taxpayer in the state. Senator Johnson said the arrangement with Nucor amounted to a negotiated incentive: "We, the state, have a deal with Nucor," he said, and Reinhardt confirmed the company’s projects were delayed by roughly nine months due to the pandemic.
After hearing testimony and DFA’s preview of updated numbers, the committee agreed not to take a final vote on SB566 that day and to wait for DFA’s revised fiscal impact report before acting. The chair said the committee expects the updated statement by Wednesday and will take the bill up again after members have reviewed it.
What happens next: The committee deferred a final vote on SB566 pending DFA’s revised fiscal impact statement. If the committee votes to advance the bill after the updated analysis, AEDC would retain the statutory authority to determine whether a project produces a sufficient positive impact before tax credits are allowed.
