Entergy Arkansas
Arkansas Senate passes amended net metering after companion bill stalls on House floor
A thrice-amended bill that opponents say would upend the state’s burgeoning solar industry easily passed the Arkansas Senate on Tuesday. Senate Bill 295, sponsored by Sen. Jonathan Dismang (R-Searcy), passed on a vote of 24-9 and was immediately sent to the House, where a twin bill awaits on the lower chamber’s floor that will likely […]
Legislation threatens to hamstring Arkansas’ rooftop solar expansion
Arkansas’ major electricity companies favor proposed legislation that likely would end the state’s boom in rooftop solar generation. Renewable energy advocates counter that such efforts will dismantle consumer-friendly policies put in place by the Legislature only four years ago. Introduced Wednesday by Rep. Lanny Fite, R-Benton, House Bill 1370 would end the state’s current policy […]
Judge grants request to freeze assets, name receiver for Little Rock apartments
(This story was updated by Sonny Albarado on Feb. 4, 2023.) A Pulaski County circuit judge on Friday froze the assets of the owners of the troubled Big Country Chateau apartments in Little Rock and issued a temporary restraining order to protect tenants. Judge Cara Connors also granted Attorney General Tim Griffin’s emergency request to […]
Arkansas energy stakeholders begin talks on new net-metering compensation bill
Negotiations have begun on legislation intended to give Arkansas residential solar energy users extra cash on any excess power generation that goes into the energy grid. Under HB 1047, filed Jan. 3, so-called “net-metering” retail customers in Arkansas would be compensated for any excess solar generation. For residential utility customers with solar panels or other […]
Little Rock housing complex facing AG lawsuit set to go to city court Monday
Management of a housing complex on Colonel Glenn Road is scheduled for a Little Rock environmental court hearing Monday after multiple delays. Big Country Chateau faces several city code violations for unsafe and unhealthy living conditions, including mold, broken windows and scattered trash. Tenants have said that management often has not responded to maintenance requests […]
Report says many utilities are slow-walking clean energy goals
DENVER — A report released this week by the Sierra Club faults dozens of utilities that provide a major chunk of U.S. electric generation for failing to speed up their decarbonization efforts. “For the sake of our communities and planet, we must do everything in our power to create a clean, renewable electric grid by […]
Mold, sewage, broken appliances among tenants’ problems in properties whose owner faces AG lawsuit
Nick and Amy Black’s son, August, already had a persistent cough by the time he was two months old. Their pediatrician said the baby is allergic to the mold in the family’s Little Rock apartment. It’s what makes Amy “the most mad” about their living situation at Big Country Chateau, which has had a plethora […]
Arkansas legislators study solar power growth, net metering and recycling
State lawmakers on Wednesday began weighing how to regulate Arkansas’ growing solar industry. During the four-hour hearing, legislators heard a range of at times conflicting views about the potential impacts and viability of solar energy and net metering. Representatives of utilities, the solar industry and environmental advocacy groups agreed that solar power can benefit Arkansas […]
AG sues Little Rock housing complex for unsafe conditions, deception of tenants
The state of Arkansas filed a consumer protection lawsuit against a Little Rock apartment complex and its owner for allegedly violating city housing code and multiple state laws, Attorney General Leslie Rutledge announced Wednesday. Rutledge’s office is investigating Big Country Chateau, a 151-unit complex on Colonel Glenn Road, and Apex Equity Group, the New Jersey-based […]