Arkansas’ attorney general is investigating two companies with foreign connections that may be in violation of a 2023 state law, including one business supported by the governor’s predecessor
By ANTOINETTE GRAJEDA | Arkansas Advocate
Act 636 of 2023 prohibits certain foreign-controlled businesses from owning Arkansas land. According to letters from Agriculture Secretary Wes Ward, heavy equipment parts manufacturer Risever Machinery LLC in Jonesboro and Jones Digital LLC, which is constructing a crypto-mining operation near DeWitt, may have “significant ties to China.”
“I am in receipt of the Secretary’s letter fulfilling his statutory obligation to refer potential illegal foreign land ownership to me,” Griffin said in a statement Wednesday. “We are investigating more than two dozen potential crypto mining operations to ensure their compliance with Arkansas law.”
According to the law, prohibited foreign parties include citizens or residents of countries subject to International Traffic in Arms Regulations, such as China.
Arkansas officials in October took steps to force a Chinese government-owned agricultural company to divest itself of 160 acres of Craighead County farmland and pay a $280,000 fine for failing to file timely disclosure to the state. Act 636 allows two years for divestiture.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Arkansas is the first state to take such action.
“China is a hostile foreign adversary and under my administration, we will follow the law and not allow companies controlled by the Chinese Communist Party to buy up and exploit Arkansas land,” Sanders said in a statement Wednesday.
The removal of foreign-based companies could affect Arkansas workers.
When Risever opened its first U.S. facility in Jonesboro in 2019, the company’s $20 million investment was expected to create 130 new jobs over five years, according to the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.
Risever is headquartered in China and its customers include Caterpillar, Volvo and Komatsu. The company set an annual production capacity target of 18,000 tons of steel when it opened in Northeast Arkansas.
Risever spent more than a year investigating possible sites in 70 cities in five states before selecting Arkansas. Risever spent 10 months negotiating the deal with the AEDC and Jonesboro Unlimited, a private partnership organization that focuses on economic development in Jonesboro, according to Talk Business & Politics.
Then-Gov. Asa Hutchinson offered the company $1 million from the Governor’s Quick Action Closing Fund to secure the company’s decision and help pay for infastructure costs. The state’s offer to the company also included money for workforce training and rebates on payroll taxes based on the number of jobs.
“Risever is one of several Chinese companies that are choosing to locate in Arkansas thanks in large part to our skilled workforce and low business costs,” Hutchinson said four years ago. “Because foreign investment is vital to our state’s economic health, we hope that other companies across the world will see the advantages Arkansas has to offer.”
Risever and Jonesboro United did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
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