SB414 Summary

• Amends Arkansas Regional Airport Act to clarify participation requirements, requiring counties and municipalities to adopt ordinances and enter agreements establishing terms and conditions for airport authority operations.

• Establishes governmental immunity from tort liability for airport authorities and their directors and employees, except to the extent covered by liability insurance.

• Repeals authority power to create improvement districts for airport financing based on property owner petitions.

• Creates new annexation and detachment procedures allowing authorities to petition for voluntary annexation or detach from municipalities with two-thirds board approval, requiring coordination with Arkansas Geographic Information Systems Office for legal descriptions and mapping.

• Establishes detailed detachment process including petition filing with county court, assessor, and clerk; 15-day completeness review; municipality response period; and mandatory mediation if parties cannot agree on special considerations, with protections for outstanding municipal debt obligations related to airport operations.