All data centers constructed within Highland must be designed and built with external noise-attenuation measures to minimize noise disturbance. Article 1 requires noise attenuation in data-center design and construction

Before construction or operation, the owner and operator must notify every resident and homeowners’ association within one-half mile of the property, notify the mayor of the proposed location, and file proof of notice with the city clerk within 30 days. The notice must be mailed within a half-mile radius

The property owner must obtain a baseline sound study from a third-party acoustic engineer, measuring sound at eight property-line locations, and file the report with the mayor and city clerk within 30 days after completion. The study must measure eight locations

Before construction, the owner must obtain a building plan from a third-party architectural or design firm that includes adequate noise-attenuation measures; mechanical equipment must be shown and fully screened on all sides. The plan must be filed with the mayor and city clerk within 30 days of completion and before construction. Mechanical equipment must be fully screened on all sides

Any addition, change, or expansion of a data center must comply with the ordinance’s noise-attenuation requirements and be submitted to the mayor and city clerk within 30 days after completion of the report. Additions, changes, or expansions must comply

After construction, the operator must obtain a third-party acoustic-engineer study while all necessary mechanical equipment is operating at full capacity, measure noise at the original eight locations, and file the report with the mayor and city clerk within 30 days. The post-construction study must measure full-capacity operation

A data center may not begin operating until the post-construction noise study is completed and filed, and the results demonstrate compliance. If the results show noncompliance, operation is barred until the required attenuation measures and noise limits are met. The Data Center shall not begin operations until

The operator must conduct annual noise studies using the baseline and post-construction specifications and file the results with the mayor and city clerk within 30 days after each anniversary of the first sound-study report. The operator must conduct annual noise studies

Noise from a data center is deemed disturbing when it reaches 65 dBA or higher from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., or 55 dBA or higher from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m., measured at the receiving property line by a third-party acoustic engineer. The ordinance sets daytime and nighttime dBA limits

Noise measurements must follow specified conditions and procedures, including no outdoor testing when wind exceeds 15 miles per hour, calibration immediately before measurement, meter placement at least four feet above the ground or reflective surface, and high, average, and low readings or three separate measurements. Outdoor measurements are restricted when winds exceed 15 miles per hour

Failure to incorporate the approved attenuation measures, file required studies or plans on time, meet the noise limits, or comply with another ordinance requirement constitutes a violation, and the data center must be compliant before beginning operation. Failure to comply before operation results in an injunction or stay

Violations are misdemeanors punishable by a $1,000 fine for each specified offense, twice that amount for a repeated offense, and $500 per day for a continuing violation; the city or a citizen may seek injunctions and civil damages. The ordinance establishes misdemeanor penalties and daily fines

Until the data center complies with the ordinance, implements required attenuation measures, and meets the noise limits, it must cease operations. The data center shall cease operations until compliant

A compliant digital asset mining business may operate in Arkansas and may not be prohibited solely because it is a digital asset mining business. Compliance requires following state business and tax laws, applicable operations and safety ordinances, public-entity utility rules or rates, and state and federal employment laws.

A digital asset mining business may locate in an industrially zoned area unless the local government has designated that area for another use.

Home digital asset mining must be allowed in residential zones, although generally applicable noise regulations may still apply.

Local governments may not impose requirements on a digital asset mining business that differ from requirements applicable to data centers.

Local governments may not adopt special noise limits for home digital asset mining that are different from the city's generally applicable noise regulations.

A local government may not rezone property containing a digital asset mining business without complying with applicable state law and local zoning ordinances, or rezone it with the intent or effect of discriminating against the business.

Highland's ordinance provides a compliance pathway for constructing and operating data centers: the owner must complete the required notice, baseline noise study, attenuation plan, and post-construction noise study, and meet the applicable noise limits before operations begin.

Additions, changes, and expansions of a data center are allowed if they comply with the ordinance's noise-attenuation requirements and are submitted to the mayor and city clerk as required.