Economic Development Wins in Arkansas
2015
February 2015:
$102 million tax cut
2016
May 2016:
SIG Sauer, Jacksonville,
50 jobs
SIG Sauer relocated its Elite Performance Ammunition manufacturing operation to an existing building in Jacksonville that allowed for future expansion, a key factor in its decision. The initial relocation phase entailed 50 new jobs.
September 2016:
Intimidator, Batesville,
400 jobs, $12M investment
Intimidator Inc., a manufacturer of 4×4 utility vehicles and zero-turn mowers, announced expansion of its current manufacturing facility in Batesville and the construction of a second facility in the Independence County Industrial Park.
2017
February 2017:
$50M tax cut and $13M retired military tax cut
September 2017:
Simmons Prepared Foods, Benton County, 1,500 jobs, $300M investment
Simmons Prepared Foods Inc. announced plans for a new, $300 million chicken facility in Benton County between Decatur and Gentry. The company planned to create roughly 1,500 new jobs at the plant initially and employ more than 2,300 people by 2022.
2018
June 2018:
Big River Steel, Osceola,
$1.2B investment
Big River Steel expanded its LEED-certified, Arkansas-based scrap recycling and steel production facility. The expansion doubled Big River Steel’s hot-rolled steel production capacity to 3.3 million tons annually.
August 2018:
Aerojet Rocketdyne,
Camden, 140 jobs,
$50M investment
Aerojet Rocketdyne expanded its southern Arkansas facility near Camden, where the company manufactures solid rocket motors and warheads critical to national defense. The company also announced expansion plans for Camden including new infrastructure and more than 140 new jobs, bringing total employment to approximately 900 employees at the facility.
2019
February 2019:
5.9 percent tax cut
June 2019:
Lockheed Martin,
Camden, 326 jobs,
$142M investment
Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Lockheed Martin officials announced at the annual Paris Air Show that the company would expand its Camden facility that produces the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) and performs final assembly for Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) and Precision Fires products for U.S. and allied military services. The company also announced it would invest $142 million and hire 326 new employees, bringing its total workforce in Camden to more than 1,000.
2020
July 2020:
Amazon, Little Rock,
1,000 jobs
Amazon announced plans for a fulfillment center in Little Rock. Launched in 2021, it created more than 1,000 full-time jobs with industry-leading pay and comprehensive benefits for all employees starting on day one.
2021
June 2021:
Fort Smith, Ebbing Air
National Guard Base
The Department of the Air Force selected Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith as the location for its F-35 Lightning II training center for Foreign Military Sales participants. Ebbing also was selected as the new location for the 425th Fighter Squadron, a Republic of Singapore Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon training unit.
August 2021:
Majestic Steel,
Blytheville, 225 jobs
Majestic Steel USA announced a new state-of-the-art service center and processing facility on the campus of Nucor Hickman in Blytheville. The 515,000-square-foot facility features next-generation processing and warehousing equipment and will be responsible for roughly 225 new jobs at full scale.
October 2021:
Trex Company,
Little Rock, 500 jobs
Trex Company chose Little Rock as the site for its third U.S. production plant. The wood-alternative, decking- and outdoor-living products manufacturer planned to invest approximately $400 million over five years in the Arkansas site, adding 500 new jobs to the local economy.
December 2021:
4.9 tax cut
January 2022:
U.S. Steel, Osceola,
900 jobs
U.S. Steel announced plans to bring its next-generation, highly sustainable and technologically advanced “steel mill of the future” to Osceola. The steel manufacturer will be investing $3 billion in the facility – the largest capital investment in Arkansas’ history. Located adjacent to U.S. Steel’s Big River Steel facility, the new steel mill is expected to create 900 plant jobs in Arkansas and create thousands of construction jobs.
As of March 2022, AEDC has 558 total new agreements signed, $13,944,682,295.46 total in investment, 26,692 jobs created, and an average wage of $20.95.
There are 81,300 more people employed now than when Gov. Hutchinson took office in January 2015.
Currently (Q3 2021), the per capita income in Arkansas is $49,862, which is a 26.78% increase since Q1 2015.
Data reflects signed agreements since 2015 and announced project from U.S. Steel in 2022.
Investing in the Natural State
Domestic and foreign companies investing and expanding in Arkansas since 2015
2015
Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), Galley Support Innovations Inc., Southwest Steel Processing, Ozark Mountain Poultry, Aerojet Rocketdyne, ATA International, American Railcar Industries, Metova Inc. (Conway), Metova Inc. (Fayetteville), Baxter International Inc., Dassault Falcon Jet, J.B. Hunt Transportation Services Inc., Bad Boy Mowers, Simmons Feed Ingredients
2016
Mars Petcare, Mortuus Pater Pictures, Elite Comfort Solutions, Suzhou Tianyuan Garments Company, GC Evans/Sleeve Seal, Lecheek Nutrition, Nucor Corporation, Georgia-Pacific, Intimidator Inc., Envoy Air, Pinnacle Foods, American Railcar Industries/Corbitt Manufacturing, Shared Services Center, Elyxor, Caddo River Forest Products, Hytrol, GW Communications, Sun Paper, Bekaert Corporation, FMH Conveyors, Glatfelter
2017
Cooks BBQ Products, OurPharma, Morrilton Packing Co., Hefei Risever Machinery Co. LTD, Morfe Manufacturing, Simmons Prepared Foods, B-Unlimited, American Marksman, Saf-Holland, Semahtronix, Pet Won Pet Products, Great Lakes Solutions, Daisy/Gamo Outdoor USA, DGB
2018
Zebra Technologies, Gas Pos, Pinnacle Foods, Nighthawk Custom, Aerojet Rocketdyne, Big River Steel, Midwest Automation, Calstrip Industries Inc., Gränges, Bank of the Ozarks, BankLabs, Applied Processes, Silgan, Safe Foods
2019
SFI of Arkansas LLC, Structurlam Mass Timber Corporation, Radius Aerospace, Cornerstore Processing, Express Rx, Superior Group of Companies, HMS MFG Co., Nucor Steel Arkansas, Hefei Risever Machine Company, DXC Technology, Carvana LLC, Seguin Moreau, Greenbrier Companies Inc., Zekelman Industries, Mundo-Tech Inc., Lockheed Martin Corporation, Prysmian Group, Coca-Cola, Transplace, Coorstek, SIG Sauer
2020
Nestle, Amazon (Little Rock), Amazon (North Little Rock), Emerson, Nice-Pak, Revolution, Roach Manufacturing Corporation, Koppers Inc., Fiocchi of America, La-Z-Boy, SCA Pharma, Signode Industrial Group, Gerber, Cynergy Cargo
2021
Hytrol, Butterball, Mars Petcare, SGL Carbon, Loanpal, Dansons USA, Owens Corning, Anchor Packaging, FiberPro, Cypress Cold Storage, Tyson, CoorsTek, Windsor Door, Drax Biomass, Custom Craft Poultry, L’Oréal, Americold, Montrose Environmental Group, Wipro, Majestic Steel USA, Hytrol (additional expansion), Mars Petcare, Vexux Boats, Pel-Freez, Vista Outdoor, Trex, Arning Co., Camfil, Mayville Engineering Company, Canoo, Resolute Forest Products, Riceland, Westrock Coffee
2022 (so far)
U. S. Steel, Tractor Supply Company, Dark Threat Fabrication, Phoenix Innovations, Hostess Brands