Arkansas Code
Subchapter 1 - General Provisions
§ 22-10-103. Definitions

As used in this chapter:
(1) “Affected local jurisdiction” means:
(A) A county, a city of the first class, a city of the second class, an incorporated town, or a school district in which all or a portion of a qualifying project is located; and
(B) Any other local governmental entity that is directly impacted by a qualifying project, as specified in the rules promulgated under this chapter;

(2) “Comprehensive agreement” means a final written agreement between a private entity and a public entity executed under § 22-10-303 by which a qualifying project shall be developed;
(3) “Develop” or “development of” means to plan, design, develop, own, finance, lease, acquire, install, construct, operate, maintain, or expand a qualifying project;
(4) “Interim agreement” means a preliminary written agreement between a private entity and a public entity executed under § 22-10-302 by which the development, scope, and feasibility of a qualifying project is identified;
(5) “Opportunity cost” means the cost of passing up an alternative and the increase in costs as the result of delaying a decision;
(6) “Private entity” means a natural person, corporation, general partnership, limited liability company, limited partnership, joint venture, business trust, public benefit corporation, nonprofit entity, and other business entity;
(7)
(A) “Public entity” means an agency or instrumentality of the state, including without limitation a department, an agency, an institution of higher education, a board, or a commission.
(B) “Public entity” does not include a political subdivision of the state or any other local or regional governmental entity, including without limitation a city of the first class, a city of the second class, an incorporated town, a county, a school district, an improvement district, a water authority, a public facilities board, a solid waste management district, or a water distribution district;

(8) “Publish” means the publication by a public entity of a request for proposals one (1) time a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of statewide circulation;
(9) “Qualified respondent” means the private entity selected as the most qualified respondent to undertake a qualifying project based on a request for proposals issued under this chapter;
(10) “Qualifying project” means a capital development or improvement of any nature that:
(A) Serves a public purpose, including without limitation a ferry, mass transit facility, vehicle parking facility, port facility, power generation facility, fuel supply facility, combined heating and power facility, central utility plant facility, distributed generation facility, oil or gas pipeline, water supply facility, water treatment intake and distribution facility, waste water treatment and collection facility, waste treatment facility, hospital, library, school, educational facility, medical or nursing care facility, recreational facility, administrative facility, law enforcement facility, fire department facility, public administrative office, toll road, correctional facility, technology infrastructure facility, public building, transportation system as defined in § 27-76-103, or other similar facility currently available or to be made available to a public entity for public use, including without limitation a structure, parking area, appurtenance, and other related or unrelated infrastructure that might otherwise be described in a comprehensive agreement; and
(B) Has one (1) or more of the following characteristics:
(i) It is developed using a long-term operations and maintenance agreement, management agreement, or services agreement entered into with a private entity;
(ii) It is designed and built, in whole or in part, by a private entity;
(iii) It is a capital development or improvement in which a private entity:
(a) Invests its own capital or third-party capital arranged by the private entity;
(b) Sources or uses indebtedness, available funds, revenues, or financial or tax incentives to fund the capital development or improvement; or
(c) Provides other consideration in the form of goods or services to the public entity to fund the project;

(iv) It is owned, in whole or in part, by a private entity for the benefit of a public entity;
(v) It involves real or personal property owned by a public entity that is sold to, leased to, or exchanged with a private entity for leaseback or for use by the public entity; or
(vi) It is a qualifying project as defined in the rules promulgated under this chapter;


(11) “Request for proposals” means a notice that is issued by a public entity announcing the public entity's interest in developing a qualifying project and seeking proposals from private entities to develop the qualifying project that identifies without limitation:
(A) The anticipated scope and purpose of the qualifying project;
(B) The financial and nonfinancial benefits related to the qualifying project;
(C) Any anticipated revenues that might be realized as a result of the operation of the qualifying project;
(D) The proposed timeline under which the qualifying project is to be completed; and
(E) Any other issues required by the rules promulgated under this chapter;

(12) “Responsible public entity” means a public entity that has the statutory or constitutional authority to develop and operate the applicable qualifying project;
(13) “Revenues” means the rates, revenues, income, earnings, user fees, lease payments, service payments, other available funds, and other revenue and cash flow of any nature arising out of or in connection with the development of a qualifying project, including without limitation the funds derived from the operation of a qualifying project or otherwise provided by the parties as stated in the comprehensive agreement, and excluding any revenues that are prohibited by law;
(14) “User fees” means the rates, fees, or other charges imposed by a private entity for use of all or a portion of a qualifying project pursuant to a comprehensive agreement; and
(15) “Value-for-money analysis” means the value calculated, in percentage terms, when comparing the costs to develop a qualifying project outside of this chapter to the costs to develop the qualifying project under this chapter to determine which procurement approach produces the best value to the public over a long-term period.