Arkansas fireworks laws allow consumer-grade fireworks, but only the specific types and sizes listed in Arkansas Code § 20-22-708. Anything outside that list is illegal to possess, sell, or use, and violations carry fines of $50 to $200 and up to 90 days in jail. Cities and counties can add stricter rules on top of state law, and an active burn ban shuts down fireworks use entirely no matter what the statute otherwise permits.
What Fireworks Are Legal in Arkansas
State law lists every device you’re allowed to buy and set off. If it isn’t on the list, it’s prohibited. Each item comes with a cap on pyrotechnic composition and tube dimensions:
- Roman candles: no more than ten balls, no handle or spike, 20 grams of composition, three-eighths inch inside tube diameter.
- Sky rockets with sticks: 20 grams, one-half inch inside tube diameter, stick securely fastened.
- Helicopter-type rockets: 20 grams, one-half inch tube.
- Cylindrical fountains: 75 grams, three-fourths inch tube.
- Cone fountains: 50 grams.
- Wheels: 60 grams per driver unit or 240 grams total, driver tubes no wider than one-half inch.
- Illuminating torches and colored fire: 100 grams.
- Sparklers and dipped sticks: 100 grams, but any mixture containing chlorate or perchlorate is capped at 5 grams.
- Mines and shells with an integral mortar: 40 grams.
- Firecrackers and salutes: casings no longer than one and one-half inches and no wider than one-quarter inch.
The chlorate and perchlorate limit on sparklers matters if you’re handing them to kids. Those chemicals burn hotter and are harder to put out than the standard formulation.1Justia. Arkansas Code Title 20-22-708 – Possession, Sale, and Use Unlawful – Exceptions
What’s Banned
Everything not listed in § 20-22-708 is illegal in Arkansas. That includes all professional-grade display fireworks (federally classified 1.3G), which are far more powerful than consumer devices and require federal licensing to handle.
M-80s, cherry bombs, and silver salutes have been banned from consumer sale nationwide since 1967 because they contain far more explosive powder than the federal two-grain limit for noise devices.2United States Consumer Product Safety Commission. CPSC Warns Fireworks Manufacturers Existing Regulations Will Be Enforced They still turn up at roadside stands. Buying one violates both federal and Arkansas law.
Federal chemical composition rules also apply on top of the state list. A device could meet Arkansas’s weight limit and still be illegal if its chemical mix violates Consumer Product Safety Commission standards.3eCFR. Part 1507 Fireworks Devices
Selling fireworks to Arkansas consumers by mail order is also prohibited. That one is a Class C misdemeanor.
Who Can Buy and Use Fireworks
Retailers cannot sell fireworks to anyone under twelve, and cannot sell to anyone who is intoxicated. The statute does not set a minimum age for using fireworks, so a twelve-year-old can legally buy sparklers or firecrackers without a parent along. Sparklers alone burn above 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit, so supervision is a practical necessity even where the law doesn’t require it.
Local Rules and Burn Bans
State law is the floor. Cities and counties can add restrictions, and many do. Bentonville, for example, limits fireworks to July 3 and July 4 between noon and midnight. Other municipalities ban bottle rockets or sky rockets outright even though state law permits them.
The rule that overrides everything else is a burn ban. When a mayor or county judge declares one during dry conditions, discharging any fireworks is prohibited regardless of what state law allows. Burn ban status can change week to week during summer, so check your county before you light anything. The Arkansas Forestry Commission tracks active county burn bans on its website.
Penalties for Breaking the Rules
Penalties depend on what you did:
- Possessing, using, or selling prohibited fireworks: a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $50 to $200, up to 90 days in jail, or both.
- Selling without a State Fire Marshal license: a fine of $100 to $5,000, plus a potential five-year ban from applying for a fireworks license.4Justia. Arkansas Code Title 20-22-707 – License
- Mail-order sales to consumers: a Class C misdemeanor.
The base fine looks modest, but the picture changes fast if your fireworks start a fire or injure someone. At that point you may be facing criminal negligence, reckless endangerment, or arson charges on top of the fireworks violation, each carrying penalties well beyond the $200 ceiling.1Justia. Arkansas Code Title 20-22-708 – Possession, Sale, and Use Unlawful – Exceptions
If Fireworks Damage Property or Injure Someone
Criminal charges are only part of the exposure. If your fireworks damage a neighbor’s property or hurt a bystander, they can sue you for medical bills, lost income, repair costs, and pain and suffering. Proving negligence is usually not hard. The activity is inherently dangerous, and mistakes like lighting a device too close to a house or holding a roman candle in your hand are easy to establish.
Homeowners insurance generally covers accidental fireworks damage under its liability provisions. Damage to a neighbor’s house or car falls under liability coverage; injury to a bystander goes under bodily injury liability. Damage to your own home would be a property claim.
The catch is that most policies exclude damage caused by illegal fireworks or reckless conduct. If you were using prohibited devices, or acting in a way no reasonable person would call safe, the insurer can deny the claim and leave every dollar on you. An umbrella policy adds liability coverage above your homeowners limits, which is worth thinking about if you regularly host gatherings that involve fireworks.
Professional and Public Displays
Public and private fireworks shows use 1.3G devices that consumers cannot legally own. Running a display in Arkansas requires a permit from the State Fire Marshal, and the person firing the show needs a shooter license.5Arkansas Department of Public Safety. Fireworks – Arkansas Division of Emergency Management ADEM State Fire Marshal’s Office Federal law adds a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives license or permit on top of that.6Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Federal Explosives Licenses and Permits None of this is available to a homeowner planning a backyard show.
Safe Disposal of Duds and Leftovers
Improperly discarded fireworks are a leading cause of holiday fires and are almost entirely preventable. Submerge everything (used devices, duds, and any unused leftovers) in a bucket of water for at least fifteen minutes. Wrap the soaked debris in plastic so it doesn’t dry out, then put it in an outdoor trash can away from the house or garage.
Never try to relight a dud. Wait several minutes, then soak it with the rest. A fuse can smolder inside a device that looks dead. Keeping the trash can away from the house until pickup day is a cheap safeguard against a delayed ignition.