Arkansas fireworks laws allow consumers to buy and set off a defined list of 1.4G consumer fireworks, each capped at specific weights and dimensions under Arkansas Code § 20-22-708. Anything not on that list — including M-80s, cherry bombs, and professional display shells — is illegal to possess, sell, or use. Cities and counties can tighten the rules further, and an active burn ban overrides state permissions entirely.
Fireworks You Can Legally Use
State law lists every type of firework a resident can legally buy and discharge. If a device isn’t on this list, it’s prohibited. Each item carries its own limits on pyrotechnic composition and tube size:
- Roman candles: no more than ten balls, no handle or spike, up to 20 grams of composition, inside tube diameter of three-eighths of an inch.
- Sky rockets with sticks: up to 20 grams of composition, inside tube diameter of one-half inch, stick securely fastened.
- Helicopter-type rockets: same 20-gram and one-half-inch limits as sky rockets.
- Cylindrical fountains: up to 75 grams of composition, inside tube diameter of three-fourths of an inch.
- Cone fountains: up to 50 grams of composition.
- Wheels: up to 60 grams per driver unit or 240 grams for the complete wheel; driver tubes no wider than one-half inch.
- Illuminating torches and colored fire: up to 100 grams of composition.
- Sparklers and dipped sticks: up to 100 grams of composition, but any mixture containing chlorate or perchlorate is capped at 5 grams.
- Mines and shells with an integral mortar: up to 40 grams of composition.
- Firecrackers and salutes: casings no longer than one and one-half inches and no wider than one-quarter inch.
The chlorate and perchlorate cap on sparklers matters in practice. Those chemicals burn hotter and are harder to put out, so a sparkler built on a chlorate-based mix is held to a far smaller load than a standard one.1Justia. Arkansas Code Title 20-22-708 – Possession, Sale, and Use Unlawful – Exceptions
What’s Illegal Regardless of State Law
Anything outside the § 20-22-708 list is illegal in Arkansas by default, and that sweeps in all professional-grade 1.3G display fireworks. Those are legal only for licensed shooters running permitted public displays, not for private use.
Federal law bans certain devices outright for consumers. M-80s, cherry bombs, and silver salutes have been off the consumer market since 1967 because they exceed the two-grain federal limit for noise-producing devices.2United States Consumer Product Safety Commission. CPSC Warns Fireworks Manufacturers Existing Regulations Will Be Enforced If someone at a roadside stand sells you something labeled an M-80 or a cherry bomb, buying it violates both federal and state law.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission also controls chemical composition. Chlorate-based powder is banned in all but small devices with a total powder content under 4 grams, and even there the chlorate portion cannot exceed 15 percent.3eCFR. Part 1507 Fireworks Devices A device can hit Arkansas’s weight limit and still be federally illegal because of what’s inside.
Mail-order sales of fireworks to Arkansas consumers are also prohibited. Buying from an out-of-state website that ships to your door is a Class C misdemeanor on the seller’s side and leaves you with illegal inventory.
Age Rules for Buyers
Arkansas prohibits retail sale of fireworks to anyone under twelve, and to anyone who is intoxicated. The statute sets no minimum age for actually using fireworks, which means a twelve-year-old can legally buy sparklers or firecrackers without a parent along. Sparklers burn above 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit, so supervision is a safety question even when the law is silent.
Where and When You Can Set Them Off
State law is the floor. Cities and counties can and do add restrictions on top of it. Many municipalities narrow discharge to specific dates and hours — Bentonville, for example, allows fireworks only on July 3 and July 4 between noon and midnight. Some local ordinances ban bottle rockets or sky rockets even though state law permits them. Check your city or county ordinance before you light anything.
The most consequential local restriction is a burn ban. When a mayor or county judge issues a burn ban during dry conditions, discharging any fireworks is prohibited regardless of what state law otherwise allows. Burn ban status changes often during summer. The Arkansas Forestry Commission tracks active county burn bans on its website.
Running a public display is a separate matter. A fireworks display open to the public or privately staged with 1.3G devices requires a permit from the State Fire Marshal, and the person firing the show needs a shooter license.4Arkansas Department of Public Safety. Fireworks – Arkansas Division of Emergency Management ADEM State Fire Marshal’s Office If you’re a homeowner planning something more ambitious than a bag of consumer fireworks, you cannot buy or shoot display-grade shells yourself.
Penalties
Penalties scale with what you did:
- Possessing, using, or selling prohibited fireworks is a misdemeanor punishable by a $50 to $200 fine, up to 90 days in jail, or both.
- Selling fireworks without a license carries a fine of $100 to $5,000, plus a potential five-year bar on applying for a fireworks license.
- Mail-order sales to Arkansas consumers are a Class C misdemeanor.
The base penalty for a possession or use violation is modest, but the picture changes fast if illegal fireworks start a fire or hurt someone. In that situation you may face criminal negligence, reckless endangerment, or arson charges on top of the fireworks violation, each carrying far steeper punishment.1Justia. Arkansas Code Title 20-22-708 – Possession, Sale, and Use Unlawful – Exceptions
If Your Fireworks Cause Damage
Criminal charges are only part of the exposure. If a firework you set off damages a neighbor’s property or injures a bystander, you can be sued personally for medical bills, lost income, repair costs, and pain and suffering. Negligence is usually easy to show in these cases because the activity is inherently dangerous and the common mistakes — lighting a device too close to a structure, holding a Roman candle in your hand — are easy to describe in court.
Homeowners insurance generally covers accidental fireworks damage under its liability provisions. Damage to a neighbor’s house or car typically falls under liability coverage; a bystander’s injuries fall under bodily injury liability. The catch is important: most policies exclude damage caused by illegal fireworks or reckless behavior. If the device was prohibited, or if you were handling it in a way no reasonable person would consider safe, the insurer can deny the claim and leave you personally on the hook for every dollar. An umbrella policy adds liability coverage above your homeowners limits and is worth considering if you host gatherings where fireworks are involved.
Disposing of Used and Dud Fireworks
Improperly discarded fireworks are a leading cause of post-holiday house fires. Submerge all used fireworks, duds, and leftover unused devices in a bucket of water for at least fifteen minutes. After soaking, wrap them in plastic so they don’t dry out, then put them in an outdoor trash can away from your home or garage.
Never try to relight a dud. If a firework fails to go off, leave it alone for several minutes, then soak it along with the rest. The fuse may still be smoldering inside the casing even when the device looks dead. Keeping the trash can away from the house until pickup day guards against a delayed ignition.