Arkansas: data centers & your electric bill
The numbers residents cite at hearings — grid, water, and regulator contacts for Arkansas, from the free GridWatch toolkit.
Subscribe by RSS — moratorium changes and community headlines for Arkansas.
As of July 2026 · changes over months · Source: U.S. Data Center Power Map by State — ElectricChoice.com compilation (updated July 2026; CC-BY 4.0). Underlying load research: LBNL 2024 US Data Center Energy Usage Report; rates: EIA
Facility counts vary by directory because each one draws the boundary differently — DataCenterMap lists 44 in Alabama where this table says 35, since it counts small network rooms alongside hyperscale campuses. Cite the TWh figure rather than the facility count when you can; it is the number that speaks to grid impact. Underlying load research is LBNL-2001637 (Dec 2024).
Your regulator
Arkansas Public Service Commission — website · file a complaint
Official state energy data: EIA Arkansas electricity profile — generation, prices, and consumption from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Pushback already happening in Arkansas
| Where | Level | Status | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pulaski County | Local | Rejected | Multiple attempts failed: a May 26 vote appeared to pass but a tally error voided it (didn't reach the 10-vote two-thirds threshold); a revised version was explicitly voted down 10-3 on Jul 28. County now pursuing regulations instead | Source read 2026-08-13 |
| Little Rock | Local | Rejected | 18-month permitting halt on hyperscale data centers (250,000+ sq ft or 75+ MW), including a planned Google facility at the Port of Little Rock; failed 4-4 with two directors absent. The city's June 3, 2026 data-center regulations (no groundwater cooling, noise monitors) remain in effect regardless. | Source read 2026-08-12 |
| Independence County | Local | Enactedexpires 2031-08-11 | 5-year moratorium, unanimous — the longest in Arkansas. Preemptive; no project currently proposed | Source read 2026-08-13 |
| Russellville | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-01-31 | 6-month pause on data center approvals | Source read 2026-08-13 |
| Union County | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-07-09 | Ordinance 1795: 1-year moratorium (Jul 10, 2026 – Jul 9, 2027), unanimous; studying water, electricity, utilities, emergency services, property and zoning impacts | Source read 2026-08-13 |
| Carroll County | Local | Enactedexpires 2027-06-17 | 1-year moratorium on high-impact industrial and high-intensity digital infrastructure facilities, unanimous emergency ordinance | Source read 2026-08-13 |
As of August 2026 · changes weekly — re-check before citing
Illustrative rather than exhaustive — dozens of localities churn weekly, and this tracks the ones we have read a source for. **Each row carries its own provenance.** Rows showing a verification date link to the ordinance, the enacting body's own page, or a datable report of the vote, and were read on that date. Rows marked *unverified* came from bulk compilation and have not been checked against a primary source — the locality, the year, and the status may all be off. Verify one of those with the town clerk before citing it as precedent. **Expiry is derived, not asserted.** A row with a documented end date flips to *Expired* on its own once that date passes. A time-limited moratorium whose start date was never documented keeps showing as enacted — that is a known gap, not a claim that it is still in force. Moratoriums are also routinely extended, so an expiry date is the earliest it could have ended, not proof that it did.
Every data center already built in Arkansas
GridWatch does not yet track a named hyperscale campus in Arkansas, but that does not mean the state has none. DataCenterMap keeps a public directory of existing facilities — street addresses included — for Arkansas.
Browse the Arkansas directory →
Two caveats before you cite it at a hearing: it lists facilities that already exist, so a newly proposed campus will not appear; and it counts a small network room the same as a hyperscale campus, so the facility count is not a measure of power draw or community impact.
Latest Arkansas data center news
State municipal league: Arkansas Municipal League
A data center was proposed near you?
The free toolkit walks you through it in five steps: who's really behind the LLC, what it costs your community, what to do this week, and a downloadable action pack — speech, letters, flyer, and CBA targets included.