Subnational jurisdiction · as of 2026-09-06
A data center in Arkansas permits through the same generic local and state channels as any other large commercial building, with no data-center-specific siting statute located.
A county or municipality zones the site and issues any special use permit under its own zoning ordinance; the Department of Energy and Environment's Division of Environmental Quality issues air and water discharge permits for the site's generator fleet and any wastewater discharge under the Arkansas Water and Air Pollution Control Act.
Arkansas has no state agency comparable to a NEPA-style environmental-review body and no statewide mandatory building code; permitting authority for land use, air, and water is confirmed above, but no Arkansas-specific data-center sales and use tax exemption, a "qualified data center" category, or a standalone Arkansas Data Centers Act was confirmed against a primary source.
3 instruments on record, grouped by the family of approval each one governs.
Who decides whether a data center may occupy a site, and through what approval?
Applies to both
Authorizes an Arkansas county planning board to prepare a zoning ordinance for all or part of the county's unincorporated area, regulating the location, height, bulk, and use of buildings and structures, including districts for large-scale unified development. A data center sited in unincorporated county land rezones or seeks a use permit under this section rather than the municipal equivalent.
Source: Full text of law
Applies to both
Authorizes an Arkansas municipality's planning commission to recommend, and its legislative body to adopt, a zoning ordinance regulating the location, height, bulk, and use of buildings and structures within the municipality, including districts of compatible uses and large-scale unified development. A data center sited inside a city or town rezones or seeks a use permit under this section.
Source: Full text of law
What permits govern backup generators and ongoing emissions?
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 8-4-101, 8-4-203
Applies to both
The Arkansas Water and Air Pollution Control Act charges the Division of Environmental Quality with issuing, continuing, revoking, modifying, or denying permits to prevent, control, or abate pollution, including permits for the discharge of sewage, industrial waste, or other wastes into the waters of the state and for the installation, modification, or operation of a disposal system.
A data center's backup generator fleet permits its air emissions under this authority, and any onsite wastewater discharge or disposal system permits under the same chapter.
Source: Full text of law
Every entry cites the instrument it describes. None of it is legal advice: verify a citation before relying on it. Full sourcing: read the methodology. The rest of the record: all jurisdictions.