Photo: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in Van Buren, AR: what to set up and who to call
All of Van Buren gets its mail under one ZIP code, 72956. Public schools here are run by Van Buren School District.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Van Buren, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Van Buren.
Power comes from OG&E
OG&E (Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Van Buren. Its homes paid an average of 11.7¢ per kWh in 2025, about $121 a month (its average across Arkansas).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Van Buren Waterworks
Van Buren Waterworks supplies Van Buren: about 85% of residents live in its service area. About 15% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It buys treated surface water (EPA lists Fort Smith Water Utilities as seller) and serves 22,725 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 83% of the 3,525 systems serving 10,001–50,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2023–Dec 2025, was 1.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s lower than 59% of similar systems’ latest results.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. AR0000142.
6 home internet providers serve Van Buren
98% of 8,608 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 77% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| AT&T | DSL, Fixed wireless, Fiber | 95% | 5,000/5,000 |
| Cox Communications | Cable | 93% | 2,000/100 |
| Wave Rural Connect | Fiber | 51% | 1,000/1,000 |
| Dobson Fiber | Fiber | 2% | 1,000/1,000 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 94% | 300/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 12% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash and recycling in Van Buren
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Van Buren, from the town’s own site.
Yard Waste Facility
2844 South Highway 59, Van Buren, AR
- Wed8 am–noon
- Sat8 am–noon
Yard Waste Facility
2844 South Highway 59
From cityofvanburenar.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Van Buren is in Van Buren School District.
B+School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Oct 2015; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Van Buren is in ZIP code 72956
ZIP codes where Van Buren residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Van Buren | ZIP’s residents in Van Buren |
|---|---|---|---|
| 72956 | Van Buren, AR | 100% | 69% |
72957 is P.O. box or single-organization ZIP with no homes.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Van Buren
Who supplies Van Buren’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Van Buren Waterworks (EPA ID AR0000142). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 83% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 1.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Van Buren?
OG&E (Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 11.7¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Van Buren?
AT&T, Cox Communications, Wave Rural Connect, Dobson Fiber, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Van Buren?
72956. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Van Buren in?
Van Buren School District.
How do I register to vote in Van Buren?
Arkansas has no online registration; you can register in person until 30 days before Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before). Elections here are run by the Crawford County Clerk. Check your registration at voterview.ar-nova.org.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: Van Buren’s own website (cityofvanburenar.gov), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.