22,024 people (2024 Census estimate, −3.2% since 2020)
766 square miles of land · 29 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
12 active community water systems list Columbia County in the area they serve, reporting 22,695 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| MAGNOLIA WATERWORKS surface water · local government · AR0000109 | 11,657 served |
| LAKESIDE WATER ASSOCIATION buys surface water · private · AR0000822 | 1,876 served |
| DORCHEAT WATER ASSOCIATION groundwater · private · AR0000714 | 1,860 served |
| WALDO WATERWORKS groundwater · local government · AR0000112 | 1,630 served |
| WALKER WATER ASSOCIATION buys surface water · local government · AR0000116 | 1,182 served |
| EMERSON WATERWORKS groundwater · local government · AR0000111 | 1,145 served |
| MC NEIL RURAL WATER ASSOC groundwater · private · AR0000705 | 900 served |
| TAYLOR WATERWORKS groundwater · local government · AR0000114 | 566 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 48 people were held in Columbia County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2021), or 330 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2016 it was about 75.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
2 school districts have their office in Columbia County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $39.1 million — $35.6 million to run schools, about $13,374 per student, plus $2.4 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $5.8 million local (mostly property tax), $24.2 million state, $10.4 million federal. Long-term debt: $27.4 million.
Spent $14.4 million — $13.5 million to run schools, about $11,503 per student, plus $722,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $2.7 million local (mostly property tax), $11 million state, $2.9 million federal. Long-term debt: $6.2 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Very Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Columbia County about $8.6 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
131 bridges in Columbia County: 62 in good condition, 66 fair, and 3 poor (2.3%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| US 79 S-1 LM 2.43 over CYPRESS CREEK · built 1943 | 1,700 vehicles a day |
| SH 98 S-1 LM 5.21 over BIG CREEK · built 1936 | 1,100 vehicles a day |
| SH 98 S-1 LM 7.11 over OREAR CREEK · built 1936 | 1,100 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $14.7 million of work in Columbia County in fiscal 2025, about $645 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-05. Early voting: 2026-10-19 to 2026-11-02. Absentee application due (by mail, email, or fax): 2026-10-27. Absentee ballot hand-delivered by you: last day: 2026-10-30. Election Day — and mailed absentee ballots must arrive: 2026-11-03. Provisional ballot: show your ID by noon: 2026-11-09. General runoff (only where a race needs one): 2026-12-01.
Source: Arkansas Secretary of State, 2026 election calendar · Fayetteville Flyer, Oct. 5, 2026 · sos.arkansas.gov — voting in Arkansas
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Columbia County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Columbia County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Arkansas: the state government and every county in Arkansas.
Nearby counties: Lafayette County (22 mi) · Claiborne Parish, LA (31 mi) · Nevada County (31 mi) · Ouachita County (33 mi) · Webster Parish, LA (34 mi) · Union County (37 mi).