SolarRisk Tracker / Explore / LA / Bienville Parish

Bienville Parish County, LA — Solar Development Risk Assessment

Local solar ordinance barriers, board sentiment, and utility policies that affect development timelines and risk.

34.1
Risk Grade
Excellent
Very rural north Louisiana timber parish; Cleco Power MISO grid; Bienville Electric Cooperative serves rural areas; extremely low population density means minimal land conflict; declining population and weak local economy make lease income attractive to landowners; conservative political culture but not actively hostile to solar; B-grade reflecting rural permissive baseline with low saturation and minimal regulatory complexity
Assessment Snapshot
Population
13241
State Rank
#1
Compliance
34%
Trajectory
32

Moratorium Status

✓ No Active Moratorium
No specific moratorium information available.

Ordinance & Regulations

Setback Requirements
150 ft from property lines; 300 ft from occupied structures
Zoning Mechanism
Conditional Use Permit (CUP) — Bienville Parish Police Jury
Acreage Caps
None established
Spacing Rules
None established
Size Restrictions
None established

Board Sentiment & Political Risk

Sentiment Analysis
Neutral — very low density north Louisiana parish; limited solar activity to date; Police Jury not openly opposed
Basis for Assessment
Bienville Parish Police Jury; Arcadia True-Citizen; Cleco service territory
Political Risk Factors
Stable
Board Members
Bienville Parish President + Police Jury — bienvilleparishla.gov

Grid, Utilities & State Context

Grid Operator
MISO / Cleco Power
Utilities
Cleco Power, Bienville Electric Cooperative
State Permitting Process
Parish zoning authority; no state solar preemption; conditional use permit typically required for utility-scale (>1 MW); no mandatory decommissioning bond statewide (some parishes require it)
State Incentives
Federal ITC eligible; Louisiana sales tax exemption for solar equipment; Louisiana property tax exemption for solar; no state income tax credit for commercial solar

Development Activity

Active/Completed Projects
None known
Denied/Withdrawn Projects
None known

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Last verified: 2026-04-02 | SolarRisk Tracker | Data sources: Government records, utility filings, public meeting minutes