Escambia Commission To Consider Hearings For 12-Month Data Center Moratorium
The Escambia County Commission is set to consider scheduling public hearings for a proposed 12-month data center moratorium. This follows earlier actions where the commission declared data centers are not allowed under the county's Land Development Code and banned large-scale data centers. The new moratorium would apply to facilities between 10 and 50 megawatts to allow staff to study their impacts.
The Escambia County Commission is poised to advance a proposal for a 12-month moratorium on certain data center facilities, a move that would involve scheduling public hearings for October 1 and October 15. The proposed ordinance targets data centers with an anticipated monthly peak load between 10 and 50 megawatts, aiming to provide county staff with time to assess the impact of such facilities on public infrastructure, natural resources, and surrounding communities.
This latest action builds on previous measures taken by the commission. In July, the commission adopted a resolution asserting that data centers are not permissible as principal uses under the Escambia County Land Development Code. This was followed in August by the approval of an ordinance outright banning large-scale data centers. The current moratorium proposal specifically carves out data centers 50 megawatts and above, noting that state law already requires these larger facilities to cover their own energy and infrastructure costs, preventing the burden from shifting to residential and small business utility ratepayers.