Pulaski County weighs dueling data center moratoriums with competing exemption rules
Pulaski County is debating two competing moratorium proposals aimed at temporarily pausing certain large-scale data center projects to allow time for developing permanent regulations. The proposals differ on which projects would be exempt, and the county's attorney has warned about potential lawsuits related to state agency jurisdiction. One of the moratoriums has been sent to the full Quorum Court for consideration.
The Pulaski County Quorum Court is currently weighing two distinct moratorium proposals, both designed to temporarily halt certain large-scale data center developments within the county. The primary goal of these ordinances is to provide county leaders with sufficient time to formulate permanent regulations for substantial, utility-intensive projects, including hyperscale data centers.
During Tuesday night's Pulaski County Quorum Court's Agenda Committee meeting, discussions centered on the county's revised 'Moratorium A' and a new proposal, 'Moratorium B,' sponsored by Justice Diane Curry. Moratorium A, previously postponed for a month to gather expert input, would pause new high-impact utility industrial projects but exempt those with final county approvals, utility study acceptance, or binding utility agreements. An example cited was the Aveil AI data center being constructed on Interstate 530 west of Wrightsville.
Conversely, Moratorium B proposes a pause on projects but only exempts those with final county approvals or an executed contract for electric utility service. Despite their differing exemption rules, both proposals aim to slow down data center construction. The county's attorney advised that either moratorium could potentially expose the county to a lawsuit due to conflicts with the jurisdiction of other state agencies. Ultimately, the committee voted to advance Moratorium B for consideration by the full Quorum Court.