Jefferson County Board of Supervisors Holds Discussion on Data Center Ordinance
The Jefferson County Board of Supervisors is holding work sessions to draft a data center ordinance, discussing potential regulations for development, permit costs, and concerns over water and energy use. The City of Fairfield has launched a public survey to gather feedback on the topic. The ordinance is currently in its early stages of development.
The Jefferson County Board of Supervisors, in conjunction with the Jefferson County Attorney’s office, conducted a work session on June 5 to advance discussions on a proposed data center ordinance. This meeting delved into the potential structure and scope of the ordinance, continuing prior board deliberations.
Key areas of discussion included determining which types of data center development the ordinance would regulate, the framework for permit costs, and various economic development models. Supervisors also considered provisions related to road infrastructure for construction, water usage concerns, school setbacks, and regulations concerning eminent domain and foreign ownership.
Jefferson County Attorney Chauncey Moulding highlighted the challenge of defining "data center" for regulatory purposes, emphasizing the need to set thresholds to avoid regulating smaller, unintended operations like personal crypto mining servers. Meanwhile, the City of Fairfield has initiated a public survey to gather input from Jefferson County residents regarding the future of data center development, with the survey remaining open for feedback.