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Decatur County enacts two-year moratorium on commercial solar and wind projects
Summary
The Decatur County Board of Commissioners adopted Ordinance 2025-1 on Jan. 9, 2025, placing a moratorium on new commercial solar and wind applications while the county updates its ordinances and comprehensive plan.
The Decatur County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 9 adopted Ordinance 2025-1, a temporary strategic moratorium on new commercial solar energy facilities and wind energy conversion system applications in the county.
Commissioner Chad Smith presented the proposed ordinance and said the moratorium is intended to give the county time to align local regulations with recent state statutes and to update the county comprehensive plan. The ordinance as read in the meeting cites Indiana Code 8-1-42 and Indiana Code 8-1-41, and references a Purdue Extension evaluation that found Decatur County’s solar ordinance addressed six of 10 categories in the state standard and its wind ordinance addressed three of nine categories.
The board tied the moratorium to a concurrent review of the comprehensive plan adopted in 2016 and updated by resolution in 2017, saying the plan and local ordinances “substantially evolved” and need review. Commissioners discussed how long the pause should last; members noted a comprehensive-plan review in 2015–2017 took about two years and recommended allowing time to do a thorough update. The board voted to set the moratorium to run until Jan. 9, 2027, at 4 p.m., with language to allow shortening or extending the period based on progress in updating ordinances and the plan.
Commissioners clarified the moratorium covers commercial projects only; the ordinance expressly excludes small, individual residential solar installations. Commissioners also said petitions and applications already filed and “properly presented” before the moratorium’s effective date are not affected.
Ordinance 2025-1 was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote. The ordinance will be followed by a formal process to convene a steering group and public input to guide ordinance revisions and a comprehensive-plan review.
The board discussed public participation and said the steering committee and plan-review process will be documented and public. Commissioners said they intend to solicit broad community representation similar to the process used in the 2015–2017 plan review.
The moratorium and its timetable were adopted by the board during the Jan. 9 meeting and recorded as proposed ordinance number 2025-1.
