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Lincoln County schedules hearing on proposed moratorium for AI hyperscale data centers
Summary
After extensive public comment, the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners voted to set a Feb. 24 public hearing on a proposed temporary moratorium — initially drafted as up to one year — to pause permitting of AI hyperscale data centers in unincorporated areas while county zoning and policy are developed.
The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners voted Jan. 27 to set a public hearing, to be published in local notice, on a proposed temporary moratorium on permitting and construction of AI hyperscale data centers in unincorporated areas of the county.
Commissioner Jewel Arons introduced the item and told the board the motion would be to set the hearing and publish notice. Arons said the moratorium is intended as a planning tool to give residents and officials time to establish local zoning, standards and infrastructure requirements before permits are filed. "I'm calling on the commission to enact a temporary 1 year moratorium on new construction of AI hyperscale data centers here in the county," Arons said.
Arons described a working definition discussed with a "data center expert," noting industry convention often labels facilities using 100 megawatts or more as hyperscale; Arons said he was inclined to set a 50‑megawatt local threshold because Lincoln County currently has no facilities at that scale. The moratorium was described as applying only to unincorporated county land, not to projects within city limits, consistent with state jurisdictional rules cited during discussion.
Public comment at the meeting was strongly supportive of setting a hearing. Dozens of residents urged the board to pause permitting for at least a year. Scott Montgomery told commissioners, "I would strongly encourage a minimum a year." Michelle Johnson, Amy Hans and several other speakers told the board a year should be the minimum and urged thorough study of environmental and infrastructure impacts.
Board members debated appropriate length for a moratorium. One commissioner said a shorter, business‑friendly pause (three to six months) might be sufficient; others favored the one‑year period Arons proposed. County staff and legal counsel reminded the commission this meeting’s vote was to set a public hearing and that the detailed policy debate should occur at the scheduled hearing.
The board moved and seconded the action to set the public hearing for the last meeting in February; the date given at the meeting was Feb. 24 at 6:30 p.m. The motion carried on roll call with the commissioners present voting to set the hearing.
Next steps: the county will publish legal notice and hold the public hearing, at which residents, utilities, developers and county staff will be able to present detailed testimony and comment on proposed language and the moratorium’s duration and scope.
