Pulaski County adopts 12‑month moratorium on new data‑center approvals after heated debate; amendment grandfathered projects already in pipeline

Pulaski County’s quorum court on May 26 approved a temporary 12‑month moratorium on the acceptance, processing and approval of new data‑center applications in unincorporated portions of the county.

The measure was adopted as amended after hours of public testimony and lengthy debate. The amendment, carried on a separate roll call, added a grandfathering clause that exempts projects that had already reached binding utility interconnection agreements, received final county approvals, or filed complete interconnection applications and received preliminary utility study acceptance before the ordinance’s effective date. Supporters said the carve‑out preserves projects that have already invested substantial time and money in the permitting process; opponents said it privileged private developers over residents and undermined the moratorium’s purpose.

Why it matters: lawyers, utility officials and residents told the court they feared the rapid pace of data‑center development in the region could bring large new demands on electricity and potable water systems, changes in land use, noise and wastewater impacts. Proponents of the moratorium said it would give the county and planning staff time to draft local rules and safeguards. Opponents — including some justices — warned that a local moratorium could conflict with state law and risk litigation or the county losing projects to neighboring jurisdictions.

What the court heard: County legal counsel and other members flagged an Attorney General opinion about local restrictions on certain digital‑asset operations; counsel advised the body the proposed moratorium could face legal challenge because state law constrains local bans on particular categories of digital operations. After a substitute amendment was offered to narrow the ordinance and to explicitly grandfather projects already well into the pipeline, the quorum court voted to adopt the measure as amended.

What the ordinance does and next steps: the adopted ordinance pauses acceptance and processing of new data‑center applications in the county’s unincorporated areas for 12 months while explicitly allowing projects meeting the grandfather clause to proceed under existing approvals and interconnection agreements. The court directed planning staff and the county attorney’s office to work on regulatory language during the moratorium period; the transcript records additional procedural directions for planning and an invitation to public outreach. The ordinance’s proponents said they will follow up with public meetings and planning hearings. Legal counsel acknowledged a risk of litigation but said the county can use the pause to craft regulations that comply with state law.

Votes and formal actions: the transcript records the ordinance as adopted with the amendment; the clerk’s roll calls and verbal tallies are recorded in the meeting transcript. (See provenance for roll‑call segments and the clerk’s tallies.)

What’s next: planning staff were charged with drafting regulatory language and scheduling public hearings within the moratorium window; the court may revisit the moratorium length or scope depending on the outcome of those rules and counsel’s guidance.