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Fiscal Court moves forward with data-center ban and lowers county tax rate (first reading)
Summary
The Ordinance Committee recommended an Article 7 text amendment that would prohibit data centers in Woodford County and the court voted for first reading of Ordinance 2026-07 to set the county ad valorem rate at 3.90¢ per $100 assessed value; second reading set for Aug. 11, 2026.
The Woodford County Ordinance Committee recommended the fiscal court ask the county attorney to draft a text amendment to Article 7 that includes a prohibition on data centers; the committee's recommendation was presented and the full court approved moving forward.
The court also adopted the first reading of Ordinance 2026-07, lowering the county ad valorem tax rate to 3.90¢ per $100 of assessed value. "This ordinance is the mechanism in which we are doing that," the judge said after the ordinance committee presented the recommendation. Assistant county attorney Phyllis Sisson read ordinance details including the county-wide assessed valuation and an estimated county revenue figure: "the tax rate of 3.9... would generate a county revenue of $1,489,077.19," she said. The ordinance received unanimous first-reading approval; the second reading and public hearing are scheduled for August 11, 2026.
Court members framed the tax-rate move as part of a multi-year effort to return dollars to taxpayers amid rising assessments; the proposed text amendment on data centers will proceed through the ordinance drafting and committee process before any formal vote.
