Laurens County Council approves moratorium on data center permits, 5-0

Laurens County Council voted unanimously (5-0) on second reading to impose a temporary moratorium on the acceptance, review, approval and issuance of development permits for data centers in the county.

Public commenters urged caution. John Parnell, who said he lives in Hickory Tavern, urged "proactive instead of reactive" action and offered to drive council members to a large site in Muntz Corner to inspect the noise firsthand. Attorney Michana Tate, speaking from her experience in real estate litigation, flagged Section 4(b) of the proposed moratorium for possible abuse, saying, "Section 4 b, there's an exemption for facilities owned and operated by a governmental entity for governmental purposes," and asking the council to clarify whether that includes county, state or federal facilities.

Council discussion focused on that exemption. Councilmember (Vice Chairman) Brownlee and County Attorney Metz cautioned that the provision largely restates existing limits on local authority over federal and state entities; Councilmember Lane offered to amend the language to exclude Laurens County itself. Lane later put a rephrasing motion on the table to clarify Section 4(b) to "exclude Laurens County" from the exemption; the motion did not receive a second in that exact form, but the ordinance moved forward and passed 5-0.

The moratorium passed as the council sought time to study potential impacts on water, power and noise and to draft more specific rules. The council signaled it intends to refine exemptions and enforcement language in later drafts and to coordinate with city governments where relevant.