Panama City and Bay County FL data center moratoria (2026)
Panama City and Bay County, Florida — City Adopts a 12-Month Moratorium on AI Data Center Applications While the County Approves a Separate Six-Month Ban to Review Land Development Regulations (2026)
Panama City, FL · Panama City, Fla. — 12-month AI data center application moratorium (July 15, 2026); Bay County, Fla. — six-month moratorium pending land development regulation review (July 8, 2026)
- Status
- In effect
- Expires
- July 15, 2027
- Applies to
- Applicants for AI data centers in Panama City (12 months) and developers in unincorporated Bay County (six months)
- Enforced by
- Panama City Commission; Bay County Board of County Commissioners
Two governments in the Florida panhandle acted on data centers within the same period, at different lengths and for different stated purposes. PANAMA CITY implemented a TWELVE-MONTH moratorium on AI data center applications. BAY COUNTY commissioners separately approved a SIX-MONTH BAN to review land development regulations. The pairing is the useful part: the city paused applications for a year while the county gave itself half that time to rewrite the regulations that would govern any facility in unincorporated territory. A developer looking at the Panama City area therefore faces two different clocks and two different territorial scopes, and the earlier county expiry does not open the city. This is the standard Florida county-municipality split — county land-use authority reaches unincorporated areas only — and the same structure recorded here for Escambia County and Pensacola. The measures surfaced in coverage of a gubernatorial campaign visit: Democratic nominee David Jolly and running mate Gwen Graham proposed an IMMEDIATE, ONE-YEAR STATEWIDE MORATORIUM on construction of hyperscale AI data centers, with Jolly framing it as a temporary pause rather than an outright ban, to give Florida time to study long-term environmental, economic and health impacts. That statewide proposal is a campaign position, not a measure, and is recorded as context only.
Who is protected: Panama City residents and residents of unincorporated Bay County, Florida
Legal detail
PANAMA CITY, Fla. and BAY COUNTY, Fla. — two separate data center measures in place as of late August 2026. (1) PANAMA CITY: a 12-MONTH MORATORIUM ON AI DATA CENTER APPLICATIONS. (2) BAY COUNTY: a SIX-MONTH BAN approved by county commissioners TO REVIEW LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS. THE PAIRING IS WHAT MAKES THIS WORTH A SINGLE ENTRY: the two instruments differ in length (12 months vs 6), in subject framing (applications for AI data centers vs a ban pending regulatory review), and necessarily in territory. Florida county land-use authority reaches UNINCORPORATED areas; the municipality legislates for itself. A developer in the Panama City area therefore faces two clocks and two jurisdictions, and the county's earlier expiry does NOT open the city. The same county/municipality split is recorded on Escambia County FL large-scale data center ban (2026), whose ban expressly excludes the City of Pensacola and the Town of Century, and on Dorchester County MD one-year data center moratorium (2026), where the council noted each municipality must legislate for itself. CAMPAIGN CONTEXT, recorded as context and NOT as a measure: Democratic gubernatorial nominee DAVID JOLLY and running mate GWEN GRAHAM proposed an IMMEDIATE ONE-YEAR STATEWIDE MORATORIUM on construction of hyperscale AI data centers during a Panama City visit, with Jolly stating that a temporary moratorium rather than an outright ban would give the state time to study long-term environmental, economic and health impacts, and that 'voters across the state of Florida right now are saying we don't want data centers.' A campaign proposal is not an instrument. FLORIDA COHORT indexed here: Levy County FL data center moratorium Ord. 2026-05 (2026), Putnam County FL data center moratorium (2026), Palm Beach County FL one-year large data center moratorium (2026), Escambia County FL large-scale data center ban (2026), Flagler County FL 1-year data center moratorium and Florida FDOT statewide ALPR permit revocation (2026).
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Panama City, FL |
|---|---|
| Level | City / local |
| Strength | Moderate |
| Enacted | July 15, 2026 |
| Citation | Panama City, Fla. — 12-month AI data center application moratorium (July 15, 2026); Bay County, Fla. — six-month moratorium pending land development regulation review (July 8, 2026) |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | AI data center applications are not accepted in Panama City during the 12-month term; covered development is banned in unincorporated Bay County during the six-month review |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy · consumer protection · government use of AI |
| News report | Panama City hits pause on AI data centers with 12-month moratorium — WJHG |
Related data-center siting and energy rules elsewhere
- Superior WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Dane County WI Hyperscale Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- Madison WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Manitowoc County WI Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- WA SB 5982 (Data Center / Clean Energy) · In effect
- Dayton OH data center moratorium (180-day, Apr 2026) · In effect
See something wrong or out of date? Submit a correction. Every entry must carry a verifiable source.