Mercer County KY one-year data center moratorium (2026)
Mercer County, KY — Fiscal Court One-Year Data Center Moratorium in Unincorporated County (August 11, 2026)
Mercer County, KY · Mercer County, Ky. — Fiscal Court Ordinance (Aug. 11, 2026)
- Status
- In effect
- Expires
- August 11, 2027
- Applies to
- Applicants seeking to construct data centers in unincorporated Mercer County; Mercer County planning and permitting officials.
- Enforced by
- Mercer County Fiscal Court / Mercer County Planning and Zoning Commission
The Mercer County Fiscal Court passed a one-year moratorium on applications to construct new data centers, by unanimous vote on second reading, on August 11, 2026. The Fiscal Court had voted to draft the moratorium on July 16 and gave it first reading on July 29. The moratorium applies only to the unincorporated areas of the county — a limit that matters here more than usual, because the small city of Burgin was simultaneously weighing annexation of land for a roughly $1 billion data center project. If Burgin annexes, that project would sit inside city limits and outside the county's pause, which is why regional coverage described the measure as 'a data center moratorium with a city-sized hole.' Burgin delayed its annexation vote. A separate ordinance creating an IT zone governing where data centers could be sited was still moving through the Fiscal Court as of September 9, 2026. UPDATE 2026-10-01: On September 28, 2026 the Fiscal Court unanimously rejected the proposed IT-zone regulations that would have allowed hyperscale data centers beside the E.W. Brown power plant. The moratorium, which would have ended automatically if those regulations were adopted, stays in place. Developer Panattoni is still pursuing a 950-acre data center.
Who is protected: Residents and landowners of unincorporated Mercer County, through a one-year pause on new data center applications while siting rules are developed. Residents inside incorporated cities in the county — including Burgin — are NOT covered.
Legal detail
Mercer County, Ky. Fiscal Court ordinance, adopted unanimously on second reading August 11, 2026; one-year term on acceptance of applications to construct new data centers. Jurisdictional scope: unincorporated Mercer County only. Incorporated municipalities within the county — notably Burgin, which was considering annexing land for an approximately $1 billion data center development — are not bound, so annexation is an available route around the pause. Procedural history: motion to draft (July 16, 2026); first reading (July 29, 2026); second reading and adoption (August 11, 2026). A distinct IT-zone siting ordinance was under Fiscal Court consideration as of September 9, 2026 and is not covered by this entry. Ordinance number not reported.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Mercer County, KY |
|---|---|
| Level | County |
| Strength | Moderate |
| Enacted | August 11, 2026 |
| Citation | Mercer County, Ky. — Fiscal Court Ordinance (Aug. 11, 2026) |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | New data center applications not accepted in unincorporated areas during the moratorium |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy · government use of AI |
| News report | A county's data center moratorium doesn't include a small city considering huge project — Kentucky Lantern |
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
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