Escambia County Moving to Ban Data Centers — Public Hearing Set for July, Vote Expected in August

Escambia County, FL (NewsRadio 92.3) -- Escambia County is on track to formally ban data centers after commissioners unanimously directed the county attorney Tuesday night to draft a regulatory ordinance, with a public hearing scheduled for July 23rd and a vote expected August 6th.

The action came after more than an hour of public testimony at a packed Gary Sansing Public Forum earlier in the evening, where dozens of residents demanded a permanent ban. A petition opposing data centers in the county had collected more than 5,300 signatures by Tuesday night. Commissioner Steven Barry was absent from the meeting.

County Attorney Allison Rogers said the ordinance would be structured as a general regulatory ban rather than a moratorium, specifically to avoid conflict with state legislation passed last year that restricts local governments from imposing moratoriums. Rogers said it would not need to go through the planning board and could move directly to a public hearing in July with a board vote in August.

All four commissioners present went on record opposing data centers Tuesday. Commissioner Lumon May moved to add the item to the agenda at the start of the meeting. Commissioner Steve Strohberger was among the most direct, calling for the board to hold a vote and ban them outright.

Florida West Executive Director Chris Platte also appeared at the meeting and pushed back on the framing that has driven weeks of public opposition. Platte said Florida West has never been in active negotiations for a data center, that the phrase was misattributed to him by media, and that standalone or hyperscale data centers are not on Florida West's target list. He also noted that the county's regional power infrastructure could not support a large-scale facility anyway, and that a state law signed this year requires large utility users over 50 megawatts to pay for their own infrastructure rather than passing costs to ratepayers.

Those assurances did not satisfy the crowd or the board. Commissioners directed Rogers to move forward with the draft ordinance regardless.

Pensacola City Councilman Charles Bare is separately drafting a city ordinance that would mirror a data center ban already passed by Walton County. If Escambia County's ordinance passes in August, it would join Walton and Jackson counties as the third local government in the region to formally prohibit data center development.