Hernando County weighs moratorium on new data centers over water concerns

Hernando County commissioners will weigh a proposed moratorium on new data center applications as the county studies how much water the projects could draw and what they would mean for utilities, roads and nearby neighborhoods.

The discussion comes as data centers move from a theoretical growth issue to a local land-use question. For Hernando, the decision is not just about whether to welcome another industrial user. It is about whether the county can absorb the electricity demand, water use and infrastructure pressure that can follow large-scale tech facilities before more applications advance.

Any pause would slow new proposals while county staff and elected officials sort out what stronger rules should look like. That matters for residents because the cost of a data center is not limited to the building site. Power upgrades, water service, road wear and land-use conflicts can land on public systems long before a project delivers any tax revenue.

The county’s June 2 land-use hearing at John Law Ayers Commission Chambers is where the issue is expected to surface. Hernando’s 2026 meeting calendar already had that session on the books, making it a natural place for commissioners to examine whether the county should move ahead with a moratorium or write tighter standards first.

The local debate is unfolding against a new state framework. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 484 on May 7 in Lakeland, and the law takes effect July 1. It keeps local governments in charge of comprehensive planning and land-development rules for large load customers, requires public utilities to provide certain minimum tariff and service requirements, and bars water management districts or the Florida Department of Environmental Protection from issuing consumptive-use permits to a large-scale data center under certain circumstances. The law also directs the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to study the construction and operation of large-scale data centers.

DeSantis said the bill protects ratepayers, local communities and water resources, and gives communities the ability to deny projects or set stricter standards. For Hernando officials, that means any county action will have to fit within a tightening state playbook.

The pressure is not unique to Hernando. In February, Florida still did not have a hyperscale data center operating, even as proposals emerged in Polk, Palm Beach, Martin and Citrus counties. Earthjustice senior attorney Christina Reichert has said some hyperscale centers can use up to five million gallons of water a day for cooling, alongside worries about noise and pollution.

For Hernando County, the core question is whether to set the rules now, before industrial-scale growth arrives, or to let future projects test the county’s water supply, roads and rural character first.