South Carolina local moratoria
Every local infrastructure moratorium in the inventory for South Carolina, current through August 19, 2026.
6 instruments — 6 in force, 0 pending, 0 past.
State policy is tracked separately: 7 actions (7 bills) in state_legislation.csv. These are not included in the local count above.
| Jurisdiction | Type | Enacted | Sectors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chester County | County | 2026-07-20 | data center | 🟢 Active |
| Chesterfield County | County | 2026-06-01 | data center, cryptocurrency mining | 🟢 Active |
| Colleton County | County | 2026-07-06 | data center | 🟢 Active |
| Greenwood County | County | 2026-07-21 | data center | 🟢 Active |
| Newberry County | County | 2026-06-05 | data center | 🟢 Active |
| York County | County | 2026-07-13 | data center | 🟢 Active |
Detailed entries
Chester County
- Type: County
- Status: 🟢 Active
- Date enacted: July 20, 2026 (County Council unanimous approval, per WSOC-TV, following a June 15, 2026 first reading)
- Normalized date:
2026-07-20(exact) - Duration: Six months
- Current end date:
— - Sectors: data center
- Moratorium ID:
sc-chester-county-2026 - Legal basis: Chester County Council data center moratorium ordinance; adopted ordinance number and full text not located in reviewed county records
- What prompted it: Pause to allow the county to develop rules and guidelines, with public educational meetings planned to begin in August 2026; first-reading materials cited electric-grid and utility capacity, economic, environmental, and community effects.
- Affected projects: —
- Detailed status: Active as of 2026-07-31, per news reporting. [VERIFY instrument number; primary source (news-only evidence) not confirmed at confidence 0.6 in the 2026-07 refresh]
- Outcome: Approved six-month moratorium on new data center development.
Chesterfield County
- Type: County
- Status: 🟢 Active
- Date enacted: June 1, 2026 (County Council third reading and public hearing, adopting Ordinance 25-26-23)
- Normalized date:
2026-06-01(exact) - Duration: Until January 1, 2028, or until the county adopts regulations for data center/data processing/cryptocurrency mining uses, whichever occurs first
- Current end date:
— - Sectors: data center, cryptocurrency mining
- Moratorium ID:
sc-chesterfield-county-2026 - Legal basis: Ordinance 25-26-23 (Chesterfield County Council)
- What prompted it: Immediately stops acceptance, review, or action on zoning approvals, construction permits, site plans, and other county approvals for data centers, data processing facilities, cryptocurrency mining operations, and related uses in unincorporated Chesterfield County; followed an emergency moratorium adopted April 6, 2026.
- Affected projects: —
- Detailed status: Active as of 2026-07-31; regular ordinance replacing an April 6, 2026 emergency moratorium, in effect until 2028-01-01 or earlier adoption of permanent regulations.
- Outcome: Adopted long-term temporary moratorium on data center and related approvals in unincorporated Chesterfield County.
Colleton County
- Type: County
- Status: 🟢 Active
- Date enacted: July 6, 2026 (County Council third reading and enactment of Ordinance 26-O-04, effective immediately)
- Normalized date:
2026-07-06(exact) - Duration: Six months
- Current end date:
— - Sectors: data center
- Moratorium ID:
sc-colleton-county-2026 - Legal basis: Ordinance 26-O-04 (Colleton County Council)
- What prompted it: Pauses consideration of special exceptions, conditional uses, and other land-use approvals for data centers while county staff and the Planning Commission study appropriate locations/conditions and prepare comprehensive-plan and code amendments; also holds received-but-unconsidered applications in abeyance.
- Affected projects: Unspecified data center project(s) subject to related Southern Environmental Law Center litigation, paused during the moratorium.
- Detailed status: Active as of 2026-07-31; the Southern Environmental Law Center agreed to pause related litigation for the moratorium period.
- Outcome: Adopted six-month moratorium on data center special exceptions/conditional uses.
Greenwood County
- Type: County
- Status: 🟢 Active
- Date enacted: July 21, 2026 (County Council 4-3 approval of third and final reading of Ordinance 2026-25)
- Normalized date:
2026-07-21(exact) - Duration: One year
- Current end date:
— - Sectors: data center
- Moratorium ID:
sc-greenwood-county-2026 - Legal basis: Ordinance 2026-25 (Greenwood County Council)
- What prompted it: Pause on new data center approvals following citizen concerns; sponsored by Councilmembers Mark Allison, Cathy Miller, and Dayne Pruitt; twenty-four people registered for public comment on third reading.
- Affected projects: —
- Detailed status: Active as of 2026-07-31. [VERIFY primary source (news-only evidence) not confirmed at confidence 0.65 in the 2026-07 refresh]
- Outcome: Adopted one-year moratorium on new data center approvals by a 4-3 third-reading vote.
Newberry County
- Type: County
- Status: 🟢 Active
- Date enacted: An initial pause was put in effect around 2026-06-02/06-03 following resident concerns (WIS News 10, 2026-06-03) and the council's rejection of a data center deal (WLTX, 2026-06-07); WRDW reported the county 'passes 1-year data center moratorium' on 2026-06-05. The council then 'unanimously confirmed' the year-long moratorium on 2026-07-16 (WIS News 10; FOX Carolina).
- Normalized date:
2026-06-05(range) - Duration: One year
- Current end date:
— - Sectors: data center
- Moratorium ID:
sc-newberry-county-2026 - Legal basis: County council ordinance/resolution
- What prompted it: Resident opposition to a proposed AI data center development and the council's rejection of an associated data center deal
- Affected projects: A proposed AI data center development that the council voted on/rejected in early June 2026
- Detailed status: Active as of 2026-07-31; unanimously reconfirmed by the council on 2026-07-16. [VERIFY instrument number; primary source (news-only evidence) not confirmed at confidence 0.65 in the 2026-07 refresh]
- Outcome: One-year countywide data center moratorium adopted and later unanimously reconfirmed
York County
- Type: County
- Status: 🟢 Active
- Date enacted: July 13, 2026 (County Council third reading and public hearing, effective immediately in unincorporated York County)
- Normalized date:
2026-07-13(exact) - Duration: Nine months
- Current end date:
— - Sectors: data center
- Moratorium ID:
sc-york-county-2026 - Legal basis: York County Council moratorium ordinance on data centers; ordinance number not located in sources reviewed
- What prompted it: Restricts special-exception and conditional-use approvals, site-plan acceptance, and other land-use/development approvals for data centers in unincorporated York County while the county studies utility, water, noise, pollution, infrastructure, and nearby-property impacts.
- Affected projects: Existing vested projects, including approved QTS site plans, are exempt from the moratorium.
- Detailed status: Active as of 2026-07-31; may be extended by resolution if more study time is needed. Applies only in unincorporated areas; vested projects, including approved QTS site plans, are exempt.
- Outcome: Adopted nine-month moratorium on data center land-use approvals in unincorporated York County.
Source: moratorium_inventory.csv · Methodology · Codebook.