A moratorium bars consideration of or action on land-development permits for data centers in Putnam County from August 7, 2026; it was initially set to end November 6, 2026, and was later extended through November 17, 2026.

Data centers are prohibited in R-1R, R-1, R-2, MHP, RM-1, RM-3, Village, C-1, and C-2 zoning districts; they are allowed only as a conditional use in the AG district and as permitted uses in I-M and Public districts.

Before construction, an applicant must obtain a data-center permit and submit proof of compliance with the ordinance.

A data-center permit application must include a comprehensive site plan prepared with drawings by a Georgia-licensed professional engineer, project and operating information, access measures, electrical schematics, erosion controls, landscaping, roads, grading, vegetation and screening plans, and exterior-lighting plans.

Applicants must pay a nonrefundable data-center permit fee set by the county's planning and development fee schedule.

A data center may not begin operating until it has been inspected by Putnam County and obtained the required permit.

Data centers are limited to 75 feet in height, measured from structure-pad level, although incidental uninhabited structures such as water towers and smokestacks are exempt from the height limit.

A data center must provide a minimum 200-foot buffer along property lines adjoining residential districts and a 50-foot buffer next to C-1 or C-2 uses; power-transfer stations, generators, and other appurtenances must also have at least 50 feet of separation from one another.

Data-center buildings must meet 100-foot front, side, and rear setbacks, have at least 110 feet of street frontage, and have at least 300 feet of lot width at the building line.

Exterior walls facing roads or residential properties may not be entirely metal and must contain at least 40% stone or masonry facades.

Air-conditioning and HVAC equipment must be screened from public rights-of-way and adjacent properties unless the equipment is more than 100 feet from adjacent property lines, and required evergreen screening must be at least 15 feet tall where existing buffers are insufficient.

Electrical interconnection and distribution lines within a data-center boundary must be underground, except for lines leaving the project or located within a substation.

Before operation, each data center must maintain an emergency-response plan approved by the county planning and development office, sheriff's office, fire department, and emergency management agency, update it annually by January 1, and provide emergency-contact, materials-safety, and shutdown information.

A data center that is not used for its approved purpose for 180 consecutive days is deemed abandoned and may not resume operations until a new application and inspection are completed.

Applicants must provide utility-availability statements for water, sewer, natural gas, and electricity at the land-disturbance-permit stage, and data centers must use a closed-loop cooling-water system.

An acoustic or noise study is required at the land-disturbance-permit stage; noise-minimizing walls may be required around main buildings and are mandatory around outdoor generator areas.

Data centers must use minimum Tier 4F generators.

During normal operations, data-center noise may not exceed 55 dBA at a property line containing an existing residential structure or at residentially zoned property, and a sound study is required before a certificate of occupancy when the project adjoins residentially zoned property or agricultural property with a residence.

Construction and permanent security lighting must be directed toward the immediate secured or construction area and may not cause light pollution on neighboring property or road rights-of-way; installed site lighting must use dark-sky-friendly solutions.

Before construction, applicants must submit a decommissioning and restoration plan covering removal, hazardous-material handling, site remediation, restoration, health and safety, reporting, and compliance procedures.

Applicants must provide financial assurance equal to 100% of the estimated net decommissioning cost, with the amount subject to periodic review and adjustment; acceptable forms include a bond, escrow account, letter of credit, or another county-approved financial instrument.

The county may revoke a data-center permit for noncompliance after giving three calendar days' written notice of deficiencies if they are not corrected within that period.

Violations may result in penalties under the county code, and data-center owners and operators are responsible for compliance and may be punished for noncompliance.

Data centers are permitted in Industrial-Manufacturing and Public zoning districts, and may be allowed as a conditional use in Agricultural districts; they are prohibited in the listed residential, Village, and commercial districts. Data Centers shall be authorized in the zoning districts

A data center building may be up to 75 feet high, and height limits do not apply to certain accessory structures such as water towers, conveyor belts, smokestacks, and other incidental uninhabited structures. shall not exceed a height of seventy-five (75) feet

A contiguous data-center campus may be subdivided without applying minimum frontage, width, and acreage requirements to each internal lot, provided the overall campus meets the ordinance and each lot has adequate road access. Minimum lot frontages, width and acreage shall not apply to subdivided lots within the data center campus

The ordinance applies only to data centers installed or constructed after its effective date; data centers constructed before that date are not required to comply with the new chapter. constructed prior to the effective date

A data-center permit cannot be revoked immediately for noncompliance: the Director must first provide three calendar days' written notice of deficiencies, allowing the owner or operator an opportunity to correct them. provide three calendar days' written notice

Land and structures in a data-center project may be used for uses customarily incidental to the primary data-center use. uses customarily incidental to the primary permitted use

A moratorium bars data-center uses through November 6, 2026; the county states that the moratorium was enacted on August 7, 2026. The moratorium will remain in effect through November 6, 2026.

Data centers are prohibited in R-1R, R-1, R-2, manufactured-home-park, RM-1, RM-3, Village, C-1, and C-2 districts. They are allowed only as a conditional use in the AG district and as permitted uses in I-M Industrial-Manufacturing and Public districts.

Before construction, an applicant must obtain a data-center permit, submit proof of compliance, and pay a nonrefundable permit fee; the facility cannot begin operating until it has been inspected and permitted.

The permit application must include a comprehensive site plan prepared with drawings by a Georgia-licensed professional engineer, along with project, maintenance, access, electrical, erosion-control, landscaping, grading, vegetation, road, lighting, and screening information.

The applicant must submit a decommissioning and restoration plan before obtaining a building permit, covering equipment removal, hazardous materials, remediation, restoration, health and safety, compliance, and reporting.

The owner or developer must provide financial assurance equal to 100% of estimated net decommissioning costs, including removal and site restoration. Acceptable forms include a bond, escrow account, letter of credit, or another instrument approved by the Board of Commissioners.

A data-center building may not exceed 75 feet in height, although the limit does not apply to incidental, uninhabited structures such as water towers, conveyor belts, and smokestacks.

A minimum 200-foot-wide buffer, which may include required setbacks, is required along property lines adjoining residential districts; a 50-foot buffer is required next to C-1 or C-2 uses. HVAC and air-conditioning equipment must be screened unless it is more than 100 feet from property lines.

The proposal must meet stated site-dimensional requirements, including front, side, and rear setbacks listed as 50 feet with a struck-through 100-foot alternative, minimum street frontage of 110 feet, and minimum building-line width listed as 110 feet with a struck-through 300-foot alternative.

Principal-building facades must face streets or adjacent arterial streets unless the building is more than 500 feet from or not visible from a public right-of-way. Exterior walls facing roads or residential properties may not be entirely metal and must contain at least 40% stone or masonry.

Natural vegetation may be cleared only to the extent necessary for constructing, operating, and maintaining the data center, consistent with preservation or forestry best practices.

Electrical interconnection and distribution lines within the data-center boundaries must be underground, except for lines leaving the project or located within a substation.

The facility must have evergreen screening where existing buffers do not adequately obscure it from adjacent residences; required screening must be at least 15 feet tall. Operator, owner, manufacturer, and installer contact information must be posted at each entrance, and warning signs must be posted every 100 feet.

A written emergency-response plan must be approved by the county planning office, sheriff's office, fire department, and emergency-management agency and updated annually by January 1. It must include contact information, applicable material-safety data sheets, and shutdown instructions.

Utility availability statements for water, sewer, natural gas, and electricity must be provided at the land-disturbance-permit stage, and the data center must use a closed-loop cooling-water system.

An acoustic or noise study is required at the land-disturbance-permit stage. Noise-reduction walls may be required on main buildings and are mandatory around outdoor generator areas, and generators must meet the minimum Tier 4F standard.

During normal operations, sound may not exceed 55 dBA at a property line containing an existing residential structure or at residentially zoned property. If the project abuts residentially zoned property or agricultural property with a residence, a sound study is required before the certificate of occupancy.

Construction lighting must be limited to active construction areas, and permanent security lighting must point downward and avoid light pollution on neighboring properties and public rights-of-way. Any site lighting must use dark-sky-friendly designs.

A data center unused for 180 consecutive days for its approved purpose is deemed abandoned and cannot resume operations until a new application and inspection are completed.

A permit may be revoked for noncompliance after three calendar days' written notice of deficiencies if the deficiencies are not corrected; the operator may then have to submit a new application before resuming operations.

After permanent cessation or abandonment, the approved decommissioning timeline begins, and the county may draw on the financial assurance if the developer fails to complete decommissioning, remediation, and restoration after notice and a 60-day cure opportunity. A 10% penalty of the bond amount applies if the county must call the security.

Data centers are permitted in Industrial-Manufacturing and Public zoning districts, and may be allowed in Agricultural districts as a conditional use; they are prohibited in the listed residential, Village, and commercial districts. Data Centers shall be authorized

A data center may be up to 75 feet high, measured from the structure pad; height limits do not apply to accessory structures such as water towers, conveyor belts, smokestacks, and other incidental, uninhabited structures. shall not exceed a height of seventy-five (75) feet

A contiguous data-center campus may be divided into subdivided lots without applying minimum frontage, width, or acreage requirements to each internal lot, as long as the entire campus complies with the ordinance and each lot has adequate frontage on public or private roads for service. Minimum lot frontages, width and acreage shall not apply

Required setbacks and buffers apply only at the external boundaries of the data-center campus, not between parcels that are part of the same campus. only apply to external property boundaries

The data-center use includes structures and land used for uses customarily incidental to the primary permitted use, allowing related operational facilities and activities. uses customarily incidental to the primary permitted use

The required front-facade orientation toward a street does not apply when the front of the building is more than 500 feet from the public right-of-way or is not visible from it. greater than 500 feet from the public right-of-way

HVAC equipment does not have to be screened from public or neighboring views when it is more than 100 feet from adjacent property lines. more than 100 feet from adjacent property lines

Data centers constructed before the effective date of the ordinance are grandfathered from the chapter's requirements, protecting existing facilities from having to comply with the new standards. constructed prior to the effective date