The ordinance prohibits data centers and substantially similar uses in all zoning districts, redevelopment areas, overlay districts, and land-use classifications within the areas it governs. Data Centers and substantially similar uses are prohibited.

The prohibition applies only in unincorporated Nye County areas without an elected town governing board, including areas with no associated town; towns with an elected governing board are excluded. This chapter will apply only within those unincorporated areas.

No zoning classification, development agreement, special-use or conditional-use permit, building permit, business license, site-plan approval, or other approval may authorize a data center in an area governed by the chapter. No permit, approval, zoning classification, development agreement.

The ordinance broadly defines a data center to include facilities for digital-data storage, processing, hosting, cloud computing, artificial-intelligence processing, cryptocurrency mining, blockchain processing, and similar operations, along with associated servers, cooling systems, generators, substations, and utility infrastructure. Data Center means any facility primarily used.

Uses that are substantially similar or functionally equivalent to a data center are prohibited regardless of their label; the County may consider power demand, cooling demand, server density, utility infrastructure, marketing materials, tenant mix, and services provided. No use substantially similar to or functionally equivalent.

An accessory server room is exempt only if it is subordinate to a lawful principal use, limited to the lesser of 2% of the principal structure’s gross floor area or 2,000 square feet, and not operated as independent commercial data hosting, cloud-computing, artificial-intelligence, or cryptocurrency-mining space. Accessory Server Rooms.

Existing data centers are protected only if they were lawfully established and operational before the ordinance’s effective date; they are legal nonconforming uses that may not be expanded, enlarged, intensified, or resumed after abandonment unless expressly authorized by law. Any lawfully established and operational Data Center.

It is unlawful to establish, construct, operate, expand, or maintain a data center within the regulated area. It shall be unlawful to establish, construct, operate, expand, or maintain.

County officials may issue a notice of violation requiring correction within no more than 10 days, unless immediate action is necessary to protect public health or safety. requiring correction within a period not to exceed ten (10) days.

Violations may result in administrative citations, fines, permit revocation, injunctions, abatement, civil or criminal enforcement where authorized, and other legal remedies; each day a violation continues is a separate offense. Each day a violation continues constitutes a separate offense.

A person challenging a determination that a use is a data center or equivalent use must file a written appeal with the Board of County Commissioners within 30 days and bears the burden of proving the use is not covered by the ordinance. may file a written appeal with the Board of County Commissioners within thirty (30) days.

A timely appeal generally stays enforcement, but the County Manager or designee may deny the stay in writing if it would pose an immediate threat to public health or safety. Filing a timely appeal shall stay further enforcement.

The ordinance was adopted to take effect after passage, approval, and required publication, with the adoption notice specifying September 7, 2026, as the effective date and requiring publication once a week for two weeks. This Ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after the 7th day of September, 2026.

The ordinance states that Nye County had approved a temporary moratorium on data centers while permanent regulations were being developed. approved a temporary moratorium on data centers.

The prohibition applies only in unincorporated areas that lack an elected town governing board. Areas with an elected town governing board are outside this chapter's applicability.

A lawful principal use may include an accessory server room without being treated as a prohibited data center, provided the room is accessory and subordinate and is limited to the lesser of 2% of the principal structure's gross floor area or 2,000 square feet. It may not operate as an independent commercial data-hosting, cloud-computing, artificial-intelligence-processing, or cryptocurrency-mining facility.

A data center that was lawfully established and operational before the ordinance's effective date may continue as a legal nonconforming use, subject to other applicable code requirements.

A person challenging a determination that a use is a data center may appeal to the Board of County Commissioners within 30 days. A timely appeal stays enforcement while the appeal is pending unless the County Manager or designee determines in writing that the stay would pose an immediate threat to public health or safety.