The Data Center Divide
A policy snapshot ahead of the 2026 midterms. Mapping data center incentives, restrictions, and bans through legislation, regulations, and executive actions across all 50 states and 1,462 local jurisdictions.
Waushara County
Anti-Data Center Policies
Waushara County’s enacted ordinance allows data centers only through conditional-use approval in the M-I intensive manufacturing zone, with compatibility showing and possible studies; its description nevertheless uses future-tense wording.
current law · County measureAmends Waushara County Code Chapters 8, 54, and 58, including county building-code authority, wastewater systems, zoning, setbacks, and highway access; the amendments become effective upon County Board approval and recording.Waushara County, Wisconsin Ordinance No. 707 (2026)
What this means
The measure would limit data centers to conditional-use approval in the M-I intensive manufacturing zone (“only in the M-I zone and only as a potential Conditional Use”). Applicants would also need to show compatibility with nearby land uses, and officials could require studies, adding meaningful hurdles and possible delays—but not banning development outright.
People behind it
- David Bosshard
Chair of the Waushara County Planning & Zoning Committee and submitter of Ordinances Nos. 707 and 708.
- Waushara County Planning & Zoning Committee
Filed the draft amendments for Ordinance No. 707, considered and approved the proposal, and submitted the zoning-change request in Ordinance No. 708 to the County Board.
- Mike Carter
Applicant who filed the zoning-amendment application underlying Ordinance No. 708.
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- Napowan LLC
Applicant/entity identified in the zoning-change request underlying Ordinance No. 708.
- John Jarvis
Public Works Committee member who submitted Ordinance No. 709.
- Waushara County Public Works Committee
Received the request and recommended adding the State Highway 152 segment to the ATV/UTV route designation in Ordinance No. 709.
- Highway Commissioner
Recommended the State Highway 152 route addition in Ordinance No. 709.
Restrictions & requirementsHide restrictions & requirements7
Data centers are listed only as conditional uses in the M-I Intensive Manufacturing zoning district; they are not authorized as permitted uses in other zoning districts.
A data center must obtain a conditional use permit, supported by an application and preliminary site plan, before it can operate.
The applicant must demonstrate that the proposed data center is compatible with the underlying zoning and surrounding area, maintains community character, and aligns with the County’s Comprehensive Plan.
The Zoning Administrator may require additional studies or information for a data center, including traffic studies, environmental impact assessments, property-value assessments, or operational plans, to explain how potential impacts will be mitigated.
A data center conditional-use application requires a public hearing with published Class II notice, and the zoning committee must review it under standards addressing environmental quality, water quality, property values, compatibility in scope and scale, and consistency with the Comprehensive Plan.
The zoning committee may impose additional conditions on a data center conditional-use permit, including operational controls, modifications to sewage or water-supply facilities, waste-disposal requirements, landscaping, operating periods, sureties, deed restrictions, and floodproofing.
The zoning committee must decide a conditional-use application within 90 days after the public hearing, and a denied application cannot be refiled for the same or substantially the same use for 12 months.
Benefits & exceptionsHide benefits & exceptions2
The ordinance creates a defined permitting category for a "Data Center," covering facilities that house servers, storage systems, and networking equipment. This provides regulatory clarity for classifying and reviewing proposed facilities.
Data centers are expressly added as a conditional use in the M-I Intensive Manufacturing zoning district, making them eligible for approval there rather than being unlisted uses. The approval remains subject to the conditional-use process, compatibility with surrounding land uses, community-character and comprehensive-plan requirements, and any additional studies or mitigation information the Zoning Administrator may require.
Sources
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