Jay County, Indiana, adopted a data-center zoning exclusion on May 11, 2026. Its status in this snapshot is enacted.
The record reads: "Jay County approved two ordinances establishing among the strictest data center standards in the nation: a 1,000-ft property setback, 2,500-ft dwelling setback, 35-ft height cap, closed-loop cooling requirement, and a 50 dB noise limit.… (datacentertracker.org)."
Details
| Action | Class | Status | Date | MW threshold | Scope | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoning exclusion | restriction | enacted | May 11, 2026 | county-wide | datacentertracker.org |
Jurisdiction type: county. County: Jay County. Dataset: datacentertracker. Snapshot August 15, 2026; documented actions, not a census.
Indiana context
Indiana has 38 documented local actions across 34 jurisdictions in this snapshot. At the state level, the state has a tax action (enacted, March 12, 2026) and Indiana Michigan Power territory has a large-load tariff (in force, February 19, 2025).
A town that says no to a data center gives up local tax revenue, not jobs: one large campus pays $2M to $90M a year depending on the tax regime, against roughly 50 permanent jobs. The parent piece prices it and lists the conditions that beat a ban.