Cass County, MO Data Centers & Crypto Mining: Crypto Mining Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Regulatory status
- Treated as a data center, not a separate use
- Definition source
- Cass County Code § 400.662(A)
- Permit required
- Special use permit
- Applicable standards
- Full data center size/setback/height/noise rules
Summary
Cass County does not treat cryptocurrency mining as a separate use category: Section 400.662 folds bitcoin mining and commercial cryptocurrency mining into its definition of a data center, so any crypto server farm in unincorporated Cass County must clear the full data center special use permit process.
COMMERCIAL CRYPTOCURRENCY MINING Means the commercial process by which cryptocurrency transactions are verified and added to the public ledger, known as the block chain, and also the means through which new units of cryptocurrencies are released, through the use of server farms or data centers employing data processing equipment. Any equipment requiring a high-density load service, for a server farm or data center, will constitute a commercial cryptocurrency mining operation. ... DATA CENTER Means a facility whose primary service is data processing or data storage, and is used to house computer systems and associated components, such as ... server farm, bitcoin mining, crypto processing, commercial cryptocurrency mining, virtual private networks, virtual servers, artificial intelligence training or processing, ... a cryptocurrency server farm, a cryptocurrency data center, telehouse co-location, or any other term applicable to facilities which are used for such purposes shall be deemed to be a data center.
Full Breakdown
662(A) defines COMMERCIAL CRYPTOCURRENCY MINING as the commercial process by which cryptocurrency transactions are verified and added to the blockchain, and the means through which new units of cryptocurrency are released, through server farms or data centers running data processing equipment; the code specifies that any equipment requiring a high-density load service for a server farm or data center will constitute a commercial cryptocurrency mining operation. Rather than writing a standalone crypto ordinance or moratorium, the county's DATA CENTER definition explicitly folds in bitcoin mining, crypto processing, commercial cryptocurrency mining, cryptocurrency server farms and cryptocurrency data centers as facilities that count as data centers for zoning purposes.
662, it is bound by every development standard in that section, including the special use permit requirement in Subsection C, the 1,000-acre and 60% lot coverage caps in Subsection E(2), the 1,320-foot facility-to-facility and 1,000-foot property-line setbacks in Subsection E(5), the 40-foot height limit in Subsection E(7), and the 50 dBC noise ceiling in Subsection E(16). There is no lighter-touch or accelerated path for a crypto-only facility; a server farm proposing to mine cryptocurrency in unincorporated Cass County must submit the same special use permit application, siting studies, and decommissioning/bond plan required of any other data center use.
Violations & Fines
Operating a cryptocurrency server farm or commercial cryptocurrency mining facility in unincorporated Cass County without the special use permit required for data centers under Section 400.662(C) is a zoning violation, enforced by the Zoning and Codes Department the same way any unpermitted data center use would be; the facility is also subject to the section's size, setback, height and noise standards regardless of whether it markets itself as crypto-specific.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Cass County have a separate ordinance for crypto mining farms?
Is cryptocurrency mining banned in unincorporated Cass County?
What counts as a cryptocurrency server farm under the code?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cass County
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