Champaign County, IL Data Centers & Crypto Mining: Data Center Moratoriums (2026)
Key Facts
- Adopted
- April 23, 2026, Ordinance No. 2026-9
- Threshold
- 10,000+ sq ft of processing area
- Duration
- 9 months (270 days) from effective date
- Purpose
- Board studies groundwater impacts before permanent rules
- Pending projects
- Held in abeyance until moratorium ends
- Geographic reach
- Unincorporated Champaign County only
Summary
Champaign County has temporarily banned new data centers. Adopted April 23, 2026, Zoning Ordinance Section 5.6 halts approval of any DATA CENTER with 10,000 square feet or more of processing area for nine months while the County Board studies groundwater impacts before writing permanent standards.
A. Temporarily prohibit DATA CENTER, as defined in Section 3, with at least 10,000 square feet of processing area, within the boundaries of Champaign County. ... 5.6.2 Duration of this Moratorium: This Development Moratorium on DATA CENTER with at least 10,000 square feet of processing area will expire 9 months, or 270 days, after its effective date. ... A. Any DATA CENTER with at least 10,000 square feet of processing area that is proposed after the effective date of this moratorium will not be approved by Champaign County until the expiration or revocation of this temporary moratorium.
Full Breakdown
On April 23, 2026 the Champaign County Board adopted Ordinance No. 2026-9 (Case 196-AT-26), adding Section 5.6, a Development Moratorium on DATA CENTER projects with at least 10,000 square feet of processing area, to the Zoning Ordinance. Section 5.6.1 states the moratorium's purpose is to temporarily prohibit such a DATA CENTER within the boundaries of Champaign County while giving the County Board time to research how the use affects the quality and safety of groundwater resources, so it can later adopt comprehensive ordinances regulating the use.
Section 5.6.2 fixes the moratorium's length: it will expire 9 months, or 270 days, after its effective date. Section 5.6.3 spells out who is covered. Any qualifying DATA CENTER proposed after the moratorium's effective date will not be approved by the county until the moratorium expires or is revoked, and any qualifying project that was already pending when the moratorium took effect is held in abeyance for the same period.
The moratorium sits in Section 5, the same part of the ordinance that governs zoning districts and maps, and Section 5.2's use table cross-references it through a footnote on the DATA CENTER line, so a special use application filed today is paused rather than processed under the standard AG-2/B-4/I-1 siting rules. The moratorium does not reach smaller data centers below the 10,000-square-foot processing-area threshold, and it runs only in the unincorporated county; it has no effect inside Champaign, Urbana, Rantoul, Savoy or Mahomet.
Violations & Fines
There is no separate fine schedule for the moratorium itself: its enforcement mechanism is a flat refusal. The Zoning Administrator will not process or approve a Zoning Use Permit or special use application for a qualifying DATA CENTER while Section 5.6 is in effect, and any pending case is held in abeyance rather than denied outright until the 270-day period expires or the County Board revokes the moratorium first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Champaign County currently accepting data center applications?
Why did the county pass a data center moratorium?
What happens to a data center application that was already pending when the moratorium passed?
Does the moratorium apply to small data rooms or server closets?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Champaign County
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