Goldwater Institute says Pima County data center moratorium is illegal, facilities aren't a threat

The Goldwater Institute, a conservative and libertarian public policy think tank, says Pima County’s four-month pause on data center development is illegal because it cannot prove data centers are an imminent threat. A Pima County supervisor says it does have proof and that its moratorium is written in accordance with state law.

The Pima County Board of Supervisors passed the moratorium last week as the county is considering new zoning rules and health impacts surrounding data center development.

Jon Riches, vice president for litigation at the Goldwater Institute, says the moratorium violates two state laws.

A voter-approved initiative, known as Prop. 207, protects against development laws that could negatively impact property values. Riches says the other, Title 11, only permits moratoria if a local authority can prove the development creates an imminent threat.

Riches says that a recent framework published by the Pima County Health Department and John Hopkins University for studying data center health impacts admits empirical evidence is lacking to show how and where the facilities would harm public health.

“And what it appears they’re trying to do is really put the moratorium in place so that they can then develop new rules. But state law is pretty clear that counties can’t do that,” Riches said.

Pima County Supervisor Jennifer Allen says the Goldwater Institute is misconstruing the framework, which is meant for internally studying public health impacts of data centers, as official proof behind the moratorium.

“It is a framework for how we can assess. It is not a report, and I agree with the Goldwater Institute that it’s not a report that says these are all the imminent threats of data centers, or a data center on this particular piece of land in this particular community,” Allen said.

Allen says the moratorium is based on Title 11, which she says allows a pause on development if existing zoning laws are inadequate to protect public health.

She says there is separate evidence showing data centers raise surrounding temperatures, which is why the county needs time to consider and pass new zoning laws.

“We have excessive heat warnings. We have death from heat, particularly in rural areas where people don’t have the means to seek shelter,” Allen said.

Riches said the Goldwater Institute would consider representing a property owner that could be impacted by the moratorium, but doesn’t have a case yet.

The moratorium is set to expire in January, shortly after the county board plans to complete its timeline for considering new data center zoning laws, according to Allen.