The Hawaiʻi County Council may close a loophole in county code to prevent permits for the construction of new data centers.
The county allows data processing facilities, which store digital records on a mainframe computer. Bill 170 would make clear that that definition does not apply to data centers intended to process and share data on an industrial scale.
The bill states that data centers “are not a permitted use in the County.”
The Policy Committee on Planning, Land Use, and Economic Development voted to move the measure forward on Tuesday.
“The kind of resources that a data center requires is just not appropriate for the kind of resources that we have in this island,” said Hawaiʻi County Council Member Michelle Galimba.
The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo has a data center on its campus that supports student and faculty research. It would not be affected by Bill 170, which exempts data centers that serve public institutions.
Hawaiian Telcom also has a data center in Kawaihae. The bill would not retroactively impose any limitations on that facility.
Hawaiʻi County Planning Director Jeff Darrow told council members that he was not aware of any formal data center permitting requests, though he noted that there had been inquiries about the process.
“As of this point, there's only been talk,” he said.
