1 data center project in Unincorporated Effingham County
Who decides here: the Effingham County Board of Commissioners decides on zoning for land outside city and town limits.
In Unincorporated Effingham County
Local votes and rules
⚖️ Court case
Five residents and the group One Hundred Miles sued the county's development authority. They say it did not give proper notice or a real agenda before the July vote that tied county land to OpenAI's company and gave it a 50% property tax break. They ask a judge to throw out those deals.
📌 Other
The county took the OpenAI data center site plan off its September 15 meeting agenda to give staff more time to review it. No new vote date was given in the report.
⚖️ Court case
Three residents sued Effingham County. They say the county skipped a required public hearing when it changed its industrial zoning to allow data centers with no conditions. That change cleared the way for the planned OpenAI data center near Rincon. They ask the court to throw out the change.
🤝 Agreement with the company
The county's development authority approved a tax break deal for OpenAI's planned $20 billion data center (Project Camellia) on 1,440 acres near Rincon. OpenAI gets a 50% property tax cut for 15 years, worth about $870 million, and locks in the 2026 tax rate. It must report each year and meet goals of $20 billion invested and 400 jobs at first.
What you can do
- Get told first.
We'll email you if anything changes in Unincorporated Effingham County. - Go to county meetings.
Anyone can speak. Big projects usually need a public hearing. - Ask questions in writing.
Use our checklist.
🔔 Get told first
⚡ Your electric company
Depending on where you live in Unincorporated Effingham County: Georgia Power Co. (company) or Planters Electric Member Corp. (co-op (owned by its members)).
Big data centers need a lot of power. Who pays for new power lines depends on state rules. See the rules in Georgia.
🙋 Open tasks here
- How much water will the cooling system need for its first fill and each year after, and where will it come from?
- When will Effingham County vote on the site plan?
- Will new power plants or high-voltage power lines be built to serve it, and who pays?
- Did any official sign a secret deal (NDA) during the talks?
- How many diesel backup generators will the site have?