Research review
A sourced review, compiled for this campaign, of how communities across the United States are setting data-center noise, lighting, and public-reporting standards — adopted, proposed, pending, and defeated. Every entry links to a primary or authoritative source, is marked by confidence, and leads that did not survive verification are listed at the end.
How to read this: status is labeled precisely — passed, proposed, pending, defeated, or moratorium — and confidence is marked ✓ high · ~ medium · ? low. This is a research snapshot dated June 14, 2026, not legal advice. We correct errors quickly and visibly — [email protected].
Comparable Data-Center Standards Across the US
Verification status (2026-06-14): the full sweep in Appendix A is now individually source-verified — 301 jurisdiction-actions confirmed (263 high / 35 medium / 3 low confidence), 6 leads dropped (Appendix B). The analytical sections immediately below were written from a 30-measure verified core; Appendix A is the authoritative complete list.
Executive summary
Data-center-specific standards on noise, outdoor lighting/dark-sky, and energy/water/jobs reporting are an emerging but still-uneven body of US local and state law, concentrated heavily in Northern Virginia (“Data Center Alley”) and a 2025–2026 wave across metro-Atlanta Georgia. Most adopted measures regulate noise and zoning/siting (setbacks, buffers, conditional-use permits); far fewer reach outdoor lighting, and annual public transparency reporting of electricity, water, generator runtime, and jobs is the rarest dimension of all — usually proposed (DeKalb County GA draft, California AB 222) or defeated (Georgia HB 528, SB 421) rather than enacted. La Pine’s measure is unusual precisely because it combines all three core dimensions in one citizen initiative with hard numeric caps — a ~55 dBA nighttime property-line limit with tonal/low-frequency octave-band limits, a ≤2200 K / ≤2%-below-500nm dark-sky lighting spec, and a recurring annual public report — a completeness that very few US jurisdictions match in a single instrument. The Bulletin has called the La Pine approach a possible “model for other city and county governments,” and this sweep bears out that framing: comparators tend to cover one or two of La Pine’s pillars, rarely the full trio.
Editorial note on status: The La Pine measure is a proposed citizen initiative — not yet qualified for the ballot and not enacted. The comparators below are labeled precisely as passed / proposed / defeated / pending / moratorium per the verified record.
Key findings
- Status counts (30 verified measures): 16 passed · 5 defeated · 2 proposed · 2 moratorium · 4 pending · 1 unclear.
- By dimension (measures touching each): Zoning is the most common (~20), Noise (~16), Reporting/transparency (~11, but most are proposed/defeated or application-stage rather than recurring public reports), Water (~10), Energy (~9), Lighting/dark-sky (~7, and almost none with a Kelvin/blue-light cap), Moratorium (~7).
- Closest analogue overall — Stafford County, VA (O25-29, passed Oct 2025): the only verified passed measure pairing a fixed 55 dBA cap with a recurring (annual-for-10-years) noise-evaluation regime — the tightest structural match to La Pine’s 55 dBA + annual-report logic, though it has no dark-sky lighting spec.
- Closest noise-number match — Bartow County, GA (passed Jan 2025): a hard 55 dBA nighttime property-line cap (6 p.m.–8 a.m.; 65 dBA day) — the single closest dBA parallel to La Pine’s ~55 dBA night cap, but no octave-band/tonal limits, no lighting, no reporting.
- Lighting is the weakest dimension nationally: the strongest enacted dark-sky rules (Fairfax ≤3000 K full-cutoff; Loudoun full-cutoff 5 fc; Fauquier 0.5 fc spillover) are shielding/footcandle/CCT-based but materially looser than La Pine’s ≤2200 K + ≤2%-below-500nm blue-light cap. No verified US data-center measure matches La Pine’s blue-light spec.
- Recurring public transparency reporting is mostly aspirational: the genuine annual-public-report analogues are proposed (DeKalb GA draft; CA AB 222) or defeated (GA HB 528 “High Use Facilities Transparency Act,” 30 MW; GA SB 421 anti-NDA). The only passed recurring report is Coweta County, GA (annual public report, but no specified kWh/water/runtime/FTE line items) and Virginia SB 553 (water-only disclosure).
- La Pine’s >=5 MW / >=25,000 sq ft trigger is broader than most state thresholds (Virginia’s “high energy use facility” bills target ≥100 MW; Georgia transparency bills used 30 MW; CA AB 222 uses a 10 kW IT-load floor for PUE reporting).
Master comparison table
Sorted by state, then jurisdiction.
| Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Key specifics (numbers) | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State of California — AB 222 (Bauer-Kahan) | state | pending | reporting, energy | PUE reporting to CEC biannual (>10 kW IT load); AI training-energy disclosure; annual operational reporting from Feb 1 2027; CPUC cost-shift study | 2025–26 | leginfo.legislature.ca.gov |
| Bartow County, GA | county | passed | noise, zoning | 55 dBA night (6pm–8am) / 65 dBA day, 30-min basis, property line; 200 ft buffer | 2025-01 | gpb.org |
| City of Atlanta, GA — 24-O-1218 & 24-O-1222 | city | passed | zoning | Data-center definition; ban within 2,640 ft (½ mi) of high-capacity transit; BeltLine Overlay ban | 2024-09-03 | citycouncil.atlantaga.gov |
| Coweta County, GA | county | passed | noise, lighting, zoning, reporting, water, other | Light-ind. zoning, ≥25 ac, 70 ft height, 300 ft buffer; no open-loop cooling; ambient-relative noise (~5 dBA over ambient night / ~10 day, >60s); annual public report + waste-mgmt plan | 2025-12-18 | times-herald.com |
| Coweta County, GA — Moratorium | county | moratorium | moratorium, zoning | 180-day rezoning moratorium (~May 6 2025), extended to Dec 2025 | 2025-05 | atlantanewsfirst.com |
| DeKalb County, GA — Ch. 27 Text Amendment (TA-25-1247647) | county | pending | noise, lighting, water, energy, zoning, reporting, moratorium | Size tiers; SLUP in ind./OI; 500 ft residential buffer (300 ft on major roads); closed-loop cooling; mandatory annual reports (noise, lighting, water, energy, transmission); 20 ft noise wall; no dBA/Kelvin specified | 2026 | engagedekalb.dekalbcountyga.gov |
| DeKalb County, GA — Moratorium | county | moratorium | moratorium, zoning, noise, lighting, water, energy, reporting | Moratorium extended to June 23 2026 (unanimous substitute motion); paired w/ proposed Ch. 27; 75 ft height, 500 ft buffer (draft) | 2025-12-16 | wabe.org |
| City of Fayetteville, GA — 26-O-12 | city | passed | zoning | Removes data centers as permitted use in all districts — effective citywide ban | 2026-03-05 | fayetteville-ga.gov |
| Forsyth County, GA | county | unclear | water, zoning, noise | No county-water cooling; 100 ft setback; 20 ft min height enclosed; emergency-only generators; reported 55 dBA day (5am–7pm) / 60 dBA cooling at residential line | 2024–25 | epicenter.energy.gatech.edu |
| Georgia data-center ordinance wave (32 counties + 21 cities) | regional | pending | noise, lighting, water, zoning, moratorium | Aggregate (Ga Tech EPIcenter): Bartow 55/65 dBA; Troup 1,500 ft setback + Tier 4 (Apr 2026); Lumpkin/Forsyth/Jones closed-loop/water-temp limits | 2026 | epicenter.energy.gatech.edu |
| State of Georgia — HB 528 “High Use Facilities Transparency Act” | state | defeated | reporting, water, energy | ≥30 MW peak demand → annual public energy/water/tax disclosure; died at sine die Apr 2 2026 | 2025 | legiscan.com |
| State of Georgia — SB 421 “Data Center Transparency Act” | state | defeated | reporting, water, energy | Bars local NDAs hiding data-center electricity/water use; died ~Apr 2026 | 2026 | legiscan.com |
| State of Georgia — HB 1012 | state | defeated | moratorium | Statewide local-permit moratorium on new data centers to Mar 1 2027; died (stalled in Second Readers) | 2026 | billtrack50.com |
| State of Georgia — HB 1059 “Data Center Impact Assessment & Moratorium Act” | state | defeated | moratorium, reporting, energy, water, zoning | Statewide moratorium Jul 1 2026–Dec 31 2028; 14-member impact commission; died in committee | 2026 | legiscan.com |
| Vienna Township, Trumbull County, OH | town | proposed | noise, zoning, moratorium | Contemplated ~70 dBA max cap + MW limits, setbacks, sound barriers; nothing drafted/adopted | 2025–26 | tribtoday.com |
| Culpeper County, VA — UDO amendment (CUP) | county | passed | zoning, noise | Data centers on ind. land need CUP; reported 85 dBA day / 75 dBA night at property line via CUP | 2025-09-02 | fredericksburg.com |
| Fairfax County, VA — Data Center Zoning Ordinance Amendment | county | passed | noise, zoning, lighting, reporting | 2 noise studies (pre/post); 200 ft bldg / 300 ft generator setback from residential; 1-mi Metro buffer; countywide lighting ≤3000 K + full-cutoff >1,500 lm | 2024-09-10 | fairfaxcounty.gov |
| Fauquier County, VA — Data Center Policy + Lighting Ord. (Art. 9) | county | passed | lighting, noise, zoning | Non-binding siting policy (screening “to attenuate noise,” no dBA); enforceable lighting: 0.5 fc spillover cap, Hubble Sky Cap shielding, no Kelvin cap | 2023-12-14 | fauquiercounty.gov |
| Frederick County, VA — Zoning Text Amendment (CUP) | county | passed | zoning, noise | Data centers = conditional use; Environmental Noise Impact Assessments; generators 8am–5pm M–F; 200 ft setback; follow-up noise study at 12 mo + every 5 yr | 2025-04-09 | winchesterstar.com |
| Loudoun County, VA — Phase 1 (CPAM/ZOAM-2024-0001) | county | passed | zoning, lighting, noise, energy, water | Eliminates by-right; SPEX required; existing full-cutoff/shielded lighting, 5 fc avg cap (no Kelvin); Phase 2 noise/energy/water standards in drafting (~Mar 2027) | 2025-03-18 | loudoun.gov |
| City of Manassas, VA — O-2026-455 | city | pending | zoning, noise | First reading Feb 9 2026 (final reading unconfirmed); pre-construction noise studies (no dBA stated); generator/HVAC screening; 20% glazing | 2026-02-09 | potomaclocal.com |
| Prince William County, VA — Noise Ordinance Amendment (Sec. 14.4) | county | passed | noise | General business noise rule aimed at data-center low-frequency roar; dBC metric ~68 dB night / 73 dB day; octave-band advisory; 1-yr report fall 2026 | 2025-10-28 | insidenova.com |
| Spotsylvania County, VA — Recommended Standards (guidelines) | county | passed | zoning | Advisory buffers: 300 ft veg buffer, 400 ft setback from dwellings, viewshed, Tier 4 generators, no groundwater cooling; no dBA/lighting/reporting | 2026-02-24 | spotsylvania.va.us |
| Stafford County, VA — O25-29 | county | passed | zoning, noise, reporting, energy | 55 dBA equipment cap; post-occupancy noise eval at 90 days then annually for 10 yrs; 750 ft setback; 200 ft veg buffer; energy-impact assessments | 2025 | staffordcountyva.gov |
| Commonwealth of Virginia — HB 1601 / SB 1449 | state | defeated | noise, water, zoning, reporting | Site assessment for ≥100 MW facilities (noise within 500 ft of homes/schools, water/ag/forest); vetoed May 2 2025, not overridden | 2025-05-02 | cardinalnews.org |
| Commonwealth of Virginia — HB 153 / SB 94 | state | passed | noise, water, zoning, reporting | Re-pass of vetoed 2025 bill; sound-profile assessment (homes/schools within 500 ft) for ≥100 MW; SB 94: industrial-only zoning from Jul 1 2027; signed 2026 | 2026 | virginiamercury.com |
| Commonwealth of Virginia — SB 553 (Ch. 896) | state | passed | water, reporting, zoning | Localities may require annual water-consumption estimates (excl. by-right); water providers report volume to State Water Control Board monthly; signed Apr 13 2026 | 2026 | virginiamercury.com |
| Commonwealth of Virginia — HB 1393 | state | passed | energy, other | Omnibus energy bill; large-load (25 MW+) cost allocation to data centers; signed ~May 15 2026 | 2026 | virginiamercury.com |
| Commonwealth of Virginia — HB 284 / SB 371 | state | passed | energy, other | Voluntary demand-flexibility programs for large-load (~25 MW) customers; no cost shift to ratepayers; signed Apr 8 2026 | 2026 | governor.virginia.gov |
| Virginia JLARC “Data Centers in Virginia” (Report 598) | state | proposed | noise, zoning, reporting | Study recommendation: authorize localities to require sound-modeling studies + set max sound levels (incl. low-frequency); no dBA itself | 2024 | jlarc.virginia.gov |
Noise standards
The strongest US data-center noise rules cluster in two forms — fixed dBA property-line caps and assessment/mitigation regimes — and only a handful resemble La Pine’s ~55 dBA nighttime cap with tonal/low-frequency octave-band limits.
- Bartow County, GA (passed, 2025) — closest dBA number: 55 dBA night (6pm–8am) / 65 dBA day, 30-minute basis, at the property line. Matches La Pine’s ~55 dBA night figure; does not match La Pine’s octave-band/tonal or generator-specific limits.
- Stafford County, VA — O25-29 (passed, 2025) — 55 dBA equipment cap plus post-occupancy noise evaluation at 90 days then annually for 10 years. The recurring-evaluation structure is the strongest structural parallel to La Pine’s pairing of a fixed cap with ongoing accountability. No octave-band/tonal spec.
- Prince William County, VA (passed, Oct 2025) — targets the same continuous low-frequency roar La Pine’s tonal/low-frequency limits address, but enforced in dBC (~68 dB night / 73 dB day) rather than dBA, with octave-band analysis kept only as an advisory tool. Conceptually aligned, numerically not directly comparable.
- Culpeper County, VA (passed, 2025) — reported 85 dBA day / 75 dBA night at the property line, applied via CUP — far looser than La Pine, and a case-by-case mechanism rather than a codified cap.
- Forsyth County, GA (unclear) — reported 55 dBA day (5am–7pm) and 60 dBA on cooling systems at residential lines; relevant but status unconfirmed.
- Assessment/mitigation (no fixed cap): Fairfax County, VA (two noise studies, pre- and post-construction), Frederick County, VA (Environmental Noise Impact Assessments + 12-month and 5-year follow-ups, generator hours restricted), and Manassas, VA (pre-construction noise studies, status pending) regulate noise through study-and-compliance rather than a number — weaker than La Pine’s hard cap.
- Aspirational: Vienna Township, OH contemplates a ~70 dBA max (looser, not night/property-line-specific, nothing adopted).
Bottom line: Bartow (number) and Stafford (structure) are the two enacted measures that most resemble La Pine’s noise standard; none of the verified measures combines a 55 dBA night cap with explicit octave-band/tonal and generator limits the way La Pine does.
Lighting / dark-sky standards
This is the dimension where La Pine is most distinctive. Enacted data-center-adjacent lighting rules are shielding- and footcandle-based, and no verified US measure matches La Pine’s ≤2200 K color-temperature ceiling or its ≤2%-below-500nm blue-light cap.
- Fairfax County, VA (passed) — countywide outdoor-lighting ordinance: ≤3000 K color temperature and full-cutoff/downward shielding for fixtures >1,500 lumens. Same dark-sky logic as La Pine but materially looser (3000 K vs ≤2200 K; no blue-light percentage cap).
- Loudoun County, VA (passed, Phase 1) — existing zoning mandates full-cutoff, fully-shielded, downward-directed exterior lighting capped at 5 fc average — dark-sky-aligned but no Kelvin or blue-light ceiling.
- Fauquier County, VA (passed) — enforceable Zoning Ordinance Art. 9: 0.5-footcandle spillover cap at property lines (rural/residential), “Hubble Sky Cap” downward shielding — no color-temperature ceiling.
- Coweta County, GA (passed) and DeKalb County, GA (proposed) regulate lighting, but no Kelvin/blue-light figure is confirmed in either; do not assert a CCT spec for them.
Bottom line: Several jurisdictions share La Pine’s shielding/full-cutoff/downward direction principle, but La Pine’s warm-CCT (≤2200 K) and blue-light (≤2% below 500 nm) caps appear to exceed every verified US data-center lighting standard in this dataset.
Reporting & transparency mandates
Recurring annual public reporting of energy, water, generator runtime, and jobs — La Pine’s third pillar — is the rarest and most contested dimension. Most “reporting” in adopted measures is application-stage (one-time noise studies or site assessments), not ongoing public transparency.
- Coweta County, GA (passed) — requires an annual public report plus a publicly available waste-management plan. The closest enacted local analogue to La Pine’s annual report, but does not enumerate electricity/water/generator-runtime/FTE line items.
- Virginia SB 553 / Ch. 896 (passed, 2026) — localities may require annual water-consumption estimates; water providers report supplied volume to the State Water Control Board monthly. A genuine water-disclosure analogue, but water-only (no energy/runtime/jobs).
- DeKalb County, GA (proposed/pending) — draft Chapter 27 requires mandatory annual reports on noise, lighting, water, and energy consumption/sustainability — dimensionally the broadest match to La Pine’s annual report, but not yet adopted and framed as assessments rather than fixed metrics.
- California AB 222 (pending) — biannual PUE reporting to the CEC plus AI training-energy disclosure and annual operational-energy reporting (from Feb 1 2027); an energy-transparency analogue, framed around efficiency rather than La Pine’s plain kWh/water/runtime/jobs report.
- Defeated transparency bills: Georgia HB 528 (“High Use Facilities Transparency Act,” ≥30 MW → annual public energy/water/tax disclosure) and SB 421 (bars local NDAs hiding electricity/water use) were the strongest state-level matches to La Pine’s transparency goal — both died at the 2025–26 Georgia sine die.
- Application-stage only (weak “reporting”): Virginia HB 153/SB 94 and HB 1601 (site assessments), Fairfax (permit-stage noise studies) — disclosure at approval, not recurring public reports.
Bottom line: No verified measure enacts La Pine’s full annual public report (electricity + water + generator runtime + FTE jobs). Coweta (annual report, unspecified line items) and VA SB 553 (water disclosure) are the closest enacted pieces; the most complete analogues are proposed (DeKalb, CA AB 222) or defeated (GA HB 528, SB 421).
Moratoria & data-center zoning overlays
Moratoria and data-center-targeted zoning are the most common tools nationally — the “pause-to-study” and “siting-control” patterns La Pine’s measure complements rather than replicates.
- Moratoria (passed/in effect): DeKalb County, GA (extended to June 23 2026, paired with proposed Chapter 27 standards) and Coweta County, GA (May–Dec 2025, lifted upon adopting its permanent ordinance) are the live, enacted examples.
- Moratoria (defeated, statewide): Georgia HB 1012 (statewide local-permit moratorium to Mar 1 2027) and HB 1059 (statewide moratorium Jul 2026–Dec 2028 + impact commission) both failed in the 2026 session.
- Zoning overlays / siting controls (passed): Loudoun County, VA (eliminated by-right, SPEX required), Culpeper / Frederick County, VA (CUP requirement), Atlanta, GA (transit/BeltLine location bans), Fayetteville, GA (effective citywide ban via use-table removal), Spotsylvania County, VA (advisory buffer/setback guidelines), and Stafford County, VA (750 ft setbacks + 200 ft buffers).
- Regional context: the Georgia data-center ordinance wave (32 counties + 21 cities drafting or enacted as of June 1 2026, per Georgia Tech EPIcenter) is the clearest evidence that data-center-specific local regulation is now a national pattern, with Troup County (1,500 ft setback + Tier 4 generators, Apr 2026) among the most restrictive.
Closest analogues to La Pine
Jurisdictions covering two or more of La Pine’s core dimensions (noise / lighting / reporting), ranked by closeness:
- Coweta County, GA (passed) — the only enacted measure touching noise + lighting + reporting (plus water/zoning). Caveats: noise is ambient-relative (~5 dBA over ambient), not a fixed 55 dBA cap; lighting has no confirmed Kelvin spec; the annual report lacks La Pine’s specific line items.
- Stafford County, VA — O25-29 (passed) — noise (55 dBA fixed cap) + recurring evaluation (annual-for-10-yrs) + energy assessments. Strongest structural match on the noise-plus-accountability axis; no dark-sky lighting.
- Fairfax County, VA (passed) — noise + lighting (≤3000 K full-cutoff) + zoning, with permit-stage noise studies. Lighting present but looser than La Pine; “reporting” is application-stage, not annual transparency.
- DeKalb County, GA (proposed/pending) — dimensionally the fullest match (noise + lighting + water + energy + reporting + zoning + moratorium), but not enacted and lacking numeric dBA/Kelvin caps.
- Loudoun County, VA (passed Phase 1; Phase 2 drafting) — lighting (full-cutoff, 5 fc) + zoning enacted; noise/energy/water standards still proposed (~Mar 2027).
Defeated / proposed / pending watchlist
- Defeated: VA HB 1601/SB 1449 (vetoed May 2025); GA HB 528, SB 421, HB 1012, HB 1059 (all died at 2025–26 sine die). These show the transparency-reporting and statewide-moratorium ideas have repeatedly failed at the state level — a cautionary data point on the political durability of La Pine’s transparency pillar.
- Proposed (not enacted): Virginia JLARC Report 598 (study recommendation, drove later bills); Vienna Township, OH (early-stage ~70 dBA contemplated, nothing drafted).
- Pending: California AB 222 (two-year bill, held in Senate Appropriations); DeKalb County, GA Chapter 27 amendment (deferred to June 23 2026 hearing); Manassas, VA O-2026-455 (first reading passed, final reading unconfirmed); Georgia ordinance wave (many constituent measures still drafting).
- Unclear: Forsyth County, GA — EPIcenter presents adopted ordinance text (100 ft setback, water prohibition), but no adoption date/vote confirmed and draft vs. final figures diverged; status unconfirmed.
Caveats & source quality
- Research snapshot dated 2026-06-14. Statuses change quickly — several Virginia 2026 signing dates (e.g., HB 153/SB 94’s exact date) and the Georgia ordinance wave are fast-moving; re-verify before publication.
- Low-confidence / unconfirmed entries: Forsyth County, GA (
statusConfirmed=false, unclear) and Manassas, VA (statusConfirmed=false, pending — only first reading documented). Treat both as provisional. - Status nuance to honor: Spotsylvania County, VA was downgraded from binding zoning to advisory “Recommended Standards” (“should,” not “shall”) — present as guidance, not enforceable code. Fauquier County, VA’s data-center “policy” is a non-binding resolution; its enforceable lighting teeth come from a separate zoning ordinance. Prince William County, VA’s measure is a general business noise rule motivated by data centers, not data-center-only.
- Numbers from journalism, not primary text: Many dBA/setback figures (Bartow, Culpeper, Coweta, DeKalb draft) derive from reporting because Municode/county PDFs returned HTTP 403/404 to automated fetch. Verify verbatim ordinance text before publishing specific numbers as a jurisdiction’s own.
- Interested-party / vendor sources flagged: Law-firm client alerts (McGuireWoods, Holland & Knight, Venable, Williams Mullen) advise data-center developers — used for legal accuracy, not as neutral authorities; primary county/state sources are load-bearing. Advocacy orgs (Piedmont Environmental Council/PECVA, Clean Virginia, Southern Environmental Law Center) are pro-regulation — used only as corroboration. Lobbying/government-relations trackers (MultiState) and AI-aggregator sites (citizenportal.ai, dropped) are secondary. Georgia Tech EPIcenter is an academic, non-interested tracker and is the most neutral source for the Georgia wave.
- Geographic distance: Every comparator is ~2,000–2,800 miles from La Pine, OR. They are dimensional precedents, not regional peers — relevant for “what other governments have done,” not for local conditions.
Appendix A — Full nationwide sweep (verified)
Status of this appendix. Every row below has been individually fact-checked against a primary or authoritative source in a two-pass verification (2026-06-14). Confidence marker in the first column: ✓ high · ~ medium · ? low. Six candidate leads failed verification and were removed (listed in Appendix B). This is the complete deduplicated sweep, merged by jurisdiction + status.
Totals: 301 verified jurisdiction-actions across 46 states + federal — 114 passed · 73 moratorium · 37 proposed · 36 pending · 31 defeated · 10 unclear. Confidence: 263 high · 35 medium · 3 low. By level: 85 county · 80 state · 76 city · 46 town · 8 other · 6 regional.
Alabama (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of Bessemer, AL | city | 🟢 passed | zoning | Bessemer City Council voted 5-2 on Nov 18, 2025 to amend zoning to permit ‘data center’ as a use in I-1 light-industrial districts and to rezone parcels from A-1 agricultural to I-1 for the ~$14.5B ‘… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | City of Birmingham, AL | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Birmingham proposed a 270-day pause on new data-center applications (public hearing Jan 13, 2026), but the City Council ultimately ENACTED a shorter 180-day moratorium on new hyperscale data centers … | 2026 | link |
Arizona (21)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Buckeye, AZ | city | 🔴 defeated | noise zoning | Developer Tract’s ~$14B West Valley data center campus (filed Nov. 2023 to rezone ~1,000 acres on a county island in Buckeye’s planning area; up to 30 buildings / 5.6M sq ft) was withdrawn in May 202… | 2024 (withdra… | link |
| ✓ | Chandler, AZ | city | 🟢 passed | noise reporting zoning | Restricts data centers to Planned Area Developments. Noise: requires third-party baseline sound study at the residential property line, mandates sound mitigation sufficient that operating noise does … | 2022 (adopted… | link |
| ✓ | City of Chandler, AZ | city | 🟢 passed | noise reporting zoning | Ordinance No. 5033 (PLH22-0053), final Council approval Dec 2022 (P&Z 7-0 in Oct; Council approved Dec 8, 2022), allows data centers only within approved Planned Area Development plans (not standard … | 2022 | link |
| ✓ | City of Tucson and Pima County, AZ | regional | 🟢 passed | lighting | Joint City of Tucson/Pima County Outdoor Lighting Code (adopted 2012, amended through 2023-2025) requires full-cutoff fixtures and lumen caps tied to lighting area/lot size, with a CCT ceiling lowere… | 2012 (amended… | link |
| ✓ | City of Tucson, AZ | city | 🟡 proposed | noise water energy zoning | Tucson’s proposed Unified Development Code amendment would apply to data centers larger than 25,000 sq ft or exceeding 20 MW, requiring a public review/PAD-style process, a noise study with property-… | 2026 (Plannin… | link |
| ✓ | City of Tucson, AZ | city | 🟢 passed | reporting water | Tucson unanimously adopted a Large Quantity Water User ordinance in August 2025 after the Project Blue data-center controversy: any customer planning to use >=7,480,000 gallons/month must submit plan… | 2025-08-20 | link |
| ✓ | Coconino County, AZ | county | 🟢 passed | lighting | Coconino County dark-sky outdoor-lighting ordinance requires fully shielded fixtures and total-lumens-per-acre caps with lighting zones based on distance from observatories; a 2023 amendment reduced … | 1980s (origin… | link |
| ✓ | DarkSky International (model framework, non-bin… | other | ⚪ unclear | lighting | Joint IDA-IES Model Lighting Ordinance (2011) plus DarkSky lighting principles: full-cutoff/shielded fixtures, no light above horizontal, lighting zones LZ0-4, BUG ratings, and warm CCT. DarkSky-Appr… | 2011 (MLO) | link |
| ✓ | Flagstaff, AZ | city | 🟢 passed | lighting | Flagstaff (first International Dark Sky City) outdoor-lighting code requires fully shielded downward fixtures, an amber/yellow spectral standard (low-pressure sodium or ~590 nm amber LED preferred ov… | 1989 (origin)… | link |
| ~ | Goodyear, AZ | city | 🟡 proposed | noise water zoning | Goodyear officials are moving to formally regulate data centers (multiple active campuses) with new zoning rules aimed at noise, building design, and water-use concerns. Proposal stage; no specific d… | 2025-2026 | link |
| ✓ | Maricopa County, AZ | county | 🟢 passed | zoning | Maricopa County’s modernized zoning ordinance (passed Dec. 10, 2025; effective Jan. 9, 2026) defines “data center” in county zoning for the first time and limits them to IND-2 (general industrial) an… | 2025 (adopted… | link |
| ✓ | Mesa, AZ | city | 🟢 passed | noise reporting water energy zoning | Mesa City Council adopted data center zoning text amendments in July 2025 defining “data center” as a distinct use, restricting new centers largely to general/heavy industrial districts, and requirin… | 2025 (adopted… | link |
| ✓ | Phoenix, AZ | city | 🟢 passed | noise lighting zoning | Phoenix City Council unanimously adopted a general plan amendment and city code text amendment (Z-TA-2-25) on July 2, 2025 creating a data-center Special Permit process addressing grid reliability, f… | 2025 (adopted… | link |
| ✓ | Pima County, AZ | county | 🟠 pending | water energy zoning | On Aug. 18, 2025 the Pima County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to direct a zoning text amendment requiring Conditional Use Permits for data centers and other large water/electricity users, subject t… | 2025 (Board d… | link |
| ✓ | State of Arizona | state | ⏸ moratorium | water energy moratorium other | Arizona’s 2026 budget (passed ~June 11-12, 2026; signed by Gov. Hobbs) includes a three-year pause barring NEW data centers from qualifying for the state’s sales-tax exemptions (enacted 2013), preser… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Arizona | state | 🟠 pending | reporting energy | HB 2756 (2026) addresses public utilities and ‘extra high load factor customers’ (large loads incl. data centers), directing utilities to file periodic reports to the Corporation Commission on new la… | 2026 | link |
| ~ | State of Arizona | state | 🔴 defeated | water energy other | HB 2893 (2026), sponsored by Rep. Junelle Cavero with bipartisan support, would have shortened the qualification period for data center tax incentives and directed a portion of future revenues toward… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Arizona | state | 🟢 passed | lighting | Arizona Revised Statutes Title 49, Ch. 7 (Light Pollution), ARS 49-1101/-1102, requires all outdoor light fixtures to be fully or partially shielded (light projected below the horizontal), exempting … | 1986 | link |
| ✓ | State of Arizona (Arizona Corporation Commissio… | state | 🟠 pending | reporting energy | The Arizona Corporation Commission held a Large Load User Development workshop on Apr. 16, 2026 (docket opened 2025 by Commissioner Thompson) covering consumer/ratepayer protections, current regulato… | 2026 (worksho… | link |
| ✓ | Town of Marana, AZ | town | 🟢 passed | noise water energy zoning other | Marana adopted a dedicated data center ordinance (Ordinance 2024.029; codified at Marana Town Code 17-6-13) governing siting/rezoning and requiring a noise study by a qualified acoustic engineer, uti… | 2024 (Ordinan… | link |
| ✓ | Tucson, AZ | city | 🟡 proposed | noise lighting water zoning | Tucson’s Large Quantity Water User Ordinance (adopted Aug 2025) requires Mayor/Council approval for users above 7,480,000 gal/month and allows restriction/shutoff above allotment. Proposed data-cente… | 2026 | link |
Arkansas (7)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Arkansas County, AR | county | 🔴 defeated | noise zoning | Arkansas County’s October 2023 amended noise ordinance (tightening limits to 55 dB day / 45 dB night) aimed at the Jones Digital DeWitt bitcoin mine was struck down by U.S. District Judge Lee P. Rudo… | 2024 | link |
| ✓ | Benton County, AR | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Benton County Quorum Court approved an ordinance (11-3 vote, late July 2023, days before Act 851 took effect) requiring noise reduction if levels reach 65 dB or higher between 8am-10pm or 55 dB or hi… | 2023 | link |
| ~ | City of Vilonia, AR | city | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Vilonia’s city council approved an ordinance barring noise over 60 decibels (about the level of normal conversation), in response to a proposed crypto-mining/data-center site. A single 60 dB cap; com… | 2023 | link |
| ✓ | Faulkner County, AR | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Faulkner County Quorum Court passed Ordinance 23-20 on July 19, 2023, capping data-center/crypto-mining noise at 60 dB (8am-8pm) and 55 dB (10pm-8am) in unincorporated areas, enforced as a misdemeano… | 2023 | link |
| ✓ | Little Rock, AR | city | 🟢 passed | noise reporting water energy zoning | Little Rock Board of Directors unanimously adopted Mayor Scott’s data center ordinance June 2-3, 2026. Sets noise caps of 70 dBA day / 65 dBA night in industrial zones, with large/hyperscale centers … | 2026-06-03 | link |
| ✓ | Pulaski County, AR | county | 🔴 defeated | zoning moratorium | A proposed one-year moratorium on new data centers (Emergency Ordinance 26-I-37) in Arkansas’ most populous county FAILED on May 26, 2026: 8 yes / 6 no / 1 present of the 15-member Quorum Court, shor… | 2026-05-26 | link |
| ✓ | State of Arkansas | state | 🟢 passed | noise zoning other | Act 851 of 2023 (Data Centers Act, eff. Aug 1 2023) created Ark. Code 14-1-505, barring local governments from limiting digital-asset-mining sound decibels or imposing requirements stricter than thos… | 2023 | link |
California (7)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ~ | City of Alameda, CA | city | 🟢 passed | noise | Alameda’s municipal noise ordinance regulates noise by both decibel level and duration — the longer a noise continues, the quieter it must be — cited as a model ‘tough limit’ approach for continuou… | — | link |
| ~ | City of San Jose, CA | city | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | San Jose regulates data centers via general-plan/zoning noise performance standards rather than a data-center-specific ordinance. Exterior limits at a residential property line are commonly cited at … | Envision San … | link |
| ✓ | City of Santa Clara, CA | city | 🟢 passed | noise | General fixed-source noise ordinance (City Code Ch. 9.10) governing Santa Clara’s large data-center concentration as ‘fixed sources.’ Schedule A exterior limits at the receiving property line: reside… | current throu… | link |
| ✓ | State of California | state | 🟢 passed | lighting energy | California’s statewide building code is the closest analog to La Pine’s lighting plank. Under CALGreen (Title 24 Part 11) §5.106.8, all outdoor luminaires emitting 6,200 initial lumens or more must c… | Title 24 (CAL… | link |
| ✓ | State of California | state | 🟢 passed | lighting energy | California’s statewide building code is the closest analog to La Pine’s lighting plank. Under CALGreen (Title 24 Part 11) §5.106.8, all outdoor luminaires emitting 6,200 initial lumens or more must c… | Title 24 (CAL… | link |
| ✓ | State of California | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy | AB 1577 (Bauer-Kahan, 2025-2026 session) would require data centers with installed electrical capacity of 500 kW or more to submit MONTHLY operational data to the California Energy Commission - power… | 2026 (2025-20… | link |
| ✓ | State of California | state | 🔴 defeated | lighting | Context/dark-sky analog (not data-center-specific): AB 2382 (Lee, 2021-22) would have required outdoor lighting fixtures to use a correlated color temperature not exceeding 2700 K, have anti-light-po… | 2022-09-23 (A… | link |
Colorado (5)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Denver, CO | city | ⏸ moratorium | noise lighting water energy zoning moratorium | Denver City Council voted unanimously May 19, 2026 for a one-year moratorium (effective May 21) halting new data-center zoning permits and site plans while a task force drafts regulations on energy, … | 2026 (adopted… | link |
| ✓ | Jefferson County, CO | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Board of Commissioners voted May 19, 2026 to impose a roughly 10-month moratorium (through March 2027) on new applications to develop or rezone data centers, citing wildfire-interface and water-s… | 2026-05-19 | link |
| ✓ | Larimer County, CO | county | ⏸ moratorium | noise water energy zoning moratorium | NOTE: This is Larimer County, COLORADO — often conflated with Laramie County, WY (which has no adopted data-center standards). Larimer’s Board of County Commissioners adopted a temporary data-center… | 2026-01-27 | link |
| ✓ | Longmont, CO | city | 🟢 passed | energy zoning | Longmont City Council passed (6-1) an ordinance amending the Land Development Code to define ‘hyperscale’ data centers (>=100 MW peak demand) and remove them from allowed uses, effectively capping da… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Colorado | state | 🔴 defeated | energy other | SB25-280 (Data Center Development & Grid Modernization Act, 2025) would have created a state data-center incentive program offering sales/income tax credits to attract data centers and fund electric-… | 2025 (died Ma… | link |
Connecticut (3)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Groton, CT | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Groton’s Planning & Zoning Commission imposed a one-year moratorium on large data centers (applications for facilities over 5,000 sq ft halted), originally enacted in 2022, then used the time to adop… | 2022 | link |
| ✓ | State of Connecticut | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy | Companion bills SB 1292 and HB 5076 (2025) — both ‘An Act Concerning Energy and Water Efficiency Requirements for Artificial Intelligence Data Centers’ — would require large AI data centers to report… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of Connecticut | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy | SB 1292 (with HB 5076) would have required AI data-center owners/operators to file quarterly reports with DEEP on energy and water consumption, generation sources, and utility agreements, and directe… | 2025 | link |
Florida (3)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | DeSoto County, FL (Arcadia — DCIP Group data ce… | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | As a condition of the March 24, 2026 PUD rezoning + Concept Development Plan for DCIP Group’s ~35,134 sq ft data-center facility on a 34.22-acre decommissioned-power-plant site (3800 NE Roan Road, ne… | 2026-03-24 | link |
| ✓ | State of Florida | state | 🟢 passed | reporting water energy zoning | CS/CS/SB 484 was signed by Gov. DeSantis on May 7, 2026 (effective July 1, 2026). It bars utilities from passing data-center electricity/infrastructure costs to residential and small-business ratepay… | 2026-05-07 | link |
| ✓ | State of Florida | state | 🟡 proposed | noise reporting water energy | HB 1517, the Florida Data Center Transparency Act, requires data-center developers to make detailed application-stage disclosures of projected energy, water, carbon-emissions, noise, and other enviro… | 2026 | link |
Georgia (20)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Atlanta, GA | city | 🟢 passed | zoning | Atlanta adopted a zoning restriction in September 2024 prohibiting data centers within a half-mile of the Beltline and within the Downtown/Midtown core (commonly summarized as a Beltline-overlay excl… | 2024-09 | link |
| ✓ | Bartow County, GA | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | County ordinance allowing data centers with a 200-foot buffer from property boundaries and explicit noise caps: no sound of 65 dBA or more over any 30-minute period from 8 a.m.-6 p.m., and 55 dBA ove… | 2025-01 | link |
| ✓ | Cherokee/metro Atlanta data center ordinance wa… | regional | 🟠 pending | noise lighting water zoning moratorium | Georgia Tech EPIcenter (which reviewed codes for ~180 cities/counties) confirms 32 counties and 21 cities drafted ordinance language to incorporate data centers into their UDOs in 2025-2026, covering… | 2025-2026 | link |
| ✓ | City of Atlanta, GA | city | 🟢 passed | zoning | Sept. 3, 2024 ordinances defined ‘data center’ and prohibited them within the BeltLine Overlay District and within 2,640 ft (half-mile) of high-capacity transit stops, to preserve housing and green s… | 2024-09-03 | link |
| ✓ | City of Fayetteville (Fayette County), GA | city | 🟢 passed | zoning | Effective March 5, 2026, prohibits new data centers in every City of Fayetteville zoning district by removing them from the Unified Development Ordinance use tables - effectively a citywide ban. Pure… | 2026-03-05 | link |
| ✓ | Clayton County, GA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | 120-day moratorium passed Sept 3, 2025 (effective through Dec 31, 2025) on data-center applications, permits, rezonings, and certificates of occupancy, to study effects on residents’ health, safety, … | 2025-09-03 | link |
| ✓ | Columbus Consolidated Government (Muscogee Coun… | city | 🟠 pending | lighting zoning other | Proposed ‘technology overlay’ zoning (prompted by the 650 MW Project Ruby) with requirements for dark-sky-compliant lighting, vegetative screening, and setbacks sufficient to protect residential area… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Coweta County, GA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | 180-day moratorium on data center proposals/rezoning enacted early May 2025 and extended, used to study other counties and draft an ordinance; lifted when Coweta adopted a permanent Data Center Ordin… | 2025-05 | link |
| ✓ | Coweta County, GA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | 180-day moratorium on data center proposals/rezoning enacted early May 2025 and extended, used to study other counties and draft an ordinance; lifted when Coweta adopted a permanent Data Center Ordin… | 2025-05 | link |
| ✓ | DeKalb County, GA | county | 🟠 pending | noise lighting reporting water energy zoning | Tiered draft ordinance (by square footage/power demand) restricting data centers to industrial areas via special land-use permit, with 500-ft residential buffers, mandatory closed-loop water systems,… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | DeKalb County, GA | county | ⏸ moratorium | noise water energy zoning moratorium | County extended its pause on new data centers (to June 2026) to study impacts. Proposed regulations would define data centers, set categories by square footage/power demand, and add location, distanc… | 2025-12-16 | link |
| ✓ | Forsyth County, GA | county | 🟢 passed | noise water zoning | Forsyth County data center ordinance prohibits cooling systems from using the county water supply, caps building height at 20 ft, requires 60-ft setbacks adjacent to homes, and limits cooling-system … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Jones County, GA | county | 🟢 passed | water zoning | Jones County’s ordinance requires closed-loop (recycled) cooling water systems for data centers. Water-focused dimension; no noise/light/reporting standards. | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | LaGrange, GA | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The City of LaGrange passed a data center moratorium in September 2025 as part of the regional wave; its draft response was a brief two-page ordinance. | 2025-09 | link |
| ✓ | Lamar County, GA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Lamar County passed a moratorium in September 2025 tied to broader industrial/commercial zoning code updates rather than data-center-specific rules; the county learned in July that AWS bought a 985-a… | 2025-09 | link |
| ✓ | Lumpkin County, GA | county | 🟢 passed | water zoning | Lumpkin County adopted a restrictive ‘compute center’ ordinance (proactively, before facilities arrived) with discharge water-temperature limits of max 41F for cold-water fisheries and 37.4F for warm… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Pike County, GA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Pike County passed a data center moratorium in September 2025, one of four Georgia jurisdictions (with Lamar, Troup, Clayton, and LaGrange) to do so that month, to better understand how to accommodat… | 2025-09 | link |
| ✓ | State of Georgia | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water energy other | The 30 MW annual-public-disclosure provision belongs to HB 528 (sponsor Rep. Debbie Buckner), which would require data centers with peak demand >=30 MW to file annual public reports on energy and wat… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Georgia | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water energy other | The 30 MW annual-public-disclosure provision belongs to HB 528 (sponsor Rep. Debbie Buckner), which would require data centers with peak demand >=30 MW to file annual public reports on energy and wat… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Troup County, GA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Troup County passed a data center moratorium in September 2025 as part of the Georgia wave; it later moved toward a 17-page text amendment (1,500-foot setback, Tier 4 diesel generators, public sewer … | 2025-09 | link |
Idaho (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of Idaho | state | 🟢 passed | water | HB 895 (2026) was signed into law; for data centers beginning construction on/after July 1, 2026, it bars consumptive (evaporative) cooling unless the facility has an agreement with a municipality or… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Idaho | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy | HB 897 (2026, Reps. Bruce/Gannon, Sen. Den Hartog) would have limited the data-center sales-tax exemption to server equipment, phased out the large-investment property-tax exemption, required cost-re… | 2026 | link |
Illinois (5)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Bloomington, IL | city | ⏸ moratorium | energy zoning moratorium | City Council unanimously approved a six-month moratorium (~May 26, 2026) on data centers with capacity greater than 5 MW, requiring at least two public hearings while staff develop stronger zoning re… | 2026-05-26 | link |
| ✓ | Champaign County, IL | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Champaign County Board approved a 12-month moratorium on new large-scale data centers (facilities with >=10,000 sq ft of processing area) on April 23, 2026, extending it from a proposed 9 months … | 2026-04-23 | link |
| ✓ | Normal, IL | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Town of Normal unanimously approved a six-month moratorium (mid-May 2026, running through Nov 30, 2026) on data centers, with no megawatt threshold, while staff research impacts and draft regulations. | 2026-05 | link |
| ✓ | State of Illinois | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy | SB 2181 creates the Illinois Data Center Energy and Water Reporting Act: beginning Jan 1, 2026 all data centers must annually report prior-year energy and water consumption to the Illinois Power Agen… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Yorkville, IL (Kendall County) | city | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Yorkville adopted a text amendment to its Unified Development Ordinance (approx. June 2025) establishing data-center-specific standards: noise control/mitigation, landscape buffering, building separa… | 2025 | link |
Indiana (10)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Boone County, IN | county | 🟡 proposed | zoning moratorium | Boone County’s Area Plan Commission voted in early May 2026 (reported May 6) to forward a favorable recommendation to the County Commissioners for a one-year moratorium on new data-center development… | 2026-05 | link |
| ~ | Hancock County, IN | county | 🟢 passed | zoning | Hancock County’s zoning code permits ‘data processing/call centers’ as a use in commercial/industrial districts. The first large data-center proposal (Surge Development’s 775-acre Buck Creek Township… | — | link |
| ✓ | Indianapolis / Marion County, IN | city | 🟡 proposed | noise water energy zoning | Draft ordinance creates a new SU-47 special-use district requiring new data centers to go through rezoning + public hearing. Sets a 65 dBA maximum at the property line at all hours, requires an acous… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Indianapolis / Marion County, IN | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | On May 4, 2026 the Indianapolis City-County Council unanimously passed a non-binding resolution (Proposal No. 158) establishing a Statement of Policy and urging the Metropolitan Development Commissio… | 2026-05-04 | link |
| ✓ | Indianapolis, IN | city | 🟢 passed | zoning moratorium | City-County Council unanimously passed a non-binding resolution on May 4, 2026 urging the Metropolitan Development Commission to pause approvals of new data centers until May 7, 2027 or until more de… | 2026-05-04 | link |
| ✓ | Lake County, IN | county | 🟢 passed | noise reporting water energy zoning | The Lake County Council adopted a data-center ordinance in August 2025 setting a maximum noise output of 55 dBA, a 200-ft setback from agricultural/residential property lines, screened mechanical equ… | 2025-08 | link |
| ✓ | Marshall County, IN | county | 🟢 passed | zoning moratorium | Marshall County commissioners voted April 20, 2026 to permanently ban data centers countywide, effective immediately, replacing a prior one-year moratorium and described as likely Indiana’s first per… | 2026-04-20 | link |
| ✓ | Starke County, IN | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Starke County adopted a 12-month moratorium (Ord. 2025-37) on hyperscale data centers exceeding 5,000 sq ft: the Plan Commission approved it Dec 5, 2025 and the County Commissioners approved it unani… | 2025-12 | link |
| ✓ | State of Indiana | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting energy | BILL MISIDENTIFIED: the quarterly-electricity-reporting + IURC working-group provisions described belong to SENATE BILL 79 (Data center development), not HB 1333. SB 79 would require data-center oper… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Tippecanoe County, IN (incl. Town of Dayton) | county | 🟢 passed | zoning | Amends the Tippecanoe County Unified Zoning Ordinance to define ‘Data Center’ (<=10,000 sq ft gross floor area) and ‘Large Data Center’ (>10,000 sq ft); data centers permitted in NB/NBU/OR/GB/CB/CBW/… | 2025-11-03 | link |
Iowa (7)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of Palo, IA | city | 🟡 proposed | noise water zoning | Palo advanced a data-center zoning ordinance in 2026 (first of three readings June 2, 2026) to enable an ~545-acre Google campus on land annexed from Linn County, effectively bypassing the county’s s… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | City of Palo, IA (Linn County) | city | 🟠 pending | reporting water zoning | Palo’s city-level data-center zoning ordinance, advanced amid Google’s bid to annex ~545 acres out of Linn County’s jurisdiction, is materially weaker than the county’s: no independent water study an… | 2026 | link |
| ~ | City of West Des Moines, IA | city | 🟢 passed | noise lighting zoning | West Des Moines (home to multiple Microsoft hyperscale campuses, incl. proposed ‘Ruthenium’ on newly-annexed land rezoned to Light Industrial) revised its data-center ordinance to place restrictions … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Dubuque County, IA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | County Board of Supervisors approved a 12-month moratorium on May 26, 2026 halting acceptance, processing and approval of permits and zoning requests for data-center construction or expansion while s… | 2026-05-26 | link |
| ✓ | Linn County, IA | county | 🟢 passed | noise lighting reporting water energy zoning | Linn County’s Chapter 107 UDC data-center ordinance (PA26-0001) was approved Feb. 18, 2026 on third/final consideration and is one of the most comprehensive local US data-center ordinances and the cl… | 2026-02-18 | link |
| ~ | State of Iowa | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water energy | Iowa’s data-center transparency bill (introduced as HF 2447, later renumbered HF 2690) would require quarterly water-usage reports to the Iowa DNR (amount, source, efficiency) and quarterly energy re… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Iowa | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy | HF 2690 (renumbered from HF 2447), Iowa’s statewide data-center transparency bill, would have required data centers to file quarterly water reports with the Iowa DNR (consumption, source, water-usage… | 2026 | link |
Kansas (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of Kansas | state | 🟢 passed | water energy other | SB 98 (2025), effective July 1, 2025, grants a 20-year 100% state/local sales-and-use tax exemption for qualified data centers (min $250M investment within 5 years, 20 jobs within 2 years). Condition… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | State of Kansas | state | 🔴 defeated | water | SB 400 would have required data centers to use closed-loop cooling systems (no evaporative water use) and allowed municipalities, local DAs, and the state AG to sue for injunctions against violators.… | 2026 | link |
Kentucky (7)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Barren County, KY | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Joint City-County Planning Commission declined to amend zoning and supported a one-year moratorium; the Cave City City Council enacted the 12-month moratorium on data-center applications (May 202… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Kentucky (statewide model, Kentucky Resources C… | other | 🟡 proposed | noise lighting reporting water energy zoning | The Kentucky Resources Council published a Model Data Center Zoning Ordinance (Version 1.4, Jan. 2026) for local governments to adopt — with versions for counties with and without planning/zoning — a… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Lexington-Fayette Urban County, KY | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council unanimously passed a moratorium pausing data-center permits, development-plan acceptances, and zone changes until October 31, 2026, and directed the Plannin… | 2026-06 | link |
| ✓ | Lexington-Fayette Urban County, KY | county | ⏸ moratorium | noise zoning moratorium | As part of the Blue Sky Small Area Plan, a draft Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment would define ‘data center,’ allow only ‘minor’ centers (<50,000 sq ft) by conditional use, restrict ‘major’/hyperscale… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Louisville/Jefferson County Metro, KY | county | 🟠 pending | zoning | Metro Council adopted Resolution 082 (Series 2025) on Sept. 25, 2025 directing planning staff to research data-center regulations and recommend Land Development Code/zoning updates. As of June 2026 d… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Mercer County, KY | county | 🟠 pending | zoning | The Harrodsburg-Mercer County Joint Planning & Zoning Commission is considering a draft ordinance regulating data centers amid rural-farmland concerns — allowing facilities only in the county’s IT zo… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Kentucky | state | 🔴 defeated | water energy other | HB 593 (2026, Rep. Josh Bray) would require large data centers to sign contracts covering their own transmission/infrastructure costs (so they aren’t passed to other ratepayers), pay a $75,000 nonref… | 2026 | link |
Louisiana (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of New Orleans, LA | city | ⏸ moratorium | noise zoning moratorium | City Council voted 6-0 on Jan 28, 2026 to create an Interim Zoning District prohibiting data centers for one year (extendable), blocking a proposed New Orleans East facility (MS Solar Grid Data), and… | 2026-01-28 | link |
| ✓ | St. Charles Parish, LA | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Parish Council unanimously adopted its first data-center regulations June 3, 2026 (after rejecting an 8-month moratorium 5-3 in April). Permits data centers in M-1 (backup generators only) and M-2 (o… | 2026-06-03 | link |
Maine (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Bangor, ME | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Bangor City Council unanimously (9-0) passed a 180-day moratorium on data center development on April 13, 2026, citing uncertainty about infrastructure/resource impacts amid sudden industry interest. | 2026-04-13 | link |
| ✓ | State of Maine | state | 🔴 defeated | energy moratorium | LD 307 would have imposed a statewide moratorium on large data centers (power needs >=20 MW) until late 2027 and created a Maine Data Center Coordination Council to study grid load and ratepayer prot… | 2026 | link |
Maryland (6)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Baltimore City, MD | city | ⏸ moratorium | energy zoning moratorium | City Council passed a one-year moratorium (~May 13, 2026) prohibiting data centers with electrical demand of 10 MW or greater citywide, paired with a nine-month study of energy-infrastructure, ratepa… | 2026-05-13 | link |
| ✓ | Calvert County, MD | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Calvert County’s data-center zoning ordinance (effective March 1, 2025) permits data centers only in industrial zones (I-2 with conditions, I-1 by special exception/conditional use), requires a 200-f… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Frederick County, MD | county | 🟢 passed | noise lighting zoning | Frederick County amended its zoning ordinance to heavily regulate data centers: Environmental Noise Impact Assessments by qualified professionals, best-practice noise mitigation, Tier 4 generator emi… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Montgomery County, MD | county | 🟢 passed | noise | Montgomery County’s Noise Control Ordinance requires equipment capable of 24-hour operation — explicitly including standby generators — to meet the more restrictive 55 dBA nighttime limit at the near… | — | link |
| ✓ | State of Maryland | state | 🟢 passed | reporting water energy | SB 116 / HB 270 (2025) mandates a Data Center Impact Analysis and Report: the MD Dept. of the Environment (air/water/Bay-restoration impacts), the Maryland Energy Administration (energy demand, infra… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of Maryland | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy zoning other | Del. Sheila Ruth’s HB 1411 (Data Center Planning and Transparency Act) would have required large data-center operators to report environmental/resource impacts to state and local agencies and mandate… | 2026 | link |
Massachusetts (1)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of Massachusetts | state | 🟢 passed | energy zoning other | The Healey-Driscoll administration finalized (announced March 5, 2026) a major overhaul of MA energy-facility siting/permitting, creating a consolidated Energy Facilities Siting Board pathway (consol… | 2026 | link |
Michigan (10)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Green Charter Township, MI (Mecosta County) | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Green Charter Township’s Board of Trustees adopted a resolution imposing a one-year moratorium (effective Dec. 9, 2025) on permitting/review/approval/construction of data center facilities, citing wa… | 2025-12-09 | link |
| ✓ | Mason, MI (Ingham County) | city | ⏸ moratorium | noise lighting zoning moratorium | Mason adopted Ordinance 266 (Feb 2026) creating an M-3 ‘Technology Innovation’ district for large tech/data facilities, with setbacks/buffering, noise and vibration controls, and environmental/lighti… | 2026-03-16 | link |
| ✓ | Meridian Township, MI | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Township Board of Trustees voted unanimously (~May 19/28, 2026) for a six-month moratorium on data centers AND battery-storage facilities, a preemptive measure citing groundwater and power-use concer… | 2026-05 | link |
| ✓ | Saline, MI (Washtenaw County) | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Saline City Council unanimously adopted a 12-month moratorium on data center approvals on Jan. 12, 2026, citing that the zoning ordinance does not currently define or regulate data centers. It direct… | 2026-01-12 | link |
| ✓ | Springfield Township, MI | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Springfield Township (Oakland County) passed a 180-day moratorium barring data-center plans from being accepted for review, and directing the planning commission to amend the zoning ordinance and hol… | 2026-01 | link |
| ✓ | Springfield Township, MI (Oakland County) | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Springfield Township Board of Trustees approved a 180-day moratorium (early Jan. 2026) barring data-center plans from being accepted, reviewed, approved or otherwise allowed, and directing the pl… | 2026-01 | link |
| ✓ | State of Michigan | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water energy | SB 762 (2025-2026), part of a three-bill Senate Democratic package introduced Dec 2025, would require the Michigan Public Service Commission to publish an annual public report (beginning 2027) of eac… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Michigan | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy | Senate Bills 761-763 (Sens. Bayer, Shink, Geiss) were introduced Dec. 18, 2025 and remain in committee. SB 762 would require the Michigan Public Service Commission, beginning 2027, to publish an annu… | 2025-12-18 | link |
| ✓ | Washington Township (Macomb County), MI | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Township Board of Trustees passed a six-month moratorium (~May 23, 2026) on acceptance and review of data-center applications, lasting until zoning-ordinance amendments take effect, whichever comes f… | 2026-05-23 | link |
| ✓ | Washington Township, MI (Macomb County) | town | ⏸ moratorium | noise zoning moratorium | As of April 2026 the township planning commission had authorized its planner, attorney, engineers and noise consultants to develop a data-center ordinance amendment (noise was an explicit driver; a n… | 2026 | link |
Minnesota (5)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ~ | City of Becker, MN | city | ⚪ unclear | noise lighting zoning | Becker (site of Xcel’s Sherco plant, where Amazon’s planned data center was suspended and Microsoft bought ~300 acres) has a Unified Development Ordinance; reporting indicates noise and light for pro… | — | link |
| ✓ | City of Rosemount, MN | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Rosemount Ordinance No. 2026-03, adopted April 21, 2026, is an interim ordinance imposing a one-year city-wide moratorium making data centers a prohibited use while the city studies how to regulate t… | 2026-04-21 | link |
| ✓ | Minneapolis, MN | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | City Council voted 8-5 on May 22, 2026 for a six-month moratorium (through Nov 21, 2026) on data centers larger than 350,000 sq ft, with a downtown-core exemption, while it studies zoning, environmen… | 2026-05-22 | link |
| ✓ | State of Minnesota | state | 🟢 passed | reporting water energy | HF 16 passed and was enacted as Laws 2025, 1st Special Session, Chapter 12 (signed June 14, 2025). It modifies environmental/energy regulatory requirements and the sales/use-tax exemption for data ce… | 2025-06-14 | link |
| ✓ | State of Minnesota | state | 🟡 proposed | water energy moratorium | HF 4990 (Rep. Mekeland; companion SF 5100), introduced April 16, 2026 and referred to Environment & Natural Resources Finance and Policy, modifies criteria for preapplication evaluations of water app… | 2026 | link |
Mississippi (6)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of Jackson, MS | city | 🟡 proposed | noise energy zoning moratorium | Jackson City Council debated a six-month data-center moratorium and voted to table the ordinance (May 19-20, 2026) over procedure (city attorney said it may require a public hearing with 15-day notic… | 2026-05 | link |
| ✓ | DeSoto County / Southaven, MS (xAI ‘MACROHARD’) | county | ⚪ unclear | other | Southaven residents have raised major noise complaints about xAI’s gas turbines (constant humming from existing 27 turbines); the MS DEQ Permit Board approved an air permit for 41 permanent turbines … | 2025-2026 | link |
| ✓ | Jackson, MS (Hinds County) | city | 🟠 pending | zoning moratorium | Council President Brian Grizzell (Ward 4) introduced an ordinance (April 2026) for a 183-day moratorium pausing construction/expansion/permitting of data centers over 5 MW projected load while the ci… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Ridgeland, MS (Madison County) | city | 🟢 passed | noise lighting zoning other | Ridgeland (host of the AWS Highland Colony Pkwy campus, 5+ data center buildings) amended its zoning ordinance (adopted ~Apr 7, 2026) with data-center-specific standards: noise capped at 55 dBA dayti… | 2026-04-07 | link |
| ✓ | State of Mississippi | state | 🟡 proposed | energy other | SB 3168 (2025 Reg. Session) revises Mississippi’s Data Center Exemption: new builds need $250M investment + 35 jobs at 125% of avg state wage ($100M for expansions, up to two automatic 10-yr extensio… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of Mississippi | state | 🟢 passed | energy other | SB 2001 (2024 special session) enabled the AWS ~$10B Madison County deal by letting Entergy enter data center contracts and recover costs from ratepayers WITHOUT Public Service Commission approval, b… | 2024 | link |
Missouri (4)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Peculiar, MO | city | 🟢 passed | zoning moratorium | Peculiar (KC suburb) removed ‘data center’ from its city zoning ordinance effective Oct. 17, 2024, blocking Diode Ventures’ ~$1.5B, 500-acre Harper Road Technology Park after a 1,000+ member oppositi… | 2024 | link |
| ✓ | Peculiar, MO (Cass County) | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Peculiar (Cass County) placed a 100-day moratorium on data centers and subsequently amended its ordinance to remove the data-center definition/zoning, effectively blocking new development including a… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | St. Charles, MO | city | 🟢 passed | water zoning moratorium | After a ~one-year temporary moratorium enacted in fall 2025 (amid water-supply and opposition to a $1B CRG Cumulus proposal off Hwy 370), the City Council voted 7-1 on May 19, 2026 to make permanent … | 2026-05-19 | link |
| ✓ | State of Missouri | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy other | HB 2239, the ‘AI Data Center Environmental Accountability Act’ (2026 session, sponsor Rep. Marty Joe Murray), would have required data centers using >=100 MW to use closed-loop/low-water cooling, req… | 2026 | link |
Montana (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Montana (Public Service Commission / NorthWeste… | regional | 🟠 pending | energy other | NorthWestern Energy filed a Large New Load Tariff with the Montana PSC on March 31, 2026 setting interconnection terms for new electric loads of 5 MW or greater: standardized requirements for 5-49 MW… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Montana | state | 🔴 defeated | energy other | HJ-46 (2025) was a study resolution to examine data-center cost-shifting/energy issues; it died in standing committee on May 22, 2025 after Senate Energy Committee members declined to advance it. Ene… | 2025 | link |
Nebraska (4)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ~ | Gage County, NE | county | 🟠 pending | water zoning moratorium | The Gage County planning and zoning commission scheduled a June 2026 public hearing on a data-center moratorium, prompted by residents (notably in the village of Adams, ~500 people, where ~70 attende… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Madison County, NE | county | 🟢 passed | noise water zoning other | On ~May 6, 2026 the Madison County Board amended its land-use matrix (Resolution 2026-27) to classify ‘industrial data center’ as a conditional use in agriculture-intensive (and related) districts, s… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Otoe County, NE | county | ⏸ moratorium | water energy zoning moratorium | Otoe County commissioners adopted a one-year moratorium on new data-center permits on May 20, 2026, to study impacts and write regulations. Prompted by a potential Google/Tenaska mega-project (docume… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Nebraska | state | 🟢 passed | reporting water energy other | LB1010 (2026) — which absorbed the data-center provisions originally drafted as LB1111 (Sen. Cavanaugh) — passed 49-0 (approved April 10, 2026; effective ~July 17, 2026). Data-center operators must s… | 2026 | link |
Nevada (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Reno, NV | city | ⏸ moratorium | water energy zoning moratorium | City Council voted 6-1 on May 14, 2026 for an initial 30-day pause on new data-center special-use permits (first in Nevada), then on June 3 extended it through August 2027 / until new regulations on … | 2026-05-14 | link |
| ~ | State of Nevada | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy | Nevada’s interim committees on natural resources and growth/infrastructure held a March 2026 hearing on data-center water and energy demands, gathering information to inform a possible 2027-session b… | 2026 | link |
New Jersey (3)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of New Jersey | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy | S 4143 and S 4293 (2024-2025 session) regulate AI/data-center energy and water. S 4293 requires quarterly water+energy usage reports to the Board of Public Utilities (PUE, water-usage effectiveness, … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of New Jersey | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water energy | S4293/A5548 passed both houses June 30, 2025, requiring data-center owners/operators to report total energy consumption (electricity + fuels), water usage and source, and sustainability indicators (P… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | State of New Jersey | state | 🟠 pending | energy other | S731/A796 would require electric public utilities to develop special rate rules for large data centers (peak demand >=100 MW) to protect non-data-center customers from cost increases, including a req… | 2026 | link |
New Mexico (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of New Mexico | state | 🟢 passed | lighting energy other | New Mexico Night Sky Protection Act, NMSA Ch. 74, Art. 12 (74-12-1 et seq., enacted 1999), requires outdoor lighting fixtures installed after Jan 1, 2000 to be shielded (light projected below the hor… | 1999 | link |
| ✓ | State of New Mexico | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy | SB 235 (Microgrid Oversight Act, 2026), introduced by Sen. Jeff Steinborn, would have put microgrids over 20 MW under Public Regulation Commission rulemaking and required operators to file annual rep… | 2026 | link |
New York (11)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of Niagara Falls, NY | city | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | September 2022 zoning amendment created a High Energy Use Overlay District for crypto-mining/data centers, restricting them to industrial zones, adding setbacks, and capping facility noise at 65 dBA … | 2022 | link |
| ✓ | City of North Tonawanda, NY (Niagara County) | city | ⏸ moratorium | noise zoning moratorium | North Tonawanda’s Common Council adopted a two-year moratorium (July 16, 2024) barring approval of any new ‘data processing center’ and the expansion of existing ones, with the definition expressly c… | 2024-07-16 | link |
| ✓ | City of North Tonawanda, NY (Niagara County) | city | 🟢 passed | noise | North Tonawanda’s noise code (Chapter 61A Noise Control) sets a 50 dBA nighttime limit; in July 2025 the city issued four noise citations to the DigiPower X (formerly Digihost) crypto-mining facility… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | City of Plattsburgh, NY (Clinton County) | city | 🟢 passed | noise zoning moratorium | After becoming the first US city to impose an 18-month moratorium on new commercial crypto mining (March 2018, lifted March 2019), Plattsburgh adopted a local law requiring a Special Use Permit for n… | 2018 | link |
| ~ | City of Plattsburgh, NY (Clinton County) | city | 🟡 proposed | noise | A proposed Plattsburgh update would cap commercial crypto operations at 70 dBA (7am-9pm) and 65 dBA (9pm-7am) measured at the property line, with levels also varying by zoning district. It mirrors La… | 2018 | link |
| ✓ | Lysander, NY | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Lysander Town Board (Onondaga County) unanimously approved a six-month moratorium on new data center development/construction on May 7, 2026, after 350+ residents opposed the proposed Ranalli Sup… | 2026-05-07 | link |
| ✓ | Perth, NY | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Town of Perth (Fulton County) passed a one-year moratorium on developing any data centers on June 4, 2025 (board vote 3-0, two absent), to allow time to draft regulations and a new comprehensive … | 2025-06-04 | link |
| ✓ | State of New York | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water energy other | Sen. Kristen Gonzalez’s S6394A (2025-2026 session) regulates data-center energy consumption and requires operators to file a public disclosure report (pre-construction and annual updates) covering pr… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of New York | state | ⏸ moratorium | reporting water energy moratorium | The Responsible Data Center Development Act (S10642/A11560) passed both chambers June 4, 2026 (Senate 44-16, Assembly 102-39) and AWAITS Gov. Hochul’s signature — not yet law. It would bar DEC permit… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Town of Lysander, Onondaga County, NY | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Lysander Town Board unanimously approved a six-month moratorium on May 7, 2026 prohibiting development and construction of new data centers while it forms an advisory committee to study codes and… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Town of Perth, Fulton County, NY | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Perth Town Board passed a one-year moratorium on June 4, 2025 on development of any data centers, approved 3-0 (two members absent), to buy time to regulate them while drafting a new comprehensiv… | 2025 | link |
North Carolina (21)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Albemarle County, NC | county | 🟠 pending | zoning | On Oct 1, 2025 the Albemarle County, VIRGINIA Board of Supervisors agreed to indefinitely pause Phase 2 data-center zoning text and map amendments, pending the Virginia General Assembly’s Jan 2026 se… | 2025-10-01 | link |
| ✓ | Apex, NC (Wake County) | town | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Apex Town Council voted unanimously in April 2026 to enact a 12-month moratorium on data centers, data-processing facilities, and crypto-mining operations, after public opposition citing water and en… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Brunswick County, NC | county | 🟢 passed | zoning | Brunswick County added data centers to its UDO in 2023, allowing them by-right in General Industrial (I-G) zones subject to standard land-use/setback rules (50-ft front setback, intensive vegetative … | 2023 | link |
| ✓ | Chatham County, NC | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | On Feb 11, 2026 the Board of Commissioners approved a 12-month moratorium on permitting data centers, data-processing facilities, and cryptocurrency mining in unincorporated Chatham County, expiring … | 2026-02 | link |
| ✓ | Cherokee County, NC | county | ⏸ moratorium | noise zoning moratorium | Home to the Harshaw Road crypto mine near Murphy (likened to a jet taking off). Commissioners earlier proposed a noise ordinance (100 dB(A) cap at the property boundary; 50 dB(A) for any sound lastin… | 2023-10 | link |
| ✓ | City of Durham, NC | city | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Durham City Council approved a 60-day moratorium on data-center planning and development to give staff time to evaluate standards. Short-duration data-center-specific pause. | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | City of Fayetteville, NC | city | 🟡 proposed | noise energy zoning | Draft UDO amendment regulating generator noise, generator testing hours, placement of outdoor mechanical yards relative to residential edges, utility coordination/demand, and on-site power generation… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Cumberland County, NC | county | 🟡 proposed | noise energy zoning | Cumberland County is drafting its first data-center rules and advancing a roughly six-month moratorium (proposed to run until ~Dec 15, 2026) to halt new approvals and site-plan/permit reviews while i… | 2026 | link |
| ~ | Edgecombe County, NC | county | 🟢 passed | noise reporting zoning | Edgecombe County amended its UDO in November 2025 (after Tarboro denied a 50-acre data center) to add ‘data center’ (by-right in M-2 General Industrial) and ‘crypto mining’ (conditional rezoning) use… | 2025-11 | link |
| ✓ | Fayetteville, NC | city | 🟠 pending | zoning | Fayetteville’s draft data-center zoning ordinance has moved through Planning Commission review (Oct 2025, Feb 2026) but the City Council, amid loud organized opposition, voted to pause it and instead… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Gates County, NC | county | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Gates County Board of Commissioners voted 5-0 on 12/17/2025 to adopt an ordinance imposing a one-year moratorium (eff. 12/17/2025 through 12/17/2026) on development approvals for data centers, crypto… | 2025-12-17 | link |
| ✓ | Haywood County, NC | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | On Nov. 1/6, 2023, Haywood County commissioners passed amendments to its 2016 High-Impact Development Ordinance defining ‘Class I data center,’ ‘Class II cryptocurrency data center,’ and ‘cryptocurre… | 2023-11 | link |
| ✓ | Lee County, NC (and City of Sanford) | county | 🟢 passed | noise reporting water zoning | Lee County (5-1, Apr 20/21, 2026) and Sanford (6-1, Apr 21/22, 2026) added ‘Data Center’ to their UDOs. Standards set a 65 dBA noise limit (or higher where pre-existing), require a noise study before… | 2026-04 | link |
| ✓ | Orange County, NC | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | On Apr 21, 2026 the Board of Commissioners unanimously adopted a one-year moratorium barring approval of construction/expansion of large-scale data centers, AI data centers, cryptocurrency-mining fac… | 2026-04 | link |
| ✓ | Rowan County, NC | county | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Rowan County commissioners voted unanimously on 4/21/2026 for a one-year moratorium on new data centers, effective 5/4/2026 (delayed because a commissioner left before the vote). The existing Long Fe… | 2026-04-21 | link |
| ✓ | State of North Carolina | state | 🟠 pending | noise reporting water energy zoning | SB 730 (Ratepayer Protection Act) passed the NC Senate (29-18, May 2025) and the NC House (69-44, June 2026, with an amendment) and returned to the Senate for concurrence. Targets data centers of ~10… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of North Carolina | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy moratorium | HB 1063 (Ratepayer and Resource Protection Act), filed 4/27/2026 by Prather, Johnson-Hostler, Longest, Helfrich, requires large data centers (peak demand at the MW threshold or >1 billion liters/yr w… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Town of Apex / Town of Wendell / City of Durham… | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Three Triangle-area moratoria: Apex Town Council unanimously enacted a 12-month moratorium on data centers, data-processing, and crypto mining (effective Apr 28, 2026 through April 2027) after a deve… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Town of Leland, NC | town | 🟢 passed | noise lighting reporting energy zoning | After a unanimous Planning Board recommendation (Feb 2026), the Leland Town Council ADOPTED the data-center text amendment on March 19, 2026 (4-1 vote). It caps noise at 60 dBA at the property line, … | 2026-03-19 | link |
| ✓ | Town of Murphy, NC (Cherokee County) | town | 🟢 passed | zoning moratorium | Murphy’s town board unanimously adopted a zoning text amendment permanently prohibiting cryptocurrency mines inside town limits; the amendment is silent on AI data centers. An outright zoning ban tar… | 2024 | link |
| ✓ | Wendell, NC (Wake County) | town | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Town of Wendell commissioners approved a moratorium on data center development running through Dec 31, 2026, to study potential impacts (no data-center applications pending at the time). One of sever… | 2026 | link |
North Dakota (1)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of North Dakota | state | 🔴 defeated | zoning other | HB 1579 (2025, 69th session, Rep. Anna Novak) would have given the Public Service Commission siting authority over data centers; it was withdrawn before a floor vote amid utility/industry pushback. D… | 2025 | link |
Ohio (16)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Columbus / Franklin County, OH | city | 🟠 pending | noise reporting water energy | Columbus’ noise rule (Sec. 2329.11) bars a stationary sound source from RESIDENTIALLY-zoned property audible 50 ft beyond the property line, so industrial-zoned data centers are effectively exempt. C… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Hilliard, OH (Franklin County) | city | 🟠 pending | noise | Hilliard has no DC moratorium or noise/light ordinance; it is litigating against the ~73 MW / 228 Bloom Energy fuel-cell array powering Amazon’s Cosgray (Scioto Darby Rd) data-center campus. The city… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Jackson Township, Franklin County, OH | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Jackson Township trustees (SW Franklin County, around Grove City) unanimously approved a one-year data-center moratorium taking effect immediately, blocking permits and zoning approvals on unincorpor… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Jerome Township, OH (Union County) | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Jerome Township trustees voted Sept. 3, 2025 to enact a nine-month moratorium on receiving/approving zoning certificates for new data centers (believed among Ohio’s first), to reclassify data centers… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Lordstown, OH (Trumbull County) | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Lordstown Village Council passed an outright data-center ban in November 2025, then unanimously repealed it Dec. 1, 2025, and subsequently enacted a 180-day moratorium on accepting/processing AI data… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Multiple Ohio cities (Columbus, Dayton, Canton) | city | 🟢 passed | noise | Ohio cities rely on general nuisance noise codes rather than data-center-specific dBA limits: Columbus (2329.11) bars a stationary sound source on residentially-zoned property audible 50 ft beyond th… | — | link |
| ✓ | New Albany, OH | city | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | New Albany (Meta/Google/Amazon/QTS hub in the New Albany International Business Park) has NO data-center-specific ordinance; data centers are treated as a permitted commercial/office use. Citywide no… | — | link |
| ~ | New Albany, OH (Franklin/Licking Counties) | city | 🟢 passed | noise lighting zoning | New Albany regulates data center noise only through citywide general nuisance provisions (Codified Ordinance Ch. 521, §§521.12/521.14), with no data-center-specific dBA limit; the city’s community-de… | — | link |
| ~ | Pleasant Township, Franklin County, OH | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Pleasant Township trustees (Franklin County, near Grove City) approved a data-center moratorium in 2026, effective immediately on unincorporated land, part of a wave of central-Ohio township pauses. … | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Scioto Township, OH | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Scioto Township (Franklin County, near Commercial Point) trustees enacted a 12-month moratorium on new data center applications, pausing approvals while the township overhauls a zoning code that curr… | 2026-03-06 | link |
| ✓ | South Bloomfield, OH (Pickaway County) | town | 🟢 passed | zoning moratorium | South Bloomfield (Pickaway County) preemptively eliminated all industrial zoning to preclude data centers — adopting a new zoning code that does not list data centers as a permitted use — despite not… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Ohio | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy other | Substitute HB 646 (Sen. Brian Chavez’s rewrite of a study-commission bill) would create a separate data-center electric rate class, require utilities to file DC tariffs with PUCO, cut the sales-tax e… | 2026 | link |
| ~ | State of Ohio | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy other | The Senate Democratic / Chavez data-center accountability package (the same June 2026 effort that became Substitute HB 646) would require data centers to report water usage to state regulators and us… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Ohio (PUCO) | state | 🟢 passed | energy other | Effective July 9, 2025, PUCO approved an AEP Ohio data-center-specific tariff requiring new data centers with peak load >=25 MW to pay monthly for at least 85% of contracted capacity over up to 12 ye… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Vienna Township, OH (Trumbull County) | town | 🟡 proposed | noise zoning | Vienna Township (Trumbull County) is using a development pause to draft zoning changes that would regulate (not ban) data centers, including limiting noise decibels and megawatt power use, per truste… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Vienna Township, Trumbull County, OH | town | ⏸ moratorium | noise energy zoning moratorium | Vienna Township (NE Ohio) trustees voted 2-1 in Feb 2026 for a 180-day data-center moratorium, and are using the pause to draft zoning that, per trustee Phil Pegg, would limit the decibels of noise a… | 2026 | link |
Oklahoma (2)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Oklahoma City, OK | city | ⏸ moratorium | noise water zoning moratorium | City Council unanimously approved an emergency moratorium (April 21, 2026) pausing new data-center rezoning/development applications citywide through Dec. 31, 2026 to study water, electricity, noise,… | 2026-04-21 | link |
| ✓ | State of Oklahoma | state | 🟢 passed | reporting energy other | HB 2992 (Data Center Consumer Ratepayer Protection Act), authored by Rep. Brad Boles, signed by Gov. Kevin Stitt; House 92-2, Senate unanimous. Defines ‘large load customers’ as new facilities adding… | 2026 | link |
Oregon (7)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of The Dalles, OR (Google data centers) | city | 🟢 passed | reporting water | After The Dalles sued The Oregonian to keep Google’s data-center water use secret as a ‘trade secret,’ the DA ordered disclosure and the city settled (Dec 2022, Wasco County Circuit Court): it releas… | 2022 | link |
| ✓ | Crook County, OR (Prineville — Meta, Apple) | county | 🟢 passed | lighting | Crook County Code Ch. 18.126 (Ord. 344, 2024) is a countywide dark-sky outdoor-lighting ordinance in Oregon’s hyperscale hub (Meta and Apple in Prineville/Crook County). Requires all non-exempt outdo… | 2024 | link |
| ✓ | Deschutes County, OR (La Pine’s own county) | county | 🟢 passed | lighting | Deschutes County Code Ch. 15.10 (Outdoor Lighting Control) was amended by an ordinance the Board adopted Sept. 24, 2025, effective Dec. 23, 2025 (full compliance for existing fixtures by Dec. 23, 202… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Morrow County, OR (Boardman — Amazon AWS) | county | 🟢 passed | noise | Morrow County’s Code Enforcement Ordinance (adopted July 2021) treats noise as a public nuisance with county quiet hours from 11:00pm to 7:00am (agricultural activity exempt) — the same nighttime-win… | 2021 | link |
| ✓ | State of Oregon | state | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy other | HB 3698 (2025 session) would require data centers to report water and electricity use each quarter to the Water Resources Department and Oregon Dept. of Energy (which publishes summaries online), and… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of Oregon | state | 🟠 pending | noise reporting water energy | HB 3698 (2025) requires data centers to report water and electricity use QUARTERLY to the Water Resources Dept. and Dept. of Energy, with DOE publishing per-facility summaries publicly; also directs … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of Oregon (PGE territory; statewide frame… | state | 🟢 passed | reporting energy other | The POWER Act (HB 3546, 2025; passed June 5, signed June 16, 2025) creates a separate PUC rate class for data centers and crypto miners at 20 MW and above, requiring long-term (10+ yr) contracts, cus… | 2025 | link |
Pennsylvania (21)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ~ | Archbald Borough, Lackawanna County, PA | town | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Archbald Borough adopted a data-center zoning ordinance that requires noise/sound studies as part of applications to establish baseline background noise and identify mitigation - a noise-focused perm… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Center Township, Butler County, PA | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Center Township supervisors voted unanimously June 10, 2026 to approve a curative amendment halting any data center or power-generation-plant development for 180 days while the township drafts specif… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water | A PA House bill (advanced out of committee, early 2026) would require data-center developers to submit reports on expected water use before beginning operation — how much water, the source, and the i… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Covington Township, Lackawanna County, PA | town | 🟢 passed | zoning | Covington Township adopted a data-center ordinance using a setback of up to ~400 feet (the longest in a range of PA setbacks cited from 50 to 400 ft). A siting/buffer-distance standard rather than a … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | East Vincent Township, Chester County, PA | town | 🔴 defeated | zoning | The ‘Data Center and Energy Technology Campus’ zoning amendment (amending Chapter 27 IMU district) was NOT adopted — the Board of Supervisors declined to move forward and scrapped the draft ordinanc… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | East Vincent Township, Jessup Borough, Forkstow… | town | 🟢 passed | zoning | East Vincent Township and Jessup Borough amended their zoning ordinances to account for data centers (Jessup creating an industrial overlay above the Casey Highway and making data centers a condition… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | East Whiteland Township, Chester County, PA | town | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Supervisors in March 2026 voted to declare parts of the township’s data-center zoning ‘substantively invalid’ and launch a curative amendment, starting a 180-day pause (under the PA MPC mechanism for… | 2026 | link |
| ~ | Fairview Township & Butler Township/Arendtsvill… | town | 🟢 passed | zoning | Multiple PA municipalities amended zoning to confine data centers to specific districts: Fairview Township and Butler Township/Arendtsville Borough restrict them to industrial zones (Butler/Arendtsvi… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Forks Township, Northampton County, PA | town | 🟢 passed | zoning | Forks Township adopted Ordinance No. 409 on September 4, 2025 (zoning text amendment), defining ‘Data Center’ and ‘Data Center Accessory Uses’ and adding use-specific requirements in the township’s i… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Franklin County, PA | county | 🟢 passed | noise water zoning other | Franklin County commissioners unanimously adopted an amendment to the county Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Ordinance 2026-02) on May 20, 2026 establishing data-center standards - water-… | 2026-05-20 | link |
| ~ | Jessup Borough, Lackawanna County, PA | town | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Jessup Borough adopted a zoning ordinance amendment (cited as 04-2025) creating an energy/IT overlay district that restricts data centers to industrial zones south of the Casey Highway, caps height a… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Lower Macungie Township, Lehigh County, VA-adja… | town | 🟡 proposed | noise reporting water energy | Township advanced a data-center zoning ordinance (permitting data centers as conditional use in three districts) to a public hearing in early April 2026. It requires applicants to file annual reports… | 2026-04-02 | link |
| ✓ | Middletown Township, Bucks County, PA | town | 🟡 proposed | noise zoning | Middletown Township is drafting an ordinance (briefed at a public meeting reported June 10, 2026) to classify data centers as a conditional use restricted to M1 light-manufacturing districts, with a … | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Muncy Township, Lycoming County, PA | town | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Muncy Township Board of Supervisors passed a resolution in May 2026 establishing a nine-month moratorium (or until a zoning ordinance is adopted) on data centers and high-intensity data processing fa… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Penn Township, PA | town | ⏸ moratorium | moratorium | Penn Township officials approved a 30-day data center moratorium on May 12, 2026, to give time to develop longer-term policy; residents requested a longer-term option. HOWEVER this Penn Township is i… | 2026-05-12 | link |
| ✓ | PennFuture Model Data Center Ordinance (templat… | other | 🟡 proposed | noise | PennFuture’s model data-center ordinance (used as a template across PA/MD) recommends roughly 45-55 dBA daytime / 40-50 dBA nighttime at the residential property line, generator testing limited to sp… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Pennsylvania (PennFuture Model Data Center Ordi… | regional | 🟡 proposed | noise lighting water energy zoning | PennFuture’s Model Data Center Ordinance (Aug 2025) is a TEMPLATE, not an enacted law: it recommends noise limits (~60 dBA at sensitive receptors / 70 dBA otherwise plus low-frequency C-weighted/octa… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of Pennsylvania | state | 🟠 pending | noise zoning other | HB 2151 (2025-26, Rep. Kyle Donahue), ‘Community Standards for Data Center Developments,’ directs the Local Government Commission/DCED to create an OPTIONAL model municipal zoning ordinance addressin… | 2026-04-13 | link |
| ✓ | State of Pennsylvania | state | 🟡 proposed | other | HB 2198 (2025-26, Rep. Greg Vitali) REPEALS the Computer Data Center Equipment Incentive Program sales/use tax exemption. It was referred to the House Finance Committee Feb. 5, 2026 and remains there… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | York County, PA | county | 🟡 proposed | noise zoning moratorium | The York County Planning & Zoning Committee voted May 26, 2026 to recommend that County Council adopt a 9-month moratorium on new data centers to study rate-making, on-site power generation, noise st… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | York County, PA | county | ⚪ unclear | noise lighting zoning other | The York County Planning Commission published a ‘Data Center Model Ordinance’ (August 2025) — template/suggested language for member municipalities to adopt, covering definitions, siting, screening, … | 2025-08 | link |
Rhode Island (1)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Smithfield, RI | town | 🟢 passed | zoning | Town Council enacted an ordinance (~May 5, 2026) banning data centers in all zoning categories for at least two years, with later review; among the most restrictive postures in the tracker. | 2026-05-05 | link |
South Carolina (1)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | South Carolina (State) | state | 🟠 pending | reporting water energy zoning | H.4583, the SC Data Center Responsibility Act (introduced Jan 13, 2026, in House committee), applies to facilities over 5,000 sq ft and requires complete on-site energy independence (generator fuel d… | 2026 | link |
South Dakota (1)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of South Dakota | state | 🟢 passed | water energy zoning other | Signed by Gov. Larry Rhoden on March 24, 2026; HB 1038 applies to data centers with peak demand of 10 MW or greater, requiring operators to ensure water use does not overburden local resources and to… | 2026-03-24 | link |
Tennessee (8)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of McMinnville, TN | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | On June 3, 2026 the McMinnville Board of Mayor and Aldermen unanimously ADOPTED (not merely proposed) an 18-month moratorium on data centers, Bitcoin-mining and microchip-manufacturing facilities, re… | 2026-06-03 | link |
| ? | City of Memphis, TN | city | ⚪ unclear | noise | Memphis’s existing noise law (Code Ch. 9-68, Noise Control) is a GENERAL nuisance standard, not data-center-specific and not numeric. A claimed proposed amendment adding objective dBA caps (63 dBA re… | — | link |
| ✓ | Johnson City, TN | city | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | In June 2025 the Johnson City Commission passed a one-year moratorium barring new industrial land-use applications and building permits for new construction in the I-2 (heavy industrial) district, th… | 2025-06 | link |
| ✓ | Metro Nashville / Davidson County, TN | city | 🟡 proposed | noise reporting water energy zoning | Metro Nashville is advancing proposed data-center zoning that requires closed-loop (water-recycling) cooling, setbacks from homes/schools/daycares/religious institutions/parks/the zoo, noise and envi… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Shelby County, TN (Memphis — xAI Colossus) | county | 🟢 passed | other | The prominent xAI Memphis fight is AIR-QUALITY ONLY, not a La Pine comparable. On July 2, 2025 the Shelby County Health Department granted CTC Property LLC / xAI an air construction permit for 15 Sol… | 2025-07-02 | link |
| ✓ | Shelby County, TN (xAI Colossus, Memphis) | county | ⚪ unclear | other | Shelby County Health Department approved an air permit for 15 permanent gas turbines at xAI’s South Memphis (Paul R. Lowry Rd) Colossus campus on July 2, 2025 after 1,700+ public comments; NAACP and … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | State of Tennessee | state | 🟢 passed | energy | HB 1847 / SB 2128 (sponsors Rep. Ed Butler, Sen. Brent Taylor) requires data-center owners to pay the full electricity and infrastructure costs of their facilities and bars utilities from raising oth… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Town of Cedar Hill, TN | town | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Cedar Hill City Commission approved a resolution imposing a two-year moratorium on data centers and cryptocurrency mining at its June 1, 2026 meeting, citing electricity demand, water use, air qualit… | 2026-06-01 | link |
Texas (12)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ~ | Abilene, TX (Stargate / Lancium-Crusoe site) | city | 🟠 pending | noise water energy | The ~1,200-acre Stargate AI data center (Lancium + Crusoe) sits on land already zoned industrial, so no rezoning hearing occurred. After resident complaints about noise, light, traffic, and transpare… | 2025-2026 | link |
| ✓ | Denton, TX | city | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Denton has a general municipal noise ordinance (Code Ch. 17, Sec. 17-20; A-weighted measurement, festival caps ~70 dBA, variance/special-permit process) plus a zoning Development Code governing indus… | — | link |
| ✓ | Fort Worth, TX | city | 🟡 proposed | noise lighting water zoning | Comprehensive data-center zoning package: 250-ft residential setback, 50-ft landscaped buffer/screening fence, standby generators prohibited within 300 ft of homes (fully screened), rooftop equipment… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Fort Worth, TX (resident moratorium push) | city | 🟡 proposed | noise water energy moratorium | Fort Worth residents publicly pushed for a moratorium/pause on new data-center growth amid pushback over large projects (a $1.1B tax abatement was paused April 2026; a $10B Black Mountain project pul… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Granbury / Hood County, TX (private nuisance li… | other | 🟠 pending | noise other | Granbury-area residents sued the Marathon/MARA Bitcoin mine in federal court for private nuisance over constant 24/7 fan noise, vibration, and low-frequency sound, seeking damages and an injunction (… | 2024-2026 | link |
| ✓ | Hill County, TX | county | ⚪ unclear | zoning moratorium | Hill County commissioners passed a one-year moratorium on data centers, power generation and battery storage in unincorporated areas on a 3-2 vote May 12, 2026; developer RCM Hill LLC (Project Aquila… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Hood County / Granbury, TX | county | 🔴 defeated | noise | Granbury residents fought the MARA/Marathon bitcoin mine using Texas Penal Code 42.01(c)(2), which presumes noise above 85 dB unreasonable after officer notice (constable issued 37 citations through … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Hood County, TX | county | 🔴 defeated | noise water energy moratorium | Proposed six-month moratorium on new large-scale data-center/AI/crypto development to study water, energy, air-quality, watershed and quality-of-life impacts (driven by the Marathon/MARA Granbury Bit… | 2026-02-10 | link |
| ✓ | Mitchell Bend / Granbury area, Hood County, TX | town | 🔴 defeated | noise zoning other | Residents near the Marathon/MARA Granbury Bitcoin mine petitioned to incorporate the Mitchell Bend neighborhood as a Type B city specifically to gain power to enact a municipal noise ordinance (which… | 2025-11 | link |
| ✓ | Navarro County / Corsicana, TX (Riot Platforms … | county | 🔴 defeated | noise water energy other | On March 11, 2024 Navarro County Commissioners declined to create a reinvestment zone for Riot Platforms’ 256-acre Corsicana Bitcoin mine (slated to be Texas’s largest), so no tax abatement was grant… | 2024-03-11 | link |
| ✓ | State of Texas | state | 🟢 passed | reporting energy other | SB 6 (89th Legislature) passed May 2025 and was signed by Gov. Abbott June 21, 2025, effective immediately. Governs large electrical loads (>=75 MW, PUCT-adjustable) in ERCOT: interconnection disclos… | 2025-06-21 | link |
| ~ | State of Texas | state | 🔴 defeated | noise other | Texas counties cannot adopt enforceable noise ordinances (only cities can); lawmakers have debated bills across sessions to grant counties that authority but none passed, leaving only the Penal Code … | 2023-2026 | link |
Utah (3)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Iron County, UT | county | ⏸ moratorium | water zoning moratorium | County Commission adopted a 180-day moratorium on May 26, 2026 on new land-use applications for data centers, data-center power plants and solar power plants, driven largely by water-use concerns. | 2026-05-26 | link |
| ✓ | State of Utah | state | 🟢 passed | reporting water | HB 76 (Data Center Water Transparency Amendments, 2026) requires large data centers to report water sourcing, annual use, projected discharges, treatment, and conservation to the Division of Water Ri… | 2026 (effecti… | link |
| ✓ | State of Utah | state | 🟢 passed | reporting water | H.B. 76 (Data Center Water Transparency Amendments) PASSED both chambers and was signed by the Governor in the 2026 session. It requires large NEW data centers to report projected and actual water us… | 2026 | link |
Virginia (25)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Albemarle County, VA | county | 🟠 pending | noise zoning | Draft data-center zoning ordinance set 60 dBA day / 55 dBA night at the property line or overlay boundary (exemptions for demolition, emergencies, and generator testing 10am-4pm), required pre-constr… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Albemarle County, VA | county | ⏸ moratorium | noise reporting water zoning moratorium | Draft data-center overlay (Phase 2) proposed noise caps of 60 dBA day / 55 dBA night at the property line/overlay boundary (matching La Pine’s ~55 dBA night cap), pre-construction sound modeling and … | 2025-10-01 | link |
| ✓ | City of Manassas, VA | city | 🟠 pending | noise lighting zoning | Approved on first reading Feb 9, 2026 (second/final reading pending) adding standards for data centers and large industrial uses: a 100-ft additional setback from R-zoned property and from child care… | 2026-02-09 | link |
| ✓ | Commonwealth of Virginia | state | 🟢 passed | noise reporting water energy | Virginia enacted ~15 data-center bills in the 2026 session: HB 496 (water utilities report monthly water volumes supplied to data centers), SB 553 (annual water-use estimates for rezoning), HB 1393 (… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Commonwealth of Virginia | state | 🟢 passed | noise reporting water energy | Virginia enacted ~15 data-center bills in the 2026 session: HB 496 (water utilities report monthly water volumes supplied to data centers), SB 553 (annual water-use estimates for rezoning), HB 1393 (… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Culpeper County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Board unanimously required data centers on light- and heavy-industrial land to obtain a conditional-use permit (planning commission review, public hearings, board approval). Noise limits cited at 85 … | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Fairfax County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise lighting reporting zoning | Fairfax County’s Board approved a data-center zoning ordinance amendment Sept. 10, 2024 (effective Sept 11): a pre-site-plan noise study AND a post-construction noise study must demonstrate complianc… | 2024-09-10 | link |
| ✓ | Fauquier County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise lighting zoning | Fauquier’s adopted data-center policy (Dec 14, 2023) requires building placement/orientation to minimize visual impact and screening of mechanical equipment and substations to reduce visibility and a… | 2023-12-14 | link |
| ✓ | Frederick County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Adopted April 2025: data centers become a conditional use (CUP) in most districts. Requires Environmental Noise Impact Assessments by qualified professionals reviewed by a third-party county consulta… | 2025-04 | link |
| ~ | Haymarket / Gainesville area (Prince William Co… | other | ⚪ unclear | noise water | Residents near the I-66/Pageland Lane data centers pursue Virginia common-law private-nuisance and groundwater claims over 24/7 low-frequency cooling hum (‘the Haymarket Hum’) and well concerns. A Pa… | 2025 | link |
| ? | King George County, VA | county | ⚪ unclear | noise | King George County commissioned a 2023 noise-standards study (consultant memo dated ~April 2023) examining dBA-plus-dBC measurement to capture low-frequency noise, continuous-vs-impulse distinctions,… | 2023 | link |
| ✓ | Loudoun County, VA | county | 🟠 pending | noise zoning | Loudoun’s existing zoning ordinance caps noise at 55 dBA day/night at residential property lines, but residents report unaddressed tonal/low-frequency data-center hum. Phase 1 (2025) eliminated by-ri… | 2025 | link |
| ✓ | Loudoun County, VA | county | 🟠 pending | noise zoning | Loudoun’s existing zoning ordinance caps noise at 55 dBA day/night at residential property lines, but residents report unaddressed tonal/low-frequency data-center hum. Phase 1 (2025) eliminated by-ri… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Prince William County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Two distinct PWC actions are conflated here. (1) DPA2026-00006 (the DCOZOD overlay-boundary/use zoning text amendment) was APPROVED by the Board on March 3, 2026 — a zoning measure. (2) The dBC/Leq/L… | 2026-03-03 | link |
| ~ | Prince William County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Two distinct PWC actions are conflated here. (1) DPA2026-00006 (the DCOZOD overlay-boundary/use zoning text amendment) was APPROVED by the Board on March 3, 2026 — a zoning measure. (2) The dBC/Leq/L… | 2026-03-03 | link |
| ✓ | Prince William County, VA | county | 🔴 defeated | zoning | The PW Digital Gateway — a ~2,100-acre, 22M+ sq ft data-center corridor near Gainesville/Haymarket and the Manassas National Battlefield — was approved 4-3 in Dec 2023 after a marathon hearing, then … | 2023-12-13 | link |
| ✓ | Spotsylvania County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Board adopted interim data-center standards Aug 12, 2025: a 1,000-ft setback (from residences, parks, places of worship, schools, daycare, hospitals) and a 75-ft building height cap, plus buffer/berm… | 2025-08-12 | link |
| ✓ | Stafford County, VA | county | 🟢 passed | noise reporting zoning | After a 4-3 referral in Feb 2025, the Board of Supervisors ADOPTED the data-center zoning ordinance amendment (O25-29) and comp-plan amendment Oct 21, 2025, with a grandfathering revision (O25-29(R))… | 2025-10-21 | link |
| ✓ | State of Virginia | state | 🔴 defeated | noise reporting water zoning | Bipartisan bill (Del. Josh Thomas) requiring rezoning/discretionary-approval applicants for ‘high energy use facilities’ (data centers) to submit a site assessment examining noise impacts on homes an… | 2025-05-02 | link |
| ✓ | State of Virginia | state | 🟢 passed | noise reporting water zoning | The 2026 re-pass of the vetoed 2025 site-assessment measure is HB 153 / SB 94 (NOT HB 1393): localities must require rezoning applicants for ‘high energy use facilities’ (data centers >=100 MW) to su… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Virginia | state | ⚪ unclear | noise zoning | The legislature’s JLARC December 2024 data-center study recommended that Virginia law be amended to expressly authorize localities to require sound-modeling studies from data-center developers and to… | 2024 | link |
| ✓ | State of Virginia | state | 🟡 proposed | noise reporting | HB 153 (2026) would require, before approval of a rezoning/special-exception/special-use permit for a new high-energy-use facility, that the applicant perform and submit a site assessment of the faci… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Town of Culpeper, VA | town | 🟢 passed | noise | Culpeper permits data centers (e.g., Culpeper Technology Campus) to emit up to 55 dBA at night, measured at the receiving property line, and replaced its 1960s-era frequency-band measurement method w… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Town of Warrenton, VA | town | 🟢 passed | noise | Warrenton’s noise ordinance uses a frequency/octave-band table where the permitted decibel level varies by frequency (up to ~72 dB at the lowest frequency), with 5 fewer decibels allowed for a ‘hum’ … | — | link |
| ? | Town of Warrenton, VA (Fauquier County region) | town | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | Warrenton’s zoning code sets lot-line maximum permissible sound levels and the Town has an active zoning-ordinance update (kicked off June 2024). The specific octave-band table (63 Hz ~64 dB down to … | 2022 | link |
Washington (7)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | City of Spokane, WA | city | 🟡 proposed | noise water energy moratorium | Emergency ordinance introduced June 10, 2026 by CMs Paul Dillon, Sarah Dixit, and Kate Telis (backed by Mayor Lisa Brown) for an immediate one-year citywide moratorium on building-permit applications… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Grant County PUD (Quincy industrial zone), WA | regional | 🟢 passed | energy other | In March 2025 Grant County PUD (a consumer-owned utility, not a legislative body) placed load caps / growth limits on its data-center customers in Quincy’s industrial zone, holding aggregate load nea… | 2025 | link |
| ~ | Grant County, WA | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | Grant County, WA (the unincorporated county containing Quincy’s Microsoft/Sabey/Vantage data-center cluster) imposed an interim data-center moratorium — Ordinance 4-2026, signed ~March 16, 2026 — pau… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Seattle, WA | city | ⏸ moratorium | energy zoning moratorium | City Council voted 9-0 on June 10, 2026 to ENACT a one-year emergency moratorium on large data centers using more than 20 MVA (~20 MW), with an option to extend six months, plus a companion bill stud… | 2026-06-10 | link |
| ✓ | State of Washington | state | 🔴 defeated | reporting water energy | E2SHB 2515 (lead sponsor Rep. Beth Doglio) defined an ‘emerging large energy use facility’ (data-processing facility >=20 MW max aggregate contract demand) and required owners to publish a sustainabi… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Washington | state | 🟢 passed | reporting energy | SB 5982 (the data-center bill that passed in 2026, Governor expected to sign) extends CETA clean-energy compliance to large customers including data centers and directs the Utilities and Transportati… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Washington (Dept. of Ecology) — Quincy… | state | 🟢 passed | reporting other | WA Ecology (Eastern Region) regulates data-center diesel backup generators in Quincy via air-quality Notice-of-Construction permits with fuel-use/hour limits and health-impact assessments for diesel … | 2012 | link |
West Virginia (1)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | State of West Virginia | state | 🟢 passed | noise lighting energy zoning other | HB 2014 (Power Generation and Consumption Act), signed by Gov. Patrick Morrisey April 30, 2025, effective July 11, 2025. Certified high-impact data centers and microgrid districts may not be subject … | 2025 | link |
Wisconsin (5)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Dane County, WI | county | 🟠 pending | water energy zoning moratorium | Dane County resolution 2026 RES-039 (introduced May 15, 2026) proposes an 18-month moratorium on accepting/issuing zoning permits for data centers in towns under county zoning, to let the Advisory Co… | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | Manitowoc County, WI | county | ⏸ moratorium | zoning moratorium | The Manitowoc County Board unanimously approved an 18-month moratorium on data-center permitting in late April 2026 (amended up from a proposed 12 months), prompted by the towns of Two Creeks, Two Ri… | 2026-04 | link |
| ✓ | Port Washington, WI | city | 🟢 passed | reporting other | Port Washington voters passed an April 2026 referendum (2,710-1,371, ~66%) requiring city leaders to obtain voter approval before granting tax incentives (TIF/TID) to development projects over a set … | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | State of Wisconsin | state | 🟡 proposed | noise reporting water energy moratorium | SB 1061 (2025-2026 session) is a Democratic ‘Pause to Protect’ data-center conditions/moratorium bill that bars data-center operation in Wisconsin unless conditions are met: a statewide data-center p… | 2026 | link |
| ~ | Village of Mount Pleasant, WI | town | 🟢 passed | noise zoning | On Jan. 26, 2026 the Village Board unanimously approved site plans for 15 additional Microsoft data centers (~9 million sq ft, two campuses, >$13B) on industrially-zoned land. Because the existing zo… | 2026 | link |
Wyoming (4)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Cheyenne, WY | city | 🔴 defeated | zoning moratorium | Cheyenne City Council rejected a proposed 12-month data-center moratorium on second reading May 26, 2026, by a 9-1 vote (only sponsor Councilor Mark Moody in favor). The ordinance would have paused s… | 2026-05-26 | link |
| ✓ | City of Cheyenne, WY | city | 🔴 defeated | moratorium | A 12-month moratorium ordinance sponsored by Councilor Mark Moody would have paused permit processing and zoning changes for new data centers to study power, water, noise, environmental, and grid imp… | 2026-05-26 | link |
| ✓ | State of Wyoming | state | 🟢 passed | reporting water energy other | Gov. Gordon’s Executive Order 2026-03, ‘Data Centers the Wyoming Way’ (signed June 3, 2026), creates the Wyoming Data Center Development Framework whose pillars include transparency, water sustainabi… | 2026-06-03 | link |
| ✓ | State of Wyoming | state | 🟡 proposed | energy other | Wyoming Joint Minerals, Business & Economic Development interim-committee draft bills (2026) would EXEMPT some generators serving data centers/industrial loads from public-utility regulation (one cus… | 2026 | link |
Federal (United States) (4)
| Cf | Jurisdiction | Level | Status | Dimensions | Specifics | Yr | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | United States (federal) | other | 🟡 proposed | reporting water energy other | Sen. Dick Durbin’s Data Center Water and Energy Transparency Act of 2026 (S.4213, 119th Cong., introduced 2026-03-25) requires data centers to report energy and water consumed to the states where the… | 2026-03-25 | link |
| ✓ | United States (federal) — DOE/EIA | other | 🟠 pending | reporting energy | EIA is running three voluntary data-center electricity-use pilot surveys (Texas, Washington, the Northern Virginia-DC corridor; ~196 operators identified) and has committed to developing a MANDATORY … | 2026 | link |
| ✓ | United States (federal) — EPA | other | 🟢 passed | reporting energy other | RICE NESHAP (40 CFR Part 63 Subpart ZZZZ) limits stationary emergency engines (incl. data-center backup diesel generators) to 100 hours/year of non-emergency operation, with a 50-hour sub-cap for eme… | 2025 (rule lo… | link |
| ✓ | United States (federal) — FERC (PJM region) | regional | 🟢 passed | reporting energy other | On Dec. 18, 2025 FERC found PJM’s tariff unjust/unreasonable for lacking clear, consistent terms for co-located large loads (data centers paired with on-site generation, e.g. Talen Susquehanna-Amazon… | 2025 | link |
Appendix B — Leads that failed verification (removed)
These 6 surfaced in discovery but were not corroborated against a real measure on a second look — kept here for transparency so they are not silently re-surfaced.
- Older NC clusters (Catawba County / Town of Maiden / Caldwell County) — NEGATIVE FINDING (NC, was tagged unclear) — Documented null result, not a measure (exists=false by design). Search confirmed Catawba has only a generic loud-noise ordinance and no data-center-specific noise/light/reporting standard; nothing found for Maiden or Caldwell either. Negative finding stands.
- City of Southaven / DeSoto County, MS (xAI Southaven) (MS, was tagged unclear) — Lawsuit confirmed (Mississippi Today, Mississippi Free Press, Memphis Flyer, WJTV): filed June 8 2026, lead plaintiff Jason Haley (Safe and Sound Coalition). CORRECTION: input said ‘27 gas turbines’ — reporting says 47 turbines as of May 2026 (up from 18 a y…
- City of Kenosha, WI (WI, was tagged passed) — exists=false for KENOSHA specifically. The underlying event is real but is Menomonie, not Kenosha (confirmed via Wisconsin Watch + Leader-Telegram/WEAU/WQOW coverage of Menomonie Ord. 2026-01, Mayor Randy Knaack’s Sept. 2025 hold of the $1.6B Balloonist LLC p…
- Limestone County, TX (TX, was tagged unclear) — Searches surfaced only the general Texas pattern (counties can’t set noise limits; residents in Hood County pursued the Mitchell Bend cityhood incorporation and private nuisance suits against MARA/Marathon). No citable Limestone County, TX data-center ordinan…
- Grant County, WA (WA, was tagged passed) — The lagrangenews.com source cited in this record is about Troup County, GA (LaGrange is the Troup County seat) — confirmed via lagrangenews and AOL/Northwest Georgia News ‘All Georgia data center ordinances’ roundup: Troup approved the 1,500-ft setback / 40-f…
- Licking County, OH (incl. Jersey Township, Harrison Township) (OH, was tagged unclear) — Negative finding confirmed: no data-center-specific county/township ordinance found. Note Licking Township (distinct from Jersey/Harrison) adopted a ‘model noise regulation’ per Buckeye Lake Beacon, and Harrison Township has general noise regs (2018 resolutio…