Data Center Moratorium Tracker Update: August 17, 2026

45 state-level measures across 36 states and 194 local jurisdictions, each linked to its primary source.

The U.S. Data Center Moratorium Tracker was refreshed on August 17, 2026. This is the record of what changed since the previous refresh on August 14, 2026. Every entry below links to the primary source behind it.

Where the count stands

Measure	Previous	Current	Change
State-level measures	44	45	+1
States with state-level action	35	36	+1
Local jurisdictions	173	194	+21
States with local action	41	43	+2
Primary sources cited	212	230	+18

Of the 36 states with a state-level measure on the tracker, 12 have a restriction in force, 3 are under an active administrative pause, 7 have a measure pending, and 14 saw their most advanced measure fail or be vetoed.

New state measures this period

New Mexico, Announced bill (2027 session): Proposed statewide data center moratorium. Reps. Micaela Lara Cadena and Angelica Rubio told the interim Science, Technology and Telecommunications Committee on Aug. 11, 2026 that they will introduce a statewide data center moratorium when the session opens in January 2027. No bill number yet; committee Republicans opposed the concept. Source

New local measures this period

Independence County, AR: Five-year data center moratorium. The Quorum Court unanimously adopted a five-year moratorium running through Aug. 31, 2031 - the longest adopted in Arkansas - citing water supply strain. No data center had been proposed in the county. Source
Pulaski County, AR: Data center moratorium (failed). Multiple moratorium attempts failed in Arkansas’ most populous county; the Quorum Court instead advanced a regulatory ordinance classifying large-scale data centers as heavy industrial. Source
Dover, DE: Proposed 18-month pause on data center reviews. A City Council committee voted unanimously on Aug. 13, 2026 to send the full council an ordinance pausing official review of data center proposals for up to 18 months; not yet adopted. Source
Louisville-Jefferson County Metro, KY: Six-month moratorium on new data centers. Metro Council voted 24-1 on Aug. 13, 2026 to bar planners from approving new data center proposals for six months or until comprehensive zoning rules are adopted; amended on the floor to also cover conversions of existing buildings. Source
Nicholasville, KY: Six-month data center moratorium. The city commission passed a six-month moratorium on data centers on Aug. 10, 2026, citing utility cost, property tax and water-consumption concerns in the surrounding farming community. Source
Greensboro, NC: Proposed 120-day moratorium for 10 MW+ data centers. The City Council is weighing a 120-day moratorium covering data centers above 10 MW, with a public hearing held Aug. 17, 2026; not adopted as of this verification. Source
Town of Waxhaw, NC: 12-month data center moratorium. The Board of Commissioners voted unanimously on Aug. 11, 2026 for a 12-month halt on accepting, processing or approving applications for data centers, crypto-mining facilities and related digital infrastructure. No project had been proposed. Source
Yadkin County, NC: Proposed one-year data center moratorium. The county is considering a yearlong pause on data center projects, with a public hearing held Aug. 17, 2026; not adopted as of this verification. Source
Conneaut, OH: One-year data center moratorium (failed). City Council rejected a one-year data center moratorium 2-4 on third reading on Aug. 12, 2026. A separate charter amendment capping data centers at 25 MW remains under consideration. Source
Cherokee Nation (tribal and trust lands), OK: Ban on hyperscale data centers. Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. announced on Aug. 10, 2026 that the Cherokee Nation will not permit hyperscale data centers on tribally owned or trust lands, and will not consider reservation projects without tribal consultation. A task force survey found 64% of ~1,600 citizens opposed. Source
Charlestown, RI: Zoning ban on data centers and battery storage. The Town Council voted 5-0 on Aug. 11, 2026 to prohibit data centers and battery energy storage systems townwide - Rhode Island’s second municipal data center ban - citing reliance on well water and septic systems. Source
Village of Bellevue, WI: 12-month data center moratorium. The Village Board voted unanimously on Aug. 12, 2026 to bar all data center development for 12 months, extendable by six months, while a permanent ordinance is written. No proposal was pending. Source

Newly verified local measures from earlier periods

These actions were taken before this reporting period and were added once a primary source was confirmed. They are research gains, not new activity.

Little Rock, AR: Data center moratorium (failed). The city board repeatedly failed to pass a data center moratorium after May 2026 and adopted regulations in June 2026 instead of a pause. Source
Union County, AR: One-year data center moratorium. The county adopted a one-year moratorium on data centers in June 2026, one of several Arkansas jurisdictions outside Little Rock to pause development while regulations are drafted. Source
Marietta, GA: Six-month data center moratorium. The city adopted a six-month moratorium on data centers in July 2026. It is not retroactive: the council approved an 11-acre Powers Ferry Place data center 5-2 on Aug. 11, 2026 because the application predated the pause. Source
Town of Boone, NC: One-year data center and crypto-mining moratorium. The Town Council voted unanimously on March 23, 2026 for a one-year moratorium on data center and cryptocurrency mining development within town limits. Source
Watauga County, NC: County data center moratorium. Watauga County commissioners noticed a countywide moratorium hearing for April 21, 2026 and the county is reported among the western North Carolina jurisdictions that have enacted data center development moratoriums. Adoption date not independently confirmed. Source
Smithfield, RI: Zoning ban on data centers in all districts. The Town Council voted 4-1 on May 5, 2026 to define data centers and list them as Not Permitted in every zoning district, effective June 4 - Rhode Island’s first municipal ban. A developer that applied one day earlier is litigating the effective date. Source
Johnson City, TN: Data center moratorium extended to Dec. 3, 2026. The City Commission voted unanimously in May 2026 to extend its existing data center moratorium from June 5 to Dec. 3, 2026 while it studies noise limits and setback rules. Source
Brown County, WI: County data center moratorium (declined). The Planning, Development and Transportation Committee unanimously declined on June 2, 2026 to pursue a countywide moratorium, noting every municipality in the county has its own zoning; a subcommittee was formed instead. Source
Manitowoc County, WI: 18-month data center moratorium. The County Board voted unanimously on April 29, 2026 to bar the county from accepting applications or issuing permits for data center construction or siting for 18 months, after the towns of Two Creeks, Two Rivers and Mishicot requested it. Source

Status changes

No entry on the tracker changed status during this period.

Removals

No entries were removed. The tracker merges forward: a sourced entry stays on the list unless a new source shows its status changed or it was formally repealed.

How this tracker is maintained

The tracker is refreshed weekly. Every entry requires a verifiable primary source: a legislature page, a governor’s office, a local government record, or established news reporting. Entries are merged rather than replaced, so a measure verified in an earlier week is not dropped because a later pass did not resurface it. Where a measure is single-sourced or a date could not be independently confirmed, the entry says so.

The full dataset, with a filterable map and all 230 citations, is at the U.S. Data Center Moratorium Tracker. The complete source list is at the tracker’s sources page.