Many localities have tried data center moratoriums, tracker finds
Richard Newstead via Getty Images
By
Chris Teale
The National League of Cities found that 76 cities, counties or towns have at least attempted moratoriums or permanent bans, with most being successful. That number is likely even higher.
State governments have made the splashiest moves on restricting data centers, including through stringent rules, audits, removal of tax breaks or outright moratoriums. But a new tool found that local governments have taken significant action of their own too.
The National League of Cities found that at least 76 local governments — cities, counties or towns — have at least attempted to adopt moratoriums or permanent bans on building data centers, with the majority of those efforts succeeding. NLC released a tool last week designed to track local governments’ policy moves on data centers, which have been welcomed by some but have been a source of major opposition elsewhere.
Of those, NLC found that three — Marshall County, Indiana; Monterey Park, California; and St. Charles, Missouri — have enacted permanent bans. And while the list is by no means exhaustive given how quickly things can move at the local level, it shows how jurisdictions large and small are approaching data centers.
“Data center development is advancing quickly, and local leaders need practical information to make decisions that reflect the needs and priorities of their communities,” Clarence Anthony, NLC’s CEO and executive director, said in a statement. “The NLC Data Center Local Action Tracker showcases local actions together in one place, helping cities and towns learn from their peers and approach these complex decisions with greater context.”
A leading state for data center moratoriums is Georgia, where a number of local governments started implementing them last year, and that trend has continued in 2026. Indeed, another tracker from Georgia Tech’s Energy Policy and Innovation Center found that almost 40 local governments in that state alone have approved some form of moratorium. Some of those moratoriums do not expire until next year.
NLC also found that data center moratoriums are popular among localities in Illinois and North Carolina, where at least 10 jurisdictions in each state have at the very least proposed one. That includes large cities like Charlotte, North Carolina, where in June the city council voted unanimously for a 150-day moratorium on new data centers amid worries over rising electricity and water prices. Existing projects would not be affected, however.
Proposed moratoriums have only been unsuccessful in very few localities, NLC found. They have failed to pass in Cheyenne, Wyoming; Gardner, Kansas; and Pulaski County, Alaska, according to the group’s tracker. More may follow, especially with several localities set to vote on whether to allow data centers, as well as the zoning requirements or tax breaks associated with them, later this year, according to the NLC tracker.
Local leaders have expressed concerns for some time about data centers’ impact on residents’ electricity and water bills, as well as neighborhoods and the environment. And this NLC tracker shows the other ways that localities are trying to deal with data centers, beyond just imposing a moratorium.
NLC found that at least 28 city and county governments have passed ordinances on data centers, including tweaks to their zoning and development laws. Others have faced varying types of community opposition, including resident-led petitions looking to force a public vote, while some local leaders have faced recall elections over their support for data centers.
The tracker also found that four cities — Festus, Missouri; Joliet, Illinois; Memphis, Tennessee; and St. Louis, Missouri — have implemented comprehensive development agreements. For example, St. Louis negotiated approximately $15 million in community benefits in return for a proposed data center project, including support for digital inclusion initiatives, environmental justice programs, transportation improvements and more. The developer also agreed to meet various targets around hiring, wages, job creation and transparency as part of that agreement.
While many have raised concerns about data centers’ impact on electricity and water, proponents said it should be up to localities to decide what is best for them.
“There are conversations to have more broadly around energy policy, but policymakers should not single out data centers rather than have those serious policy conversations about how to improve the growing demands on the grid,” Jennifer Huddleston, a senior fellow in technology policy at the Cato Institute, said in an email. “Decisions around data centers are best handled by local communities who can have the most specific conversations around tradeoffs and benefits.”
Political leaders are still pushing to have communities accept data centers. During a White House event last week, President Donald Trump urged elected officials to agree to developers’ demands.
"If I were the mayor of a town or the governor of a state, and I had a chance to get a big data center, I would absolutely want it,” Trump said, according to a pool report. “Many of them are designed in a very beautiful way."