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Key developments
Seattle imposes temporary data center moratorium
Seattle City Council unanimously approved amended Council Bill 121214 on Tuesday, immediately imposing a temporary moratorium on new data center development while the city studies environmental, infrastructure, and economic effects. The ordinance defines covered facilities as those above 20 megavolt-amperes that require uninterrupted power service, and the pause can be extended for six months. The council also passed Resolution 32204, which sets a review framework for grid capacity, water use, utility rates, land use, employment, and public health, with a public hearing due within 60 days and reports requested by January 2027.
Why it matters
It freezes new large data center siting in a major tech market and signals deeper scrutiny of energy, water, and utility impacts.
Sources & driving stories
KOMO
KOMO coverageTexas orders data centers to pay grid costs
Gov. Greg Abbott directed the Public Utility Commission and ERCOT to ensure data centers cover their own grid connection and infrastructure costs, saying the goal is to lower residential electric bills. He also said he will push lawmakers to repeal data center tax breaks and add limits on noise and other community impacts. The move comes as hundreds of facilities are planned across Texas, while county officials say Dillon's rule leaves them with little authority to zone, ban, or tightly restrict projects; ERCOT and the PUC must file a joint report by July 17.
Why it matters
Texas is one of the biggest U.S. data center growth markets, so this could materially change project economics and local bargaining power.
Sources & driving stories
KBTX · Dylan Watkiss
KBTX coverageOpenAI weighs 10-gigawatt Ohio campus
The Columbus Dispatch reported that OpenAI is in talks to lease a proposed 10-gigawatt data center campus on federal land in southern Ohio, in a deal that could cost at least $500 billion. The report says SB Energy would develop the campus on Department of Energy land, Nvidia would supply hardware and provide financing support, and OpenAI would control the equipment under a 20-year lease with payments beginning when operations start. The first phase is expected in 2028, but the report says the deal was not yet verified and neither company commented.
Why it matters
If confirmed, it would be one of the largest AI infrastructure projects ever and a major new power-demand signal.
Sources & driving stories
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The Columbus Dispatch coverageWorth noting
WORTH NOTING
Oracle backlog reaches $638 billion
Oracle's earnings show how AI demand is pulling huge amounts of capital and capacity into data center build-outs, including nearly 1 gigawatt coming online this quarter.
WORTH NOTING
Cave City moratorium faces lawsuit
The legal challenge tests whether a Kentucky city can keep a data center pause in place after a project application was already filed.
WORTH NOTING
Perris moves toward citywide data center ban
It shows another California city turning community concerns into an actual ordinance process rather than just public opposition.
Still unclear
OPEN QUESTION
What Texas cost-sharing rules emerge by July 17?
Abbott's directive is broad, but the final PUC/ERCOT report will determine how much of the grid burden is actually shifted to developers.
OPEN QUESTION
Can the Ohio megacampus clear power and financing hurdles?
The reported OpenAI deal depends on federal land access, a long lease, Nvidia support, and a massive capital stack that is still unresolved.