Counties Pause Data Center Projects

The biggest update is that Santa Fe County has now moved from consideration to enacted action, adopting an 18-month moratorium and lowering the review threshold for data centers. Elsewhere, Cass County’s debate has sharpened into a proposed permitting pause plus zoning rules, while Montgomery County is still weighing an extension.

The story has broadened from a general pattern of county moratoriums in a few Midwest states to a more concrete set of local actions in Maryland, New Mexico, and Nebraska, with some measures now formally enacted or actively under review. The emphasis has also shifted toward specific project-level scrutiny, especially around the Cass County Tenaska-Google proposal and its land, water, and utility implications.

• Santa Fe County unanimously enacted an 18-month data center moratorium.
• Santa Fe County lowered the review threshold to one megawatt.
• Montgomery County is considering extending its moratorium up to two years.
• Cass County is weighing zoning rules for a proposed Tenaska-Google project.
• The Cass County site reportedly covers about 1,300 acres of farmland.

The story has sharpened around specific county moratorium actions in Nebraska, Arkansas, and Wisconsin, with Kansas still included but now framed more directly as local governments using temporary pauses to shape rules before projects advance. The new version also adds named counties and a Nebraska legal reference, making the regulatory response more concrete.

The story has broadened from a few Nebraska and Arkansas counties pausing data center development into a wider pattern of county-level moratoriums and review pauses across several states. The emphasis has also shifted from ad hoc delays to active rulemaking on zoning, permitting, water, and power standards.

• Moratoriums now span Illinois, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Kansas.
• Some counties have set 18-month or one-year pause periods.
• Counties are defining data centers and creating review procedures.
• State utility and permitting regulators are shaping local choices.

County officials in Nebraska and Arkansas are pausing new data center-related development while they study zoning, permitting, and infrastructure impacts. The main concerns are electricity demand, water use, runoff, and the speed at which large projects can advance under current rules. The actions show a broader local regulatory response to high-intensity digital infrastructure before projects are approved.