18 Month Data Center Moratorium Passed in Montgomery County
The Council passed the 18 Month Data Center Moratorium and the Zoning Text amendment on July 28
The Council passed the 18 Month Data Center Moratorium and the Zoning Text amendment on July 28, 2026 to define large data centers over 25 MW that are now prohibited in Montgomery County. See the staff report for further details.
As a next step, our Coalition will continue to provide recommendations to Council members, and they look forward to hearing from you as well!
We have shared our expectations with Council members that the exploration of various issues related to data centers will be done in a transparent manner involving input from county residents. Please reach out to your Council members when you have questions or feedback regarding the process moving forward or regarding a specific issue. Here you can find your Council member contact details.
Thank you so much for your advocacy and your concern around data centers coming to Montgomery County. Together we convinced the County Council to take a step back and take the time to make sure the health and well-being of county residents come first.
Montgomery County Office of Legislative Report on Data Centers
County's report Reinforces the Need for Strong Data Center Protections
Montgomery County’s Office of Legislative Oversight has released a major new report on the impacts of data centers, and many of its findings strongly reinforce concerns Climate Coalition Montgomery County raised earlier this year.
OLO found that hyperscale data centers can bring significant impacts to electricity costs, water demand, air and water pollution, noise, land use, nearby property values, and environmental justice—while creating relatively few permanent jobs compared with the scale of investment. The report also warns that rapid data-center growth in the PJM region is already contributing to higher electricity costs for Maryland customers and that regional data-center water demand could place increasing pressure on the Potomac River system.
Importantly, OLO recommends many of the same safeguards CCMC has advocated: stronger siting standards and setbacks, regulations based on facility size, low-water cooling technologies such as closed-loop systems, public reporting of water and energy use, tighter controls on backup generators, racial equity and cumulative-impact reviews, Community Benefit Agreements, decommissioning plans, and stronger County monitoring and enforcement.
These recommendations closely align with CCMC’s May 2026 call for a pause in data-center permitting while Montgomery County develops a comprehensive regulatory framework. CCMC urged the County to address land-use compatibility, health impacts, water use, energy costs, noise and vibration, transparency, and community protections before approving large new facilities.
The OLO report confirms that these issues are too significant to address piecemeal. Montgomery County should put strong, enforceable protections in place before committing to hyperscale data-center development—not after projects are approved and major infrastructure investments have already been made.
Learn more
Watch here the May 2026 webinar on data centers in Montgomery County, organized by TCM MoCo and the Climate Coalition MoCo.
Watch the Public Hearing on the data center moratorium bills on June 16th, 2026.
Watch the town hall organized by the County Executive on February 3, 2026.
Reach out to your Council member in case you have any further comments or questions.
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