Public Hearing on data center moratorium bills on June 16th

The Public Hearing on June 16th on two bills - Expedited Bill 24-26 and Expedited Bill 19-26 - was a great success thanks to hundreds of residents of Montgomery County! They filled the room, brought the signs and spoke up to protect the environment and public health in our County. Read the article from Bethesda Today. Watch the recording of the Public Hearing on the Council's YouTube channel here. Here you can read the testimonies for Expedited Bill 19-26 and Expedited Bill 24-26.

What next for data center regulations in Montgomery County:

1. The Council's Economic Development Committee worksession will be soon scheduled to discuss Expedited Bill 19-26, Buildings - Moratorium on Permits for Data Centers - and Expedited Bill 24-26, Buildings - Building Permits - Data Center Moratorium.

   
   

2. The Council’s Planning, Housing and Parks Committee will meet in July to discuss the Zoning Text Amendment ZTA 26-01. Read here the Climate Coalition recommendations for ZTA 26-01 amendments.

   
   

3. The County Council has asked the Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) to write a report on data centers which will include a detailed analysis of the potential impacts of new data centers in the County and should be completed this Summer.

   
   

4. Meanwhile, as the Council is working on the data center regulations, the current application for the data centers in Dickerson is still being evaluated by the Planning Board, as the executive order directed at DPS permits (see 6-month moratorium) does not address the review by Planning Board and OZAH.

   
   

   The County Department of Permitting Services (DPS) has recently acknowledged that data centers are currently not an allowed use in Montgomery County. It appears that an error was made approximately four years ago when DPS instructed MC Planning Department (Planning) to review and process a proposed hyperscale data center complex application in Dickerson as a wholly separate allowed conditional use: cable communications facility (think cell towers). DPS recently clarified this in correspondence to Planning. Since data centers are neither a legal use nor a cable communications facilities, it is clear that continuing to process the Dickerson hyperscale facility should be suspended until ZTA 26-01 and regulations are created and approved. See the DPS letter from June 12th.

   
   

   The Public Hearing at the Planning Board is expected on July 30th. Please see the agenda here and learn how to sign up for testimony. You can also watch here the County Development Review Committee public meeting on June 2, 2026 where the application was discussed.

   
   

5. The Public Hearing at the Office of Zoning and Administrative Hearing, scheduled for September 10-11, 2026. Please read the documents provided by the applicant here and read about the procedures for providing testimony or asking questions from the applicant.

   
   

6. As the Maryland Department of Environment (MDE) is processing the water discharge permit related to the proposed data centers in Dickerson, they may announce soon an informational session to discuss the application and permitting process. Please find the copy of the application on MDE's website https://mdewwp.page.link/wwpportal -- enter application's State Number 26DP3903 in the "State Num" field, click "Search" and then "More Info" to find the application.