Maryland Prepares New Restrictions on Data Center Construction
Maryland Governor Wes Moore signed an executive order establishing a data center accountability task force and a new framework for data center development. The regulations mandate community benefits, environmental and transparency standards, and energy consumption standards for new facilities. The order also targets an existing data center tax exemption.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore has signed an executive order to implement new regulations for data center construction across the state, joining other Democratic-led states in establishing stricter oversight. The order creates a data center accountability task force composed of administration members, tasked with guiding development and ensuring adherence to community benefits, environmental, and transparency standards.
Under the new framework, developers must meet energy consumption standards and engage with communities to outline economic benefits. The order, which applies to new data centers with a projected electric demand of 25 megawatts or more, also bans non-disclosure agreements between developers and state agencies, mandates community benefits guidance, and aims to prevent disproportionate impacts on ratepayers. Governor Moore indicated plans to collaborate with state lawmakers to repeal an existing tax exemption for data centers in the upcoming legislative session.
Moore stated that the order is partly a response to previous federal actions perceived as rolling back safeguards for technology companies. He noted that a majority of Maryland's counties had already paused data center development and sought state intervention. The executive order will not override these pre-existing local bans. Neighboring Virginia has also seen its Governor, Abigail Spanberger, call for a similar framework to guide the data center industry.