Local Data Center Moratoriums Have Minimal Impact on US Buildouts

Limited Impact on Data Center Projects

Despite over 300 local moratoriums on data center construction, only three projects, representing approximately 2.3 GW of the 21 GW located in moratorium areas, are likely to face delays. SemiAnalysis indicates that these moratoriums have not significantly affected the planned buildouts across the United States.

Unchanged Buildout Forecast

The overall forecast for US data center IT capacity has remained stable over the past year, with 38 GW projected to be online by 2027. This figure is more than double the capacity expected in 2026. Of the 38 GW, 22 GW are currently under vertical construction, and an additional 16 GW are mostly financed with site work underway.

Moratorium Scope and Effectiveness

Local moratoriums, defined as temporary legal pauses on new applications, cover about 20 GW of planned capacity, but only about 1.5 GW of this is delayed. An additional 0.8 GW is affected by New York's pause. The report suggests that moratoriums are not yet impacting the buildout at scale because they often do not revoke existing approvals, may expire before projects need new permits, or are circumvented by project timelines and litigation.

Examples of Ineffectiveness

Examples illustrate the limited effect of these bans. Michigan has 45 enacted moratoriums but zero pipeline exposure, as a Google campus there is on land already zoned for data processing. Similarly, SpaceX's planned data center in Brownsville, Texas, is on land removed from city limits, placing it outside the city's moratorium jurisdiction. A rare instance of an effective moratorium occurred in Pennsylvania, where a township adopted a pause before NorthPoint filed for a special permit.