"Moratorium" has become the default word for any local pause on data centers. The measures it describes differ a great deal. One county's moratorium stops every permit for any data center structure. Another city's proposal covered only facilities over 250,000 square feet or 75 megawatts. A third government has been advised by its own attorney that a moratorium is not legal, so it is weighing a pause on its own board's votes instead. What a measure actually restricts sits in its definitions, its list of covered approvals, its exemptions and its end date. The headline rarely tells you.

Moratoriums have spread fast. In Indiana, Indiana University's Environmental Resilience Institute counted at least 50 counties with some form of data center restriction as of October 2026, WFYI reported. The institute's data shows 32 counties with moratoriums, 14 with regulatory ordinances and four communities where data centers are not permitted. WFYI reported that about thirty communities had enacted some form of ban in July. This guide uses adopted and proposed ordinances from the public record to explain what these measures do.

Moratorium, ban or pause: three different tools

A temporary moratorium suspends applications or approvals for a set period while the government writes rules. Wabash County, Indiana, adopted one in August 2026. Its stated reason was that the county's 2022 zoning ordinance "fails to provide any regulations related to data center projects," an omission the ordinance calls "a defect in the Zoning Ordinance that should be corrected" before permits issue.

A ban amends the zoning code so data centers are not a permitted use. Starke County, Indiana, took this route. Its Plan Commission held an October 14, 2026 hearing on Resolution 2026-PC-15, "Amending the Starke County Zoning Ordinance to Define and Prohibit Commercial Data Centers," and the county approved the ban on October 19, WFYI reported (our report). WFYI reports that at least one Indiana county, Marshall, has made its ban permanent.

A pause on legislative action is what some governments use where a formal moratorium may not be available. Loudoun County's attorney issued a legal opinion that a moratorium on data center approvals is not legal in Virginia. The Board of Supervisors is instead weighing a resolution to pause its own action on data center and substation applications that require legislative approval. The pause would last up to 12 months, which the county calls "the maximum allowed by Virginia law."

Some measures fall short of any of these. Memphis Mayor Paul Young's October 9, 2026 executive order set up a 90-day study of data center regulation. The city states that the order "does not suspend, delay, restrict, or interfere with Council action." Its one direct effect on permits is to add an extended review period of at least five business days to the Engineering Department's process during the study.

Why governments say they are adopting them

Ordinance findings and official statements list the reasons on the record. Little Rock's proposed six-month moratorium is a detailed example. It cites demands on public water and wastewater systems, noise, heat production, fire suppression, hazardous materials and emergency response. It also cites coordination with Entergy Arkansas capacity studies and the risk of shifting infrastructure costs onto residential and commercial ratepayers. Anne Arundel County, Maryland, paired its moratorium with a work group that, according to WMAR-2, is expected to consider energy and water use, utility infrastructure, noise, air quality, environmental impacts and economic development. Memphis's study covers six areas: land use and neighborhood protections, infrastructure, air quality, water and aquifer protection, energy and utility costs, and noise.

The common thread in these records is timing. Codes written before hyperscale campuses existed often have no data center category, setbacks or noise standards. A moratorium buys time to write them before applications vest under the old rules.

What a moratorium actually stops

The list of covered approvals is the most important part of the text. Three examples show the range.

  • Everything, everywhere in the jurisdiction. Wabash County's ordinance imposes a moratorium on "the acceptance, processing, and/or approval of all applications and permits," including improvement location permits, "for any structure related to a data center project" in all zoning districts in the unincorporated county. That includes appurtenant facilities. Because it covers acceptance, a developer cannot even file and wait.
  • A defined list of approvals. Little Rock's proposal would have barred the city from issuing conditional use permits; building and development permits; grading, land disturbance and stormwater permits; site plan approvals; and "other discretionary municipal approvals" for hyperscale data centers.
  • Any approval or authorization, with carve-outs. San Francisco's 45-day interim moratorium, adopted under California Government Code Section 65858, prohibits the city from issuing any approvals or authorizations for data centers as the ordinance defines them, according to the Board of Supervisors' legislative digest (our report).

State-level pauses work on a different set of permits. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek's October 9, 2026 letter asked the Department of Environmental Quality to pause processing of NPDES, Water Pollution Control Facility, Air Contaminant Discharge and Title V air permits for new or expanded data centers until July 1, 2027. The pause also covers municipal wastewater permit changes made to accept data center discharge (our report).

Definitions decide who is covered

A broad definition reaches more projects. Wabash County defines a data center as a structure used primarily for storing, managing, processing and transmitting digital data. It expressly includes server farms, artificial intelligence training or processing, cloud computing and "other similar uses." San Francisco's definition, drawn from state Senate Bill 887, covers any facility or part of a facility housing computing infrastructure "for the primary purpose of processing, storing, or distributing electronic data."

Thresholds narrow the reach. Little Rock's proposal applied only to "hyperscale" data centers: those occupying more than 250,000 gross square feet, drawing more than 75 megawatts of grid power, or spread across more than one principal building under common ownership on a single parcel. A smaller facility would not have been covered.

Exemptions: what keeps moving

Exemptions decide whether a moratorium stops projects already in the pipeline. The common categories in the record:

  • Accessory and maintenance work. San Francisco's Land Use and Transportation Committee amended the ordinance on October 5, 2026 to exempt data centers that are accessory to other permitted uses. It also exempted repair and maintenance of existing data centers that does not increase their size or capacity.
  • Projects already approved or in process. Under Anne Arundel County's moratorium, projects already in the development process will generally be allowed to continue, WMAR-2 reported, adding that "the amended measure also includes future phases of existing data centers on adjacent or adjoining properties." In Marion County, Indiana, three projects approved before the temporary ban are exempt, according to WFYI.
  • Vested rights, narrowly defined. Little Rock's proposal would have exempted projects with legally vested rights under Arkansas common law. To qualify, a developer needed a final, unappealable city permit or approval plus a substantial change in position made in reliance on it. The text says preliminary site acquisition costs, speculative option payments, general legal or organizational fees and preliminary feasibility studies would generally not count as substantial unrecoverable capital expenditures.
  • Proposed exemptions that failed. Anne Arundel's council minutes record a rejected amendment that would have exempted certain contractors to U.S. intelligence agencies from the moratorium. It was defeated 1-6.

How long they last and how they end

Duration clauses come in two forms: a fixed term, or a term that ends early once permanent rules are adopted.

  • Wabash County: 18 months from adoption, or until the zoning ordinance is amended to regulate data centers, whichever comes first.
  • Anne Arundel County: until January 31, 2028, or until the county adopts comprehensive data center legislation, whichever comes first, WMAR-2 reported. The council passed Bill 63-26 7-0 on October 5, 2026 (our report).
  • San Francisco: 45 days unless extended under Section 65858 or replaced by permanent controls. Under that statute an interim moratorium is an urgency ordinance requiring a four-fifths vote of the Board of Supervisors.
  • Indiana counties vary widely, WFYI reported. Marion County's runs through the end of 2027, Steuben County's lasts six months, and DeKalb County's six-month moratorium has already expired.

Some moratoriums never take effect. Little Rock's Board of Directors deadlocked 4-4 on the six-month proposal on October 20, 2026. KATV reported it was the second failed attempt in three months, after an 18-month version. The city's data center ordinance, adopted in June, remains in place (our report).

Reading a moratorium: a checklist

  • Legal authority. Which state statute it relies on, and whether the state allows moratoriums at all.
  • Definition and threshold. Square footage, megawatts, number of buildings, and whether AI or crypto uses are named.
  • Covered actions. Applications accepted, applications processed, approvals issued, or only the governing body's own votes.
  • Geography. Whole jurisdiction, unincorporated areas only, or specific districts.
  • Exemptions. Accessory uses, maintenance, approved projects, later phases, and vested-rights tests.
  • End date and exit. A fixed sunset, early termination on adoption of rules, and how extensions are approved.
  • Required work. Studies, work groups, report deadlines and public hearings the moratorium itself mandates.

What Happens Next

Several pending measures have dates on the record. Loudoun County's Board of Supervisors deferred its proposed 12-month pause on data center and substation applications to its November 17, 2026 meeting (our report). The county says its related Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance amendments are expected to wrap up in summer 2027. Memphis's expert group must deliver its final report to the mayor within 90 days of the October 9 executive order taking effect. Oregon's requested DEQ permit pause runs to July 1, 2027, ahead of the 2027 legislative session the governor's letter cites. Anne Arundel County's moratorium runs no later than January 31, 2028, according to WMAR-2.

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