Data Centers: Daily Notes | June 29, 2026
Massachusetts keeps its data center tax breaks frozen, Minneapolis pauses new builds over 350,000 square feet, and DeSoto County, Florida moves toward a one-year freeze.
At A Glance 🔽
- Massachusetts Gov. Healey keeps the 20-year data center sales-tax exemption on hold until ratepayer and environmental protections are in place.
- Rural Montana residents organize against an AI data center developers say could cover about 3,800 football fields.
- Minneapolis council passes a five-month moratorium on data centers over 350,000 square feet, now awaiting the mayor's signature.
- DeSoto County, FL directs a one-year freeze after a CEO said the project could use up to 3 million gallons of water a day.
- Brookville, PA freezes data centers for 180 days and blocks them from drawing borough water; officials say a project could need over 1.2 million gallons daily.
- East Rockhill, PA orders a revised ordinance adding well-depletion, noise, and decommissioning rules.
- Dickson City, PA developer appeals a zoning denial for four data centers and 400 megawatts of gas plants.
- Oshkosh, WI moves toward a moratorium, following Winnebago County's 12-month pause.
- Rappahannock County, VA residents file a 200-plus-signature petition for data center zoning rules.
- Woodbury County, IA approves a one-year moratorium on data centers in unincorporated areas.
Massachusetts
Gov. Maura Healey is keeping a hold on Massachusetts' 20-year data center tax exemption, pairing the freeze with new guidance on energy and environmental standards. The pause applies to applications for the sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers, which Healey agreed to as part of a 2024 economic development law. She said it will stay in effect until strong protections are in place against higher gas and electric bills. Final regulations launched the exemption last month, but her administration said it has not received any applications.
The framework issued alongside the announcement says data center projects are expected to bring their own clean energy, avoid shifting costs to other energy consumers, and protect community and environmental health. Healey has embraced the AI industry while moving to shore up environmental protections, laying out water and grid impacts as her guiding concerns.
Montana
A homesteading mother has become a leading voice against a proposed AI data center in rural Montana, a facility developers say could cover about 3,800 football fields.
She and other local residents say they're worried about the project's impact on farmland, wildlife, water resources, and the rural character of the region. Their practical questions center on whether cropland will stay usable, whether animal habitat will be disturbed, and whether dependable water will remain available. Supporters point to the potential for jobs and tech-sector growth, while opponents warn that facilities on this scale can overburden electric grids and other local systems.
Minneapolis, Minnesota
The Minneapolis City Council approved a five-month moratorium on new data centers over 350,000 square feet, sending the measure to Mayor Jacob Frey.
The council acted after five unnamed projects raised concerns among residents and city leaders. At a committee meeting, labor groups highlighted the construction jobs data centers can provide, while residents questioned neighborhood impacts and whether the facilities would benefit local communities. City officials say the pause gives them time to study the industry and develop regulations.
Frey plans to spend several days reviewing the ordinance before deciding whether to sign it. County officials say they will honor existing land use agreements for a data center operator while weighing more stringent rules for future projects.
DeSoto County, Florida
DeSoto County commissioners directed the county attorney to draft a one-year moratorium on new data center applications after a packed meeting over water demand, noise, and the scale of a planned gas-powered campus.
The direction came after nearly three hours of discussion on June 23, with participating commissioners unanimously backing it and one recusing himself. Any moratorium would leave existing applications untouched, including a rezoning request tied to DCIP Group's planned hyperscale complex. The project could cover more than 800 acres, with earlier plans extending the buildout to 1,300 acres at a retired power plant site.
Community questions grew after DCIP Group CEO Jon Brown described the project's daily water needs as anywhere from zero to 3 million gallons, and said the number of gas turbines could shift with the microgrid design. Residents told commissioners they still lack the basic information needed to assess the development's impact.
Brookville, Pennsylvania
Brookville Borough Council voted to freeze data center development for 180 days and stop projects from drawing on borough water while officials examine risks to the local supply.
The move followed news of two possible developments in the Pine Creek and Rose townships. Council second vice-president Randy Bartley said either project could need more than 1.2 million gallons of water each day, a level the borough would have to weigh against drinking water, sanitation, and emergency response needs. Neither project has been formally submitted.
During the six-month window, officials intend to evaluate how the proposed developments might affect the borough and surrounding residents, and to review the water system before any large-scale development advances.
East Rockhill, Pennsylvania
Dane Artisola
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The East Rockhill Board of Supervisors authorized a revised data center ordinance that folds in resident concerns about noise and groundwater depletion.
Board solicitor Will Oetinger said the updated draft will include revised definitions, well-depletion language, expanded environmental impact statement requirements, fire safety and emergency planning provisions, decommissioning requirements, quarterly noise reporting, updated setbacks, and adjusted height limits. The move follows the board's decision to table final adoption in May after residents raised concerns.
The ordinance would establish data centers as a permitted use limited to the township's industrial zoning districts at the Pennridge Airport, with requirements to generate electricity on-site and hook into public water before turning to private sources. Construction would be limited to 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday. East Rockhill has not received an application; the ordinance is a preemptive measure.
Dickson City, Pennsylvania
A developer appealed Dickson City's zoning decision to court, seeking to build four data centers and 400 megawatts of gas power above Business Route 6.
Dickson City Development LLC, a firm linked to Kriger Construction, filed a land-use appeal June 22 in Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas. The appeal challenges the borough's data center zoning standards and asks the court to overturn the Zoning Hearing Board's May 20 decision upholding the ordinance. The board had denied appeals for each of the four data centers on May 27.
The plan pairs four data centers across Bell Mountain with three affiliated companies, "Dickson City Power" one through three, applying to build natural gas plants producing a combined 400 megawatts. The new appeal is nearly identical to one the developer filed in March, now adding the challenge to the May 20 decision. It seeks to invalidate the borough's ordinance, which was adopted Feb. 12.
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
Oshkosh is moving toward a moratorium on new data centers as residents raise concerns about water consumption and land use. Common Council member Joe Stephenson said the city will ask staff to begin drafting a moratorium, following Winnebago County's 12-month pause on new data center construction.
Stephenson said the pause would only limit buildings whose primary use is storing data, so businesses that operate a server room would not be affected. He also pushed back on rumors that Oshkosh's City Center could be converted into a data center, calling that a bad use for the building.
The Common Council is expected to discuss a data center resolution at its July 14 meeting.
Rappahannock County, Virginia
More than 200 Rappahannock County residents signed a petition seeking zoning rules to prevent data center development, though county officials say the current ordinance already prohibits such facilities.
The petition asks the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors to add definitions for "data center" and "high-energy-use facility" to the county code, among other restrictions. Attorney David Konick, who relayed the signatures gathered by a group of volunteers, said the commission need only schedule a work session to discuss appropriate conditions.
County Administrator Garrey Curry countered in a June 17 email that existing zoning already bars data centers because they are not a listed permitted use, comparing them to nuclear waste dumps as a use the code does not provide for. Curry warned that detailed regulations could backfire, making it harder to deny an application that meets every codified requirement.
Woodbury County, Iowa
Woodbury County supervisors approved a one-year moratorium on data centers in unincorporated areas at a June 23 meeting.
No new applications in those areas will be considered over the next year, while current facilities and previously approved applications stay untouched. County leaders said they knew of no ongoing projects in the unincorporated areas, and the board could revisit the pause later. Board Chairman Mark Nelson framed it as an olive branch giving both sides a chance to make their case in public.
The decision comes amid regional debate over a potential data center near Salix following the city's annexation of 900 acres. Because that land is now part of Salix, the county moratorium does not apply there.
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