California
Legislation AdvancingNo statewide moratorium legislation; several bills (AB 2469, AB 2383, AB 1577, SB 1168, SB 887) are in committee, with the Legislature in summer recess until August 3, 2026. Local action is accelerating: Imperial County extended its data center pause to a full year on July 14, 2026, and Monterey Park's moratorium runs through January 2027. Indio's council unanimously extended its own moratorium on July 15, 2026. Some jurisdictions have also imposed water-use restrictions affecting proposed sites. Community pressure is also killing projects outright: developer Eight Form withdrew its El Segundo data center application on July 9, 2026 at the close of a three-hour Planning Commission hearing focused on electricity demand. August brought California's first county-level pause of the wave: Tulare County's Board of Supervisors approved a 45-day moratorium on August 19, 2026 covering unincorporated areas while it evaluates public health and infrastructure impacts, with activists immediately pressing for a permanent ban. Coachella's City Council took up an ordinance banning data centers citywide on August 13, which would make it the third Riverside County city to do so after Perris and Desert Hot Springs. Hanford issued a policy statement on August 15 opposing data centers absent meaningful local review, noting its zoning already prohibits them. In Gilroy, Amazon began building on 56 acres of farmland under a 45-year-old zoning rule, with residents saying they were unaware until construction started because the comment period closed in 2024. The Coachella Valley hardened further in late August: Coachella's council passed its permanent citywide ban on August 25, and Palm Springs approved a 45-day moratorium on large-scale data centers on August 26 to study water, energy and infrastructure impacts before adopting permanent rules. The Legislature closed its 2026 session in early September by passing a slate of data center bills now on the Governor's desk: SB 1168 (McNerney), approved 38-0 in the Senate after a unanimous Assembly vote, directs the CPUC to ensure data centers pay their fair share of transmission and distribution costs; SB 886 (Padilla) requires a separate electricity rate class for data centers; and SB 887 requires environmental impact review. Local action continued: Mendocino County adopted a 45-day urgency ban on September 1, Escondido passed a 45-day AI data center moratorium in late August, and Fresno's council voted 7-0 on September 3 to begin drafting a 10-year citywide ban backed by Mayor Jerry Dyer. In Imperial County, a tentative court ruling sided with the City of Imperial's challenge to a data center approval, citing substantial evidence of adverse energy, water, air quality, noise and traffic impacts.
Legislation
| Bill | Title | Status |
|---|---|---|
| SB 1168 | Data centers: rate structures (Sen. Jerry McNerney) | Passed Legislature — Senate 38-0 after unanimous Assembly approval; to the Governor (early September 2026) |
| SB 886 | Data center electricity rates (Sen. Steve Padilla) — separate CPUC rate class for data centers | Passed Legislature — to the Governor (early September 2026) |
| SB 887 | Data center environmental impact review requirement | Passed Legislature — to the Governor (early September 2026) |
Local Actions
City Council unanimously adopted 45-day moratorium on data center applications, later extended through January 2027. Council voted to place a permanent citywide data center ban on the June 2026 ballot.
Board of Supervisors unanimously extended an initial 45-day pause into a full one-year moratorium, blocking data center permits until roughly June 2027 while an advisory board recommends permanent zoning rules by January 2027. (Local outlets report the vote as July 8 or July 14.)
City Council voted unanimously to extend its temporary moratorium on new data center projects, giving staff more time to evaluate community impacts.
Board of Supervisors approved a 45-day moratorium on data center development in unincorporated areas to evaluate public health and infrastructure impacts.
City Council passed a permanent ban on data centers within city limits on August 25, 2026, making Coachella the third Riverside County city to ban them after Perris and Desert Hot Springs.
City issued a policy statement opposing data centers without meaningful local review; current zoning prohibits data centers and no change is planned.
City Council approved a 45-day moratorium on large-scale data center projects (initially expiring October 10, 2026, extendable) to study water, energy and infrastructure impacts before writing permanent zoning rules, joining other Coachella Valley cities.
Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to adopt an urgency ordinance barring any new data center in the unincorporated county, effective immediately for 45 days (through October 16, 2026) unless extended.
City Council unanimously approved a 45-day urgency moratorium on AI data centers and expansions in late August 2026, framed as a public health and safety measure; staff findings are due October 10, with extensions of up to a year possible. No applications are currently pending.
City Council voted 7-0 on September 3, 2026 to direct staff to draft a Development Code text amendment banning data centers citywide for 10 years, applying to current and future city land; Mayor Jerry Dyer co-sponsored the measure. Staff estimate the amendment could take several months to a year to return for adoption.