Moratorium tracker

Data center moratoriums in California

9 moratorium actions in 6 jurisdictions in California, newest first: 8 adopted, extended or announced, 1 rejected, lifted or set aside. Each entry links to its source.

Is there a data center moratorium in California?

No statewide pause for California is in the tracker; the actions on this page are local. Locally, 6 jurisdictions adopted, extended or announced a pause: City of Hayward, City of Indio, City and County of San Francisco, Tulare County, Mendocino County and Imperial County. By their own stated length or end date, the pause in Mendocino County (45 days, Sep 1, 2026) has run out unless extended; the tracker has no extension on record. Imperial County had its data center moratorium set aside by a court (reported Aug 28, 2026).

Statuses are as of each source’s date; check with the jurisdiction before relying on one.

Moratorium actions: 9
Jurisdictions: 6
Adopted, extended or announced: 8
Rejected, lifted or set aside: 1

Every tracked California moratorium

Jurisdiction	Action	Length	What the source says
City of Hayward California · city	Adopted Oct 20, 2026	up to two years	Moratorium on new data center proposals in the city. Local News Matters Source excerpt “The Hayward City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve a moratorium on new data center proposals.”
City of Indio California · city	Extended Oct 7, 2026	— until Oct 16, 2027	Second and final extension allowed under state law; the pause on applications to build, convert or expand data centers (including AI computing and crypto-mining sites) now runs to October 16, 2027 while the city drafts permanent rules. NBC Palm Springs Source excerpt “stops the city from accepting or approving applications to build, convert or expand data centers”
City and County of San Francisco California · city	Adopted Oct 6, 2026	45 days	Citywide pause on new data centers, effective immediately. Reporting says it can be extended up to 22 months if the Planning Department's study finds significant impacts, or lead to permanent controls. The San Francisco Standard Source excerpt “The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved a 45-day moratorium on data centers”
Tulare County California · county	Extended Sep 22, 2026	10 months and 15 days	Extends the county's moratorium on new data center development in unincorporated Tulare County, first adopted for 45 days on August 18, 2026, while the county drafts a permanent zoning ordinance; the board also separately adopted a letter opposing data center construction in the county, 3-2. Porterville Recorder Source excerpt “The Tulare County Board of Supervisors extended its moratorium on new data center development Tuesday, giving county officials an additional 10 months and 15 days to consider potential regulations as residents continue to push for a permanent ban.”
Mendocino County California · county	Adopted Sep 1, 2026	45 days until Oct 16, 2026	Urgency ordinance that prohibits new data centers anywhere in the county's unincorporated area. The Mendocino Voice Source excerpt “Mendocino County supervisors voted 5-0 Tuesday to adopt an urgency ordinance barring any new data center in the unincorporated county”
Imperial County California · county	Extended reported Aug 28, 2026	ten months and fifteen days	Temporary moratorium extended for an additional ten months and fifteen days. County of Imperial Source excerpt “the Board extended the temporary moratorium for an additional ten months and fifteen days”
Imperial County California · county	Set aside by court reported Aug 28, 2026	—	The Imperial County Superior Court ruled that the moratorium's supporting findings did not adequately cover every applicable state-law requirement and ordered that the moratorium be set aside. County of Imperial Source excerpt “The Imperial County Superior Court recently ruled that the findings supporting the moratorium did not sufficiently address all applicable requirements under state law and directed that the moratorium be set aside.”
City of Indio California · city	Adopted Jun 3, 2026	45 days	Urgency ordinance pausing applications for data center development citywide. NBC Palm Springs Source excerpt “imposing a 45-day citywide moratorium on data center development applications”
Imperial County California · county	Adopted Jun 2026	45 days	Temporary moratorium on data centers in the county. County of Imperial Source excerpt “In June 2026, the Imperial County Board of Supervisors adopted a 45-day temporary moratorium”

Dates are the date of the vote or order where the source gives one; otherwise the entry shows when it was reported. Lengths, end dates and scope appear only where the cited source states them. Expand any row for a verbatim excerpt from its source.

Tracked projects in these jurisdictions

Project	Status	Jurisdiction and action
Imperial Data Center Imperial, Imperial County, CA	Paused	Imperial County: extended reported Aug 28, 2026 Imperial County: set aside by court reported Aug 28, 2026 Imperial County: adopted Jun 2026

Matched by county, city or the project a source names. Being inside a jurisdiction with a moratorium does not mean a project is covered; many pauses exempt applications already filed or approved, and a county pause usually leaves incorporated towns free to decide. Some entries above note an exemption their source reports; check each entry’s source for others.

Moratorium actions in California project records

Date	Action	Project
Aug 28, 2026	County says Superior Court found moratorium findings insufficient and ordered it withdrawn County of Imperial	Imperial Data Center Imperial, Imperial County, CA
Jul 2026	Moratorium extended ten months and fifteen days County of Imperial	Imperial Data Center Imperial, Imperial County, CA
Jun 2026	Board of Supervisors adopts 45-day data center moratorium; developer sues IID for water access County of Imperial	Imperial Data Center Imperial, Imperial County, CA

Permanent rules in California

Monterey Park: Monterey Park Municipal Code Sec. 4.50.080 (presumed ambient levels)in effect

All local rules →

More on California

Other states

Ohio (18) · North Carolina (16) · Georgia (12) · Michigan (12) · New York (8) · Maryland (5) · Florida (4) · Illinois (4) · Indiana (4) · Kentucky (4) · Minnesota (4) · South Carolina (4) · Texas (4) · Wisconsin (4) · Missouri (3)

California data center moratoriums: common questions

Is there a data center moratorium in California?

How many California communities have paused data centers?

The tracker records 6 local governments in California that adopted, extended or announced a data center pause. The tracker lists actions confirmed in a published notice or news report, so it is a floor rather than a complete census.

Which tracked data center projects are in California jurisdictions with a moratorium?

Imperial Data Center. Sitting inside a jurisdiction with a moratorium does not mean a project is covered: many pauses exempt applications already filed or approved, and a county pause usually leaves incorporated towns free to decide.

Know of a California moratorium we’re missing? Email corrections@datacentercensus.com with a link to the official notice or a report.

Cite this page

Last updated Nov 11, 2026. Figures may change as records are updated — include the date you retrieved them.

APA	`Data Center Census. (2026). Data center moratoriums in California. Retrieved from https://datacentercensus.com/moratoriums/california`
MLA	`“Data center moratoriums in California.” Data Center Census, Nov 11, 2026, https://datacentercensus.com/moratoriums/california.`
Link	https://datacentercensus.com/moratoriums/california

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