Data center restrictions tracker · California

Imperial County, California: data center moratorium (2026)

Data snapshot 2026-08-15 · part of Pricing the Fear of Data Centers

Imperial County, California, adopted a data-center moratorium on June 17, 2026. Its status in this snapshot is in force.

Imperial County, California, adopted a data-center moratorium on June 16, 2026. Its status in this snapshot is enacted.

The records read: "45-day data-center moratorium, adopted 2026-06-17, active per tracker (Moratorium Nation)." "On June 2, 2026, after 1+ hour of public comment and 296 emailed comments, the Imperial County Board of Supervisors declined to adopt staff-drafted 'Data Center Development Guidelines' (21 safeguards including elimination of by-right… (datacentertracker.org)."

Details

ActionClassStatusDateMW thresholdScopeSource
Moratoriumrestrictionin forceJune 17, 2026county-wideMoratorium Nation (ALEA Institute)
MoratoriumrestrictionenactedJune 16, 2026county-widedatacentertracker.org

Jurisdiction type: county. County: Imperial County. Dataset: moratorium nation. Snapshot August 15, 2026; documented actions, not a census.

Elsewhere in Imperial County

California context

California has 19 documented local actions across 17 jurisdictions in this snapshot. There is no statewide restriction, incentive rollback, or large-load tariff on record for California in this snapshot.

A town that says no to a data center gives up local tax revenue, not jobs: one large campus pays $2M to $90M a year depending on the tax regime, against roughly 50 permanent jobs. The parent piece prices it and lists the conditions that beat a ban.

Sources

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