The three types of data center zoning

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Most US counties and towns still have no data center rules at all. By our count, only about 7% of counties have addressed data centers in their zoning ordinances or passed amendments.

But that share doubled in the first half of 2026, and it is still climbing. By the end of 2027, we project that 15% to 21% of US counties will have specific zoning for data centers. While some places will outright ban development, many will zone it, adding restrictions focused on the criteria that matter the most to residents.

What new ordinances say

Several dozen data center ordinances were adopted in 2025, and 2026 has already added hundreds more. But local officials aren’t drafting new ordinances from scratch. Instead, they return to the same themes. Four show up again and again:

1. Noise. 83% of new data center zoning ordinances restrict noise. Among the codes that set a specific decibel limit, most sit between 50 and 65 dBA, about the sound of a normal conversation.

2. Water. 81% mention water, but only 23% state a specific figure for usage in gallons-per-day. Most codes require the developer to provide information about the water supply: who will supply it, what is the impact on the community, and how is the developer reducing usage.

3. Setbacks. Two-thirds of ordinances set a specific setback, mostly below 300 feet. These requirements build distance between a data center and other buildings, but don’t force them entirely out of town.

4. Decommissioning. Almost half require a plan for the data center’s end-of-life.

The biggest gap is community benefits, which only appear in about 14% of codes. Most data center developers aren’t obligated to give back to the community – something that locals are increasingly demanding.

Among the hundreds of codes we analyzed, three common types appeared:

1. The standalone use amendment (about 48%). Nearly half of data center zoning happened through a light-touch amendment. The town defines what a “data center” entails, lists where it is allowed, and attaches some conditions, most often noise or water.

Examples: Stafford County, VA amended its data center regulations in 2025; Tippecanoe County, IN defined "large data centers" the same year; and Aurora, IL paired data center and warehouse rules in 2026.

2. The energy-and-industrial code (about 34%). This is the most detailed option. Data centers are regulated alongside battery storage, crypto mining, solar and other heavy uses, usually in one amendment. These codes tend to get specific: 93% address noise, 92% water, 78% setbacks and 63% decommissioning, and 77% route projects through a conditional or special use permit. 

Examples: Buncombe County, NC covers crypto mining and data centers together; Anderson County, TN adds standards for battery storage, crypto mining and data centers; Yorkville, IL sets standards for "energy industrial uses."

3. The dedicated district (18%). The town carves out a data center district and writes the rules for that zone. These are the most friendly for developers, but the rarest type to find overall. Most of these dedicated districts use by-right language inside the district to encourage speedy development.

Examples: Sugar Grove, IL formed a data center district in 2022; Middlesex Township, PA created a Data Center Overlay District in 2025, and Hancock County, IN added a data center use and overlay in 2026.

Where ordinances are showing up

But not all counties are equally likely to begin formalizing their rules.

We compared 200+ counties with an enacted data center ordinance to the other ~3,000, comparing on three variables: population, median income and 2024 Republican vote share.

Population is by far the strongest predictor. Each time a county’s population doubles, its odds of having an ordinance increases by about 47%. A county of 25,000 people only has a 1 in 25 chance of having enacted an ordinance, but that jumps to 1 in 5 when population increases to 500,000.

Income matters too, though less. Wealthier counties are more likely to enact data center zoning: Each extra $10,000 in median household income raises the odds by about 21%.

Interestingly, politics doesn’t have an effect. At first look, counties that lean Republican appear to be less likely to have an ordinance, but the effect is only because they’re smaller. Once size and income are accounted for, there is no statistical relationship between 2024 vote share and odds of enacting a data center ordinance.

Regulation is also clustered by state. Pennsylvania, Virginia, Georgia, New Jersey, and Indiana account for about half of all enacted ordinances. A typical mid-sized county in Pennsylvania is far more likely to have one than a similar county in Texas.

What this means for developers

POSH is charting a different path for data center development. Rather than building massive, gigawatt-scale campuses, POSH focuses on smaller, distributed facilities in the 5–20 MW range, prioritizing communities where data centers can be viewed as valuable grid assets rather than infrastructure burdens.

At this scale, data centers can deliver meaningful economic benefits to local communities while leveraging existing power infrastructure. For example, at one of POSH’s projects in Idaho, a 5 MW data center could generate electricity sales equivalent to approximately 15% of the local electric cooperative’s annual revenue. This represents a substantial new revenue stream for the cooperative, potentially helping spread fixed infrastructure costs across a larger customer base and supporting investment in the local grid.

By aligning data center development with the economic interests of local utilities and communities, POSH believes smaller, distributed facilities can offer a faster, more scalable, and more community-friendly alternative to traditional mega-campus development.

The number of counties writing these rules is going from a handful to a few hundred in a couple of years. If you are not reading the ordinance before you sign the option, someone on the other side will.

Want the ordinance for a specific county? Reach out to Spark to find any county’s or town’s requirements for setbacks, noise, and water use directly from the source document.

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