The National Data Center Resource Library
What to read before the first hearing.
Sources on data centers from federal agencies, state legislatures, local governments, researchers and the industry itself.
Start here
Before the First Hearing
A short briefing for councils and commissions on what to know, and what to ask, before a data center comes up for a vote.
How to use it
- Start with the collection that fits your question.
- Use the topic buttons to jump within a collection.
- Open the original before you cite anything.
- Copy the “Cite as” line into your staff report.
- Download the whole list as a spreadsheet at the bottom of this page.
Five collections
Start with your question.
42 sources
Federal data, national labs and the grid
What federal agencies, national laboratories and grid reliability bodies have published on data center electricity demand, reliability and costs.
Open the collection →38 sources
State policy, incentives and utility rates
State laws, legislative studies, tax incentives, moratorium proposals and the utility rate decisions that decide who pays for new power.
Open the collection →42 sources
Local planning, zoning and ordinances
Adopted ordinances, overlay districts, siting standards and guidance for the planning commission and the council.
Open the collection →31 sources
Community impacts and public opinion
Water, noise, air, land, jobs, taxes, property values, public health and what residents across the country say they think.
Open the collection →26 sources
Industry, markets and technical explainers
How the industry describes itself, the standards it uses, the market reports it reads, and plain-language explainers. Industry-funded material is labeled.
Open the collection →State by state
Sources for 20 states.
State laws, regulators, counties and cities. National sources are in the collections above.
Georgia
Illinois
Indiana
- Indiana regulators approve 'large load' interconnection rules
- Spencer County, Indiana Board of Commissioners Ordinance No. 2026-07: An Ordinance Amending the Spencer County Zoning Ordinance to Establish Standards and Special Exception Procedures for Data Center Facilities
- More than a third of Indiana counties now restrict data center developments
Iowa
Kansas
Maryland
- Maryland Office of People's Counsel Response to the Commission's Request for Comments, Administrative Docket PC 72 (Large Load Customer Regulations and Tariffs Interconnecting to the Electric System Servicing Maryland)
- Critical Digital Infrastructure Overlay Zone
- § 1-19-10.1100. Critical Digital Infrastructure Overlay Zone (CDI-OZ)
Missouri
- Utility Tariffs for Large Load Customers in Missouri
- Missouri passes new rules, costs for data centers and large power users
- Senate Substitute No. 2 for Senate Bill No. 4, 103rd General Assembly 2025 (Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed)
- RSMo Section 144.810: Data storage centers, exemption from sales and use tax
- Data center backlash unites some Missouri and Kansas towns against lawmakers and big tech
- Peculiar reverses zoning for data center after cries from neighbors
- Nebius Data Center FAQs
- Data Center & BESS Moratorium FAQs
- St. Joseph City Council pauses data center applications, seeks zoning update
- File #: 251031, Committee Substitute for Ordinance No. 251031 (Large Format Uses and Data Centers)
- Kansas City just changed its zoning to make data centers harder to build
- St. Charles approves a ban on data centers
Ohio
Pennsylvania
- Governor Shapiro Signs Executive Order on Data Center Development in PA
- Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania Ordinance No. 2025-01 (SALDO amendment, Section 713 Data Centers)
- Limerick Township Ordinance No. 428 (Data Center in the Logistics Center/Warehouse Conditional Use Overlay District)
- Limerick Township Ordinance No. 431 (Data Center Overlay Option and Data Center Standards)
Texas
- Bill Analysis, S.B. 6 (Enrolled)
- Texas proposes new interconnection standards for large electric loads: Regulatory implications for large energy users
- Ordinance 2026 of the City of San Angelo, Texas, creating Zoning Ordinance Section 430 "Data Centers"
- Thirsty Data and the Lone Star State: The Impact of Data Center Growth on Texas’ Water Supply
- Balancing the Water Needs of Data Centers and Large Water Users in Texas
Virginia
- Data Centers in Virginia
- In Biennial Review Ruling, SCC Creates New Class for Large-Scale Energy Users
- HB284 - 2026 Regular Session: Electric utilities; electric demand flexibility programs, high energy demand customers, report
- Data Centers: Adopted Zoning Ordinance Amendment
- ZO 112.1-2024-9 / ZO 112.2-2024-8: Adoption of an Amendment to Chapters 112.1 and 112.2 (Zoning) (Data Centers)
- Data Center Standards & Locations
- Data Centers: Land Use Considerations
- Data Centers: Noise & Air Quality Concerns
- DPA2026-00006: Data Center Opportunity Zone Overlay District (DCOZOD)
- DPA2021-00020: Data Center Opportunity Zone Overlay District Comprehensive Review
- PW Digital Gateway
- Data Centers: Tax Revenues & County Budget
- Data Centers: Water Considerations
- Data Centers: Appearance, Land Values & Workforce
- Issued Air Permits for Data Centers
Wisconsin
About this library
Why we put this together.
When a data center shows up on an agenda, the questions come fast, and the answers are scattered across federal reports, utility filings, state bills and local ordinances. We wanted one place a council member, a planner or a neighbor could start. We read what we list, and if we only got through part of a long report, we tell you which part. If something sat behind a paywall or the link was dead, we left it out.
Each entry includes
- Who published it, when, and a link.
- A short description of what it covers.
- Quotes taken directly from the source.
- Who should read it.
- Its limits, including who paid for it.
- A citation for your staff report.
We update the library as new information becomes available. No one paid to be listed, and government, industry and advocacy sources sit side by side, each one labeled.
Take it with you
Download the whole library.
Every entry in one spreadsheet, with links, publishers, dates, descriptions and quotes. It opens in Excel or Google Sheets.
Citing the library
The Nash Group. “The National Data Center Resource Library.” nashdg.com/national-data-center-resource-library
For any specific finding, cite the original source.
Is a data center coming to your community?
The library is free. If you want an independent read before the first hearing, we can help.