As public pushback over data centers has increased, towns and counties around North Carolina have been enacting moratoriums on new data centers.
In the past week, the list has grown by two: the City of Asheville and Davie County.
There are now eight counties and 14 cities/towns that have enacted a data center moratorium of some kind. The typical length of these moratoriums is one year, but one is as long as 32 months.
Counties (chronological order):
1. Clay County: 1-year moratorium (September 2025)
2. Gates County: 1-year Moratorium (earlier in 2026)
3. Chatham County: 1-year moratorium (February 2026)
4. Rowan County and Swain County: 1-year moratoriums (April 2026)
5. Orange County: 1-year moratorium (April 2026)
6. Harnett County: 1-year moratorium (May 2026)
7. Northampton County: 32-month moratorium (May 2026)
8. Davie County: 1-year moratorium (July 7, 2026)
Towns and cities (chronological order):
1. Brevard (Transylvania County): 1-year moratorium (September 2025)
2. Canton (Haywood County): 1-year moratorium (February 2026)
3. Kings Mountain (Cleveland County): 6-month (182-day) moratorium on new data centers (Feb. 24, 2026, with end date in late August 2026)
4. Boone (Watauga County): 90-day moratorium (March 2026)
5. Apex: 1 -year moratorium (April 2026)
6. Charlotte City Council: 150-day moratorium (May 2026)
7. Durham: 60-day moratorium (May 2026)
8. Fayetteville (Cumberland County): 120-day pause (May 2026)
9. Spring Hope (Nash County): 1-year moratorium (May 2026)
10. Wendell: 7 month moratorium through Dec. 31, 2026 (May 2026)
11. Boiling Spring Lakes (Brunswick County): 1-year moratorium (June 2, 2026)
12. Holly Springs: 1-year moratorium (June 16, 2026)
13. Asheville: 1-year moratorium (June 23, 2026)
14. Town of Franklin (Macon County): 1-year moratorium (July 6, 2026)
Of note, Lee County and Sanford added specific data center regulations to their Unified Development Ordinances in April 2026 instead of a moratorium. Other areas, such as Edgecombe, Stokes and Vance Counties have been considering the issue but have not yet enacted any type of moratorium.
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