Frederick County, Md., is pausing new applications for data center developments through Dec. 31, 2026, while officials complete a statewide study examining the environmental, energy, and economic impacts of data center growth.
County Executive Jessica Fitzwater signed an executive order on July 1 directing the county’s Planning and Permitting Division to stop accepting, processing, reviewing, or considering applications for critical digital infrastructure facilities and related electric substations during the temporary moratorium.
Currently, the state is completing its Data Center Impact Analysis and Report, which is due by Sept. 1, 2026.
The order follows a Maryland Supreme Court ruling last week involving the Frederick County Data Center Referendum Committee. The court blocked a proposed zoning ordinance restricting future data center development to an area north of Adamstown from appearing on the ballot this fall.
“While the Supreme Court has ruled that the zoning ordinance cannot go on the ballot, the level of engagement and the number of residents who signed the referendum tells me that many in our community, like communities across the country, have real concerns about how data centers will affect us,” Fitzwater said in a statement. “This pause will give us time to respond to those concerns and consider the findings of the State’s report.”
The moratorium does not affect projects that received development approvals before the County Council considered Frederick County Council Bill CB 25-09 on June 17, 2025, which established a Critical Digital Infrastructure Overlay Zone restricting facilities and electrical substations to designated industrial lands. It also doesn’t impact projects already under construction and exempts applications for properties that received an approved Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance letter of understanding before June 17, 2025.
County officials said the pause will allow Frederick County to evaluate findings from the state report before considering additional data center proposals.
Over the past three and a half years, the county said it has conducted extensive public outreach on data center policy through workgroups, public hearings, and community meetings. Two additional community information sessions will be scheduled to answer residents’ questions about how the county oversees data center development. Dates for those sessions have not yet been announced.
In a separate executive order, Fitzwater also directed county officials to require data center developers to provide proof of registration with the Maryland Public Service Commission’s (PSC) new large-load customer registry before advancing through the county’s development review process.
County officials noted that local governments cannot regulate public utilities or require specific energy sources or consumption levels. However, they said requiring PSC registration earlier in the development process will help ensure state regulators have the information needed to assess the potential impact of large energy users on Maryland’s electric grid.
