Press Releases - County Council

Amendments Proposed to Strengthen Data Center ZTA

For Immediate Release: Thursday, April 9, 2026

From the Offices of Council President Fani-González, Vice President Balcombe and Councilmember Sayles

Council President Natali Fani-González, Council Vice President Marilyn Balcombe, and Councilmember Laurie-Anne Sayles announce new guardrails on energy, water, setbacks, and scale. New rules would apply to Dickerson site.

Today, Council President Natali Fani-González, Council Vice President Marilyn Balcombe, and Councilmember Laurie-Anne Sayles announced a series of proposed amendments to strengthen their zoning text amendment (ZTA 26-01) on data centers. As introduced, ZTA 26-01 proposed commonsense guardrails to guide data center development and protect neighborhoods. In response to the public hearing on Feb. 24 and direct feedback from stakeholders, experts, and advocates, the sponsors have developed additional protective measures dealing with energy, water, setbacks, retroactivity, and scale. 

100% Clean Energy

Montgomery County has ambitious climate goals, and the sponsors believe that everyone, including data centers, must be part of the effort. Alongside PHP Chair Andrew Friedson, who has led the charge calling for a strong clean energy requirement, they are proposing a verifiable mechanism to require larger data centers to purchase/produce 100% clean energy. Applicants would need to submit a carbon compliance plan as part of their conditional use applications that demonstrates how they will procure or produce 100% clean energy. The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) must determine that the applicant would meet Zero Scope 2 CO2e Emissions from the first day of operations, and the applicant must submit annual reports to DEP to ensure ongoing compliance. 

Prohibiting the Use of Potable Water for Cooling

The sponsors are proposing an amendment that would require the applicant to submit a water usage plan, including actions to minimize water usage and the identification of cooling systems, prepared by a qualified engineer with expertise in water infrastructure. Potable water may not be used for cooling systems.

Applying the Rules Evenly Across Time

To ensure that the new zoning standards are applied evenly and across the board, the sponsors are proposing a temporal clarifying amendment. The amendment specifies that the new zoning rules will be applied for any current or future applications that have not yet obtained a building permit before the effective date of the ZTA. Effectively, this means that any application currently in the development pipeline will be subject to the standards of the ZTA.

The sponsors are also proposing the following protective amendments to do the following:

• Refine the definition of data center to focus on the amount of energy used and to be  more in line with future technology;
• Apply greater setbacks from schools and parks;
• In addition to existing landscaping requirements, allow metal fencing in certain circumstances for security purposes; and
• Require a plan for backup energy generation.

These amendments combine with the existing provisions to provide a well-rounded, practical, but also aggressive regulatory framework. The ZTA as introduced already includes numerous strict siting standards as outlined below. 

• Data centers would only be allowed by conditional use in industrial zones (data centers are allowed in every zone currently). 
• On top of existing setbacks, a 500-foot setback is mandated for sites that abut residentially zoned property.
• Measures to mitigate visual impact and impacts wildlife including vegetative screening must be provided in addition to lighting requirements.
• Proof of ongoing operations to minimize noise in conformance with the County’s Noise Ordinance is required.
• Use of low-emission diesel backup generators, in compliance with Tier 4 EPA standards is mandated.
• Protections for wetlands, streams, rivers, environmentally sensitive areas, parks, and recreational facilities is required.
• Considerations to minimize the negative impacts that disproportionately affect burdened and underserved populations.

Montgomery County understands that emerging technologies require extensive and capital-intensive networks of data centers and fiber connections to make them all work.  Our local economy relies on these emerging technologies. To thrive, Montgomery County must participate in the economy of the future by supporting data centers in the County. However, we must establish responsible rules for data center development that genuinely reflect community input. This ZTA with the proposed amendments does just that.

The sponsors welcome feedback on these proposed amendments as the ZTA moves through the legislative process over the next few months. You can view the clean energy amendment here and the rest of the amendments here.

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Release ID: 26-136
Media Contact: Tommy Heyboer 240-777-7867
Categories: Natali Fani-González