More Maryland jurisdictions are trying to slow the tech facilities’ expansion
The Baltimore County Council passed a bill Monday night to temporarily freeze development of data centers, saying it needed more time to understand the benefits and drawbacks of the rapidly expanding, yet increasingly divisive, tech facilities.
The legislation, introduced by Councilman Pat Young and co-sponsored by his six council colleagues, passed unanimously. It blocks the county from issuing permits for data centers until the Planning Board studies their potential environmental and economic impacts, and develops recommendations on how to regulate them.
The pause expires 90 days after the council receives the study and cannot extend past Jan. 1, 2027.
The Planning Board is required to hold a public hearing on its findings.
The county joined a growing list of local jurisdictions attempting a more measured approach to data centers — massive warehouses that store servers, drives and other IT infrastructure, which have proliferated amid the artificial intelligence boom. While supporters say data centers generate jobs and tax revenue, critics warn they strain energy and water resources and drive utility rates higher.
Those concerns prompted Councilman Izzy Patoka to offer an amendment that would have paused permits until Aug. 30, rather than for as long as a year.
“I think it’s important that we push ourselves, we push our departments, we push us as a legislative body to move as quickly as we can to add stimulus right here in Baltimore County,” Patoka told the council Monday.
The amendment failed by a 5-2 vote.
Read full article: Baltimore County approves data center moratorium – The Baltimore Banner
