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AI Laws in North Carolina
As of 2026-08-12, AI Laws USA tracks 25 AI rules in North Carolina: 10 state-level rules and 15 county or city rules. Federal AI protections apply statewide on top of these — see the federal page. Each entry links to its official source.
North Carolina state-level AI rules (10)
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In effect
EBCI Ord. 158 (Data Center Moratorium)
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians · Effective 2026-05-07 · EBCI Ordinance No. 158, Cherokee Code ch. 47E (May 7, 2026)
Indefinite moratorium on data center development on the Qualla Boundary. Dinilawigi (Tribal Council) voted 11-0 to amend the Cherokee Code Chapter 47E, finding that high-impact digital infrastructure 'presents a clear and present danger to the lands and people' of the EBCI.
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In effect
NC AI Strategic Roadmap (released Jul. 1, 2026)
North Carolina · Effective 2026-07-01 · North Carolina AI Strategic Roadmap (AI Leadership Council under Executive Order 24), released July 1, 2026
North Carolina released its AI Strategic Roadmap on July 1, 2026. Developed by the AI Leadership Council that Governor Josh Stein created under Executive Order 24, the roadmap lays out 17 goals organized around three priorities: protecting North Carolinians from AI harms, preparing the workforce for AI, and using AI to improve government service delivery. As a published strategy document, it guides state agency AI adoption and safeguards but does not itself impose binding legal requirements.
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In effect
Executive Order No. 24: Advancing Trustworthy Artificial Int
North Carolina · Effective 2025-09-02 · Executive Order No. 24: Advancing Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence That Benefits All North Carolinians
Governor Josh Stein's order establishes an AI Leadership Council and an AI Accelerator within NCDIT and requires each Cabinet agency to form an AI Oversight Team and submit AI use cases for risk assessment.
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In effect
NC DOI AI Bulletin
NC · Effective 2024-12-18 · North Carolina DOI Bulletin 24-B-19 (2024-12-18)
The NC Department of Insurance adopted the NAIC Model Bulletin on Use of Artificial Intelligence Systems by Insurers. Insurers licensed in NC must maintain a written AI program with governance, risk-management, testing, third-party-AI oversight, and documentation controls. The bulletin operationalizes existing unfair-trade-practice and unfair-discrimination law as applied to insurers' AI use cases — underwriting, pricing, claims, fraud detection, and marketing.
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In effect
NC HB 591 (AI CSAM, deepfake intimate images & sextortion)
North Carolina · Effective 2024-12-01 · N.C. Sess. Law 2024-37 (H.B. 591); N.C. Gen. Stat. 14-190.13, 14-202.7, 14-190.5A
North Carolina updated its sex-crime laws so that sexually exploitative images of children count even when they are digital or computer-generated, including depictions built, altered, or modified with technology such as algorithms or artificial intelligence. The law also makes it a crime to use someone's private sexual image, including an AI-generated one, as leverage: threatening to release such an image, or refusing to delete one already released, in order to pressure a person is treated as sexual extortion. It likewise extends the ban on sharing intimate images without consent to AI-generated intimate images.
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In effect
North Carolina State Government Responsible Use of Artificia
North Carolina · Effective 2024-08-01 · North Carolina State Government Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence Framework
NCDIT published a NIST-based framework of principles, practices, and guidance for state agencies deploying AI while reducing privacy and data-protection risks to residents.
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In effect
NC Generative AI Implementation Recommendations and Consider
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) · Effective 2024-01-16 · NC Generative AI Implementation Recommendations and Considerations for PK-13 Public Schools
North Carolina's education department released a generative AI guidebook (including the 'EVERY' responsible-use framework) covering leadership, human capacity, curriculum, data privacy, and technology infrastructure for public schools.
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In effect
NC HB 469 (2017 AV statute)
North Carolina · Effective 2017-12-01 · S.L. 2017-166; N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 20-400–20-403
North Carolina legalized fully autonomous vehicles, treats the registered owner as the operator for traffic-enforcement purposes, allows AVs to transport unaccompanied minors only with parental consent, and preempts local AV regulation.
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Proposed / pending
North Carolina Senate Bill 730 (Data Center Water and Coolin
North Carolina · North Carolina Senate Bill 730 (Data Center Water and Cooling Regulations)
North Carolina's House advanced SB 730 to largely prohibit evaporative cooling, require closed-loop water systems, and direct the state to set water-use standards for large data centers.
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Proposed / pending
North Carolina AI Regulatory Reform Act (Deepfake/NCII Provisions)
North Carolina · H 934, North Carolina General Assembly, 2025-2026 Regular Session
Would criminalize the creation or distribution of deepfakes—digitally altered or AI-generated images, audio, or video falsely depicting a real person—when done with intent to harass, extort, threaten, or cause harm. A first offense would be a Class 1 misdemeanor. Victims could seek civil damages up to $10,000 per incident. The bill also provides liability shields for AI developers when their products are misused by professionals.
County and city AI rules in North Carolina (15)
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In effect
Henderson County NC data center regulations (eff. July 15, 2026)
Henderson County, NC · Effective 2026-07-15 · Henderson County, NC code amendment, July 15, 2026, extending crypto-mining regulations to all data centers
Henderson County, North Carolina (Hendersonville area) now applies its strict crypto-mining rules to all data centers. Under a code amendment adopted July 15, 2026, data centers are allowed only in industrial zones with a special use permit, must sit 100 feet back from property lines, cannot operate between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. or on Sundays, cannot exceed 50 decibels measured at 100 feet, must build an 8-foot sound wall, and must be at least 2 miles from any other such facility.
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In effect
Cumberland County NC Six-Month Data Center Moratorium
Cumberland County, NC · Effective 2026-06-15 · Six-month moratorium adopted 2026-06-15 by 7-0 vote
On June 15, 2026, the Cumberland County (NC) Board of Commissioners voted 7-0 to adopt a six-month data-center moratorium running through December 15, 2026. The moratorium covers unincorporated areas only; data centers proposed inside Fayetteville city limits are not affected. The moratorium pauses new data-center construction while county staff and commissioners develop a regulatory ordinance.
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In effect
Charlotte Data Center Moratorium
Charlotte, NC · Effective 2026-06-08 · Charlotte, N.C., data center moratorium (adopted June 8, 2026)
Charlotte City Council voted 11-0 on June 8, 2026 to pause new data centers for 150 days while the city studies their impacts and hears from residents worried about noise and rising electric and water costs. Already-approved projects — including the five-building, 122-acre 'Powerhouse Charlotte' campus in north Charlotte that could draw 300-400 megawatts — are NOT affected, because the city lacks legal authority over approved projects.
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In effect
Orange County NC one-year data center moratorium (Apr 2026)
Orange County, NC · Effective 2026-04-22 · Orange County NC BOC moratorium resolution (April 22, 2026)
Orange County NC Board of County Commissioners voted 6-0 in April 2026 to enact a one-year moratorium on new data center approvals, pausing acceptance and processing of permits while the county studies long-term data center zoning regulations.
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In effect
Durham PD FR Restriction
Durham, NC · Effective 2024-03-01 · Durham PD Gen. Order, Facial Recognition (2024)
Durham Police Department general order restricting facial recognition use to case-tied investigations with supervisory approval and treating matches as investigative leads only.
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In effect
Six-month data-center moratorium (Cumberland County, NC)
Cumberland County, North Carolina · Effective 2026-06-15 · Cumberland County (NC) six-month data-center moratorium (June 15, 2026)
Six-month moratorium on new data-center construction in unincorporated areas of Cumberland County. During this period, county staff will not review site plans or issue zoning and building permits for data centers. Ordinance defines data center as a facility 'housing critical information technology infrastructure ... used for cloud services, internet applications, and artificial intelligence workloads.' Does not apply within Fayetteville city limits.
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In effect
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte, NC · Effective 2025-10-28 · Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools — Board Policy on Artificial Intelligence (2025-10-28)
Eight-part board policy requiring cross-functional AI committee approval before any system using staff/student data is deployed. Mandates training, age-appropriate tools, public-records and regulatory compliance; AI cannot replace human decision-making.
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In effect
Board Policy O-AIU and CMS Generative AI Guidance (2025-26)
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, NC · Effective 2025-10-28 · Board Policy O-AIU and CMS Generative AI Guidance (2025-26)
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools board approved Board Policy O-AIU on Oct. 28, 2025, requiring an AI committee to review any AI system using staff or student data, mandating FERPA-compliant vetting, age-appropriate tools, and barring AI from replacing human decision-making.
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In effect
Durham NC Public Schools
Durham, NC · Effective 2025-09-25 · Durham NC Public Schools — Generative AI Acceptable Use Guidelines (2025-09-25)
DPS Board-reviewed guidelines authorize district-vetted enterprise AI tools, require teacher disclosure of AI use in instruction, bar non-consensual deepfakes, prohibit AI-only grading or discipline, and require parental consent for student AI accounts under 13. Anchored in Policy 3225/4312/7320 (Technology Responsible Use).
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In effect
Greensboro GenAI Policy
Greensboro, NC · Effective 2024-09-01 · City of Greensboro IT Dept., GenAI Acceptable Use Policy (2024)
City of Greensboro administrative policy on employee use of generative AI tools with disclosure, prohibited-data, and human-review requirements.
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Enacted (not yet in effect)
One-Year Moratorium on New Data Center Development
Asheville · One-Year Moratorium on New Data Center Development
The Asheville City Council unanimously approved a one-year moratorium on new data center development so staff can define data centers in the city's development ordinance and create zoning rules.
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In effect
Wake County NC Public School System
Raleigh, NC · Wake County NC Public School System — Generative AI Guidelines & Policy 6446 Revision (undefined)
Board-revised Policy 6446 (Internet/Online Services) plus standalone AI guidelines: district-approved AI tools list, K-5 prohibition on student-facing AI chatbots, required parental consent for student AI accounts grades 6-8, AI literacy requirement for grades 9-12.
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Expired
Hillsborough ends its relationship with Flock Safety ALPR ca
Hillsborough, NC · Hillsborough ends its relationship with Flock Safety ALPR cameras
Town leaders in Hillsborough, North Carolina ended the town's relationship with Flock Safety in October 2025 amid the wave of local governments dropping ALPR contracts over surveillance and immigration data-sharing concerns.
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Proposed / pending
Policy Code 1910 Generative Artificial Intelligence (draft)
Wake County Public School System, NC · Policy Code 1910 Generative Artificial Intelligence (draft)
Wake County Public School System advanced draft Policy 1910 on generative AI on June 17, 2026, which discourages AI detectors, requires students to disclose and explain AI use and cite it, and bars sharing student PII with certain AI systems, pending board approval.
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Proposed / pending
Fayetteville data-center ordinance (public hearing Aug 10, 2026)
Fayetteville, North Carolina · Fayetteville (NC) proposed data-center ordinance (active deliberation June 8, 2026)
Proposed data center ordinance for Fayetteville. After an initial April 27 vote to delay 120 days, council voted 8-2 on June 8 to revive the draft and schedule a public hearing for August 10, 2026. The ordinance would set rules for data center siting and operation within Fayetteville city limits (Cumberland County's moratorium applies only to unincorporated areas).
North Carolina city guides
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