Mesa County CO 12-month data center moratorium (2026)
Mesa County, CO — Board of County Commissioners Unanimously Adopts a 12-Month Moratorium on Data Center Land Use Applications (September 2026)
Mesa County, CO · Mesa County, CO — 12-month data center land use application moratorium (Sept. 29, 2026)
- Status
- In effect
- Expires
- September 29, 2027
- Applies to
- Data center land use applicants in unincorporated Mesa County
- Enforced by
- Mesa County Board of County Commissioners / Mesa County land use staff
Mesa County commissioners unanimously approved a 12-month moratorium at a public hearing on September 29, 2026 that pauses the acceptance, processing and approval of land use applications for data center facilities in unincorporated Mesa County. It took effect immediately. The county's land use code, last updated in 2020, does not address data centers, and the pause gives staff time to keep updating the code while gathering public input on data center regulation. The county says it has no pending data center applications.
Who is protected: Residents of unincorporated Mesa County
Legal detail
Mesa County Board of County Commissioners, public hearing Sept. 29, 2026: unanimous approval of a 12-month moratorium (Mesa County official release). Effective immediately. Scope: 'temporarily pauses the acceptance, processing and approval of land use applications for data center facilities in unincorporated Mesa County'; supersedes current guidelines. Rationale: 2020 land use code does not address data centers; land development code update under way. No pending applications. expires_date 2027-09-29 is computed from the stated 12-month term running from the Sept. 29, 2026 adoption; no source states an end date. Does not apply inside incorporated municipalities (the City of Grand Junction was separately discussing a moratorium; not covered). NOT ESTABLISHED: resolution number, exemptions, individual commissioner votes beyond 'unanimous'.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Mesa County, CO |
|---|---|
| Level | County |
| Strength | Moderate |
| Enacted | September 29, 2026 |
| Citation | Mesa County, CO — 12-month data center land use application moratorium (Sept. 29, 2026) |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | Not stated in the located sources |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy |
| Agency page | Commissioners approve data center moratorium — Mesa County (official news release) |
Related data-center siting and energy rules elsewhere
- Superior WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Dane County WI Hyperscale Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- Madison WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Manitowoc County WI Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- WA SB 5982 (Data Center / Clean Energy) · In effect
- Dayton OH data center moratorium (180-day, Apr 2026) · In effect
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