MD Supreme Court blocks Frederick County DC zoning referendum
Frederick County, MD Data Center Zoning — Maryland Supreme Court Blocks Referendum
Frederick County, MD · Frederick County, Md. data center zoning referendum litigation — Md. Supreme Court, decided 2026-06-30 (written opinion pending at time of coverage)
- Status
- Blocked / in litigation
- Applies to
- N/A — procedural ruling on Frederick County's own zoning process.
The Maryland Supreme Court ruled June 30, 2026 that Frederick County's December 2025 approval of a 2,600-acre 'critical digital infrastructure overlay zone' for data centers is not subject to a citizen referendum under the county charter, upholding a lower court and blocking a ballot question more than 21,000 residents had petitioned for. The court also found the proposed ballot question itself legally deficient (unclear map depiction, incomplete ordinance text).
Who is protected: N/A — this entry tracks a court ruling on referendum procedure, not a protection for residents.
Legal detail
Maryland Supreme Court decision, 2026-06-30, affirming a Frederick County Circuit Court ruling that the county's December 2025 zoning ordinance creating a critical digital infrastructure overlay zone (CDI-OZ, ~2,600 acres, concentrating data centers north of Adamstown) is not referendum-eligible under the county charter. Written opinion was pending at publication. Justice Joseph Getty: public-hearing referendum efforts run 'like 500 steps behind' once land is secured and zoning negotiated. Distinct from the separately-tracked (placeholder) Frederick County 'Data Center Conditions Ordinance' (noise/water/generator conditions, introduced May 2026) — this entry concerns only the December 2025 zoning map's referendum-immunity ruling.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Frederick County, MD |
|---|---|
| Level | County |
| Citation | Frederick County, Md. data center zoning referendum litigation — Md. Supreme Court, decided 2026-06-30 (written opinion pending at time of coverage) |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy |
| News report | Maryland Supreme Court blocks voter referendum on Frederick County data center zoning - technical.ly |
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
See something wrong or out of date? Submit a correction. Every entry must carry a verifiable source.