Westerly RI one-year data center moratorium (2026)
Westerly, Rhode Island — Town Council Votes 7-0 for a One-Year Ban on Data Center Development or Construction Because the Town Has No Zoning Regulations for Them (July 27, 2026)
Westerly, RI · Town of Westerly, R.I. — one-year data center moratorium (adopted 7-0, July 27, 2026)
- Status
- In effect
- Expires
- July 27, 2027
- Applies to
- Developers seeking to develop or construct a data center in Westerly during the moratorium year
- Enforced by
- Town of Westerly Planning and Zoning Commission / Westerly Town Council
Westerly's Town Council voted 7-0 at its July 27, 2026 meeting to impose a one-year ban on the development or construction of data centers in the town. The council's stated reason is unusually candid: the town simply lacks the information, and more concretely it lacks the zoning regulations or the resources to handle a facility of that size, energy requirement and water consumption. That is a different justification from most of the moratoriums in this dataset, which cite environmental impacts or ratepayer costs. Westerly is saying it does not yet have a legal framework capable of reviewing such an application at all, which is the most honest basis on which a small town can pause. Councillors also pointed to environmental impacts of data centers reported across the country. The year gives the Westerly Planning and Zoning Commission time to propose ordinances for the council governing WHERE in town data centers would be allowed — so the intended output is a siting framework rather than a permanent ban. Westerly sits in Washington County on the Connecticut border. Rhode Island had a live statewide conversation running alongside it: Governor McKee had ordered a separate pause on new ALPR cameras in August, and RIPIRG was seeking a two-year statewide pause on large data centers.
Who is protected: Westerly, Rhode Island residents; town water supply and electrical infrastructure
Legal detail
Town of Westerly, R.I. (Washington County) — one-year moratorium on the development or construction of data centers, approved UNANIMOUSLY 7-0 by the Town Council at its meeting of Monday, July 27, 2026. STATED GROUNDS, and the distinguishing feature: the council cited A LACK OF INFORMATION and, specifically, THE TOWN'S LACK OF ZONING REGULATIONS OR RESOURCES for a facility of that size, energy requirement and water consumption \u2014 a capacity-based rather than impact-based justification. Most moratoriums in this dataset are premised on the harms a data center would cause; Westerly's is premised on the town's inability to review the application competently, which is both a more defensible legal footing for an interim ordinance and a more candid statement of the small-municipality problem. SECONDARY GROUNDS: environmental impacts of data centers reported nationally. INTENDED OUTPUT: the WESTERLY PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION is to propose ordinances, for council adoption, governing WHERE IN TOWN data centers would be allowed \u2014 i.e. a siting framework, not a permanent prohibition. RHODE ISLAND CONTEXT: Rhode Island towns were acting on data center expansion as New York paused statewide; RIPIRG sought a TWO-YEAR statewide pause on large data centers; separately, Gov. McKee ordered a statewide pause on new ALPR installations on 2026-08-18 (Rhode Island ALPR installation pause and 60-day review (2026)), an unrelated subject but the same posture of a state acting where local capacity is thin.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Westerly, RI |
|---|---|
| Level | City / local |
| Strength | Moderate |
| Enacted | July 27, 2026 |
| Citation | Town of Westerly, R.I. — one-year data center moratorium (adopted 7-0, July 27, 2026) |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | No data center development or construction may proceed during the one-year ban |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy · consumer protection · government use of AI |
| News report | Town council passes one-year moratorium on data centers — The Westerly Sun |
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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