Montgomery County At-Large Councilmember Will Jawando was joined today by Councilmember Kristin Mink (District 5), community advocates, and residents for a press conference ahead of the public hearing on Expedited Bill 24-26, Buildings – Building Permits – Data Center Moratorium.
Introduced by Councilmember Jawando and cosponsored by Councilmember Mink, Expedited Bill 24-26 would establish a two-year moratorium on building permits for data centers in Montgomery County. The bill is intended to give the County time to develop clear, enforceable safeguards before major data center projects move forward, including protections related to water use, watershed impacts, energy demand, utility costs, noise, siting, taxation, and labor standards.
Expedited Bill 24-26 is the only data center moratorium bill that has been introduced that would cover the proposed data center complex in Dickerson, the project that has generated significant community concern. A bill proposed by Councilmember Evan Glass includes an exemption that would allow the Dickerson project to move forward, as he acknowledged in a memo sent to Council colleagues last week.
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“This is a defining moment for Montgomery County,” said Councilmember Jawando. “Once a data center is built, it is built. There is no undoing it. No amount of revenue can restore a damaged watershed, no amount of revenue can bring back our environment, and no amount of revenue can un-raise a family’s electric bill. We do not need to rush. We need to get this right, and we need to put residents first.”
The proposed moratorium would allow the County to address several unresolved issues before any project proceeds, including:
- Watershed protection: ensuring facilities do not draw millions of gallons from the Potomac watershed before closed-loop cooling requirements and water protections are in place.
- Noise protections: updating standards for industrial noise that can carry far beyond existing setback assumptions and affect nearby communities.
- Clean energy requirements: requiring real renewable power on the grid, including for backup systems, rather than relying on offsets, credits, or unenforceable promises.
- Ratepayer protections: preventing working families from subsidizing the energy demands of billion-dollar technology companies through higher utility costs.
- Fair taxation: ensuring data centers pay a fair share toward infrastructure, public services, and community impacts.
- Union labor: requiring family-sustaining wages, strong benefits, and the highest safety standards in the construction and operation of any data centers built in Montgomery County.
“Data centers cannot be allowed to shape our future. They require real public oversight, enforceable standards, and community protections,” said Councilmember Jawando. “Montgomery County should not be seduced by corporate promises of revenue that may never materialize while residents bear the consequences. We can support innovation and still insist on clean energy, clean water, fair taxes, union jobs, and protections for families.”
“Bill 24-26 is the bill that meets this moment,” said Councilmember Mink. “It gets in front of the massive data center project that proposes withdrawing 69,300 gallons of water per day from the Potomac River, and it sets the amount of time realistically needed to pass and implement both county and state legislation. With over five hours of public testimony expected today, overwhelmingly in favor of Bill 24-26, the time is now to put our residents first and get this safeguard in place.”
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Several community advocates offered remarks at today’s press conference, which included community members from across the County. Many more residents will testify today at the public hearing for this bill.
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Read the original article at mccouncil
