The data center fight in Humboldt County, California
As of November 12, 2026, Humboldt County, California has a data center moratorium in force (action taken Oct 6, 2026).
Status is derived, not stored — a pause with a documented end date flips to Expired on its own — and the source is right next to the claim.
Status today
Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 (Bohn dissenting) on Oct 6, 2026 for a 45-day moratorium on new data center applications in unincorporated areas, taking effect immediately per Lost Coast Outpost (45 days from Oct 6 would be Nov 20, not stated in sources). Exempts facilities under 15 MW powered 100% by on-site renewables with closed-loop water. Sources disagree on maximum extension (county agenda summary: up to 10 months 15 days). Ordinance number not found; no ordinance text read.
SourceNews
read 2026-10-11
An expiry date is the earliest a pause could have ended — extensions are common, so confirm with the clerk before citing it.
What to do next
- Questions to ask at the hearing — force specific answers onto the record.
- Estimate the impact — electricity, water, and rate pressure for any facility size in California.
- Model CBA clauses — copy-paste language communities have actually won.
- California briefing — rates, grid carbon, PUC contacts, and every fight in the state.
Nearby in California
- Arcata (14 mi) — Expiredterm ran to 2026-10-31
- Eureka (16 mi) — Expiredterm ran to 2026-10-17
- Mendocino County (94 mi) — Enactedexpires 2028-08-21
- Dixon (192 mi) — Enactedfixed term, end date not recorded
- Richmond (210 mi) — Expiredterm ran to 2026-10-30
- San Francisco (219 mi) — Enactedfixed term, end date not recorded
- Oakland (221 mi) — Enactedfixed term, end date not recorded
- Oakley (222 mi) — Enactedexpires 2027-04-14
All 31 tracked actions in California are on the state page.
As of August 2026 (3m ago) · changes weekly — re-check before citing
Illustrative rather than exhaustive — dozens of localities churn weekly, and this tracks the ones we have read a source for. **Each row carries its own provenance.** Rows showing a verification date link to the ordinance, the enacting body's own page, or a datable report of the vote, and were read on that date. Rows marked *unverified* came from bulk compilation and have not been checked against a primary source — the locality, the year, and the status may all be off. Verify one of those with the town clerk before citing it as precedent. **Expiry is derived, not asserted.** A row with a documented end date flips to *Expired* on its own once that date passes. A time-limited moratorium whose start date was never documented keeps showing as enacted — that is a known gap, not a claim that it is still in force. Moratoriums are also routinely extended, so an expiry date is the earliest it could have ended, not proof that it did.
Part of the U.S. data center moratorium tracker — open data, CC BY 4.0.