Graded Minimal and tightening. 7 laws, orders, rulings and local actions, each with its source, reviewed 23 October 2026.
No connection or own-power rule in force; HB 5469's bring-your-own-power mandate died without a floor vote in May 2026.
No large-load tariff or contract standard exists; the Millstone-adjacent proposals stalled and no tariff proceeding is open.
East Lyme's zoning ban effective 24 Oct 2026 is the only local restriction and sits outside any main market; New Haven's pause is unconfirmed.
The 2021 sales, use and property tax exemption stays intact with qualification thresholds; SB 245's repeal died in May 2026 and only Cigna has used it.
No water, air permit or disclosure rule for data centers is in force.
Scored on rules in force, 1 to 5. 5 is the most regulated. Pending rules set the arrow.
Connecticut's 2021 law offers long sales, use and property tax exemptions to qualified data centers, but it has drawn only one applicant, Cigna, for an existing facility. Governor Lamont said in September 2026 that very large AI data centers are never going to be in Connecticut and that he would look at a project only if it brought its own power and water, after review by the utility regulator. A 2026 bill, HB 5469, would have required loads of 50 MW or more to bring new generation and post 10-year financial guarantees; it cleared committee but died without a floor vote when the session ended in May 2026, as did SB 245, which would have repealed the 2021 incentive. No large-load tariff is in place and proposals such as the one beside the Millstone nuclear plant have stalled.
The November 3, 2026 governor's race pits Lamont against Republican Ryan Fazio, who wants the 2021 tax breaks repealed and a bring-your-own-power rule, so the 2027 session is likely to start from scratch on both questions after HB 5469 and SB 245 died in May 2026. East Lyme's zoning commission voted unanimously in October 2026 to ban data centers town-wide, a permanent zoning ban effective October 24, 2026. New Haven's proposed 12-month moratorium on new data centers and building conversions was before the City Plan Commission in July 2026, and no Board of Alders vote has been confirmed.
No. As of 23 October 2026 no statewide or local moratorium on data centers is in force in Connecticut. Proposals and expired pauses are not counted.
Tightening. Connecticut is graded Minimal, which means few binding rules, with new incentives or fast-track permitting in force. Incentive law on paper, governor says no to big AI campuses. The outlook above says what is pending.
Connecticut sits in ISO-NE. The grid operator decides how a new large load is studied, what it must bring or pay, and whether it can be curtailed first; the state decides siting, permits, tariffs and incentives.
No. Connecticut's data center incentives were not pulled back in 2025 or 2026 as of 23 October 2026, though the items below show what is pending.
On Genloop's five-line rubric (1 least regulated, 5 most) Connecticut scores grid connection 1, power rates 1, siting and land use 2, tax treatment 2, permits and water 1, a mean of 1.4. The most regulated line is tax treatment: The 2021 sales, use and property tax exemption stays intact with qualification thresholds; SB 245's repeal died in May 2026 and only Cigna has used it.
7 items: each is a law, order, tariff, ruling, utility action or local decision that changes what a data center must do, pay or disclose, or where it may be built. Failed and pending measures are marked. Each links to its source.
The zoning commission voted unanimously in October 2026 to prohibit traditional data centers, AI data centers and data center accessory uses town-wide, a permanent zoning ban rather than a moratorium, effective October 24, 2026. The town had formed a study subcommittee in July after residents opposed an AI data center proposal.
Source: wfsb.comOn September 7, 2026 Lamont said a 1,500-acre AI data center will never be in Connecticut, that he would consider case by case a project supplying its own power and water after regulator review, and that towns have the final say through zoning. No executive order was issued.
Source: wshu.orgRepublican candidate for governor Ryan Fazio called on September 3, 2026 for an end to tax breaks for large data centers and for a bring-your-own-power rule. East Lyme residents are opposing a proposed AI data center in their town.
Source: wfsb.comAlder Richard Furlow introduced an ordinance barring city departments from accepting or approving applications for new data centers or conversions of existing buildings for 12 months while the city studies the industry and drafts zoning rules. The City Plan Commission was to review it on July 15, 2026; no Board of Alders vote has been confirmed.
Source: hartfordbusiness.comEnergy and Technology Committee bill heard March 12, 2026. Customers of 50 MW or more would have had to contract with a colocated supplier or show new generation covering their full load, post guarantees for at least 85 percent of requested service for 10 years, and utilities would have filed service agreements with the regulator by April 1, 2027. The administration backed it, but it was never called for a floor vote and died when the session ended in May 2026.
Source: ctmirror.orgThe bill would have eliminated the sales, use and property tax exemptions for qualified data centers enacted in 2021. It was never taken up before the 2026 session ended. Only one company has qualified for the incentive since 2021.
Source: ctmirror.orgThe joint favorable report shows the bill cleared the Energy and Technology Committee in March 2026, but it was not taken up by either chamber before adjournment and no public act resulted.
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