Graded Moderate and tightening. 15 laws, orders, rulings and local actions, each with its source, reviewed 23 October 2026.
The Utility RELIEF Act (12 May 2026) makes 25 MW loads pay their grid upgrades, register and pay at least $1,000 per MW; clean capacity tiers are voluntary.
The 2025 Next Generation Energy Act and 12 May 2026 RELIEF Act mandate a separate large-load rate class with PJM capacity pass-through; tariffs pending.
Harford's ban (10 Jun 2026) and pauses in Frederick, Montgomery, Prince George's, Howard and Baltimore cover nearly every market, plus state review at 25 MW.
The 2020 sales tax exemption stands, but the 23 Sep 2026 order strips Commerce-recommended incentives from projects rated Not Aligned by the task force.
The RELIEF Act (12 May 2026) requires energy and water reporting by registered large loads and the 23 Sep 2026 order bars state agency NDAs; no hard limits.
Scored on rules in force, 1 to 5. 5 is the most regulated. Pending rules set the arrow.
Maryland's 2025 Next Generation Energy Act required utilities to create large-load tariffs, and the 2026 Utility RELIEF Act (HB 1532) lowered the threshold to 25 MW and added mandatory registration, energy and water reporting, a fee of at least $1,000 per MW and pass-through of PJM capacity costs. Utilities filed large-load tariffs with the Public Service Commission by 1 September 2026. On 23 September 2026 Governor Moore added a layer by executive order: a new Data Center Accountability Task Force reviews every project of 25 MW or more that seeks state permits or support, rates it against ratepayer, grid, economic, community and environmental tests, and state agencies may no longer sign nondisclosure agreements with developers. At county level the response has been sharper: Harford banned data centers in June 2026, Prince George's adopted a two-year moratorium, Montgomery's council passed an 18-month moratorium in July 2026, Anne Arundel's council passed a moratorium to 31 January 2028 on 5 October 2026, and Frederick, Howard, Baltimore County, Baltimore City and Carroll have pauses running into 2027. A state study of data center impacts, ordered over the governor's veto, was due 1 September 2026 and had not been published as of 23 October.
The commission opens hearings on the Potomac Edison and Exelon large-load tariffs in Public Conference 72 on 23 October 2026, with further hearings on 8 to 11 December 2026. Governor Moore says he will ask the 2027 session, which opens in January, to repeal the 2020 data center sales and use tax exemption, and advocates plan further bills. Existing large loads must register with the commission by 1 March 2027. Frederick County's pause, extended to 1 July 2027, is under challenge in a suit Quantum Maryland filed on 8 October 2026 seeking to void it and damages it says could exceed $500 million. Other county pauses run to 2 November 2027 (Howard), 31 December 2027 (Baltimore County) and 31 January 2028 (Anne Arundel, unless the county adopts comprehensive rules sooner, and pending the county executive's signature).
No statewide moratorium, but 4 local pauses are in force as of 23 October 2026, in Baltimore County, Baltimore City, Howard, Carroll, Anne Arundel, Frederick County, Montgomery County, Prince George's County, Montgomery County. Proposals and expired pauses are not counted.
Tightening. Maryland is graded Moderate, which means incentives alongside new costs, limits or local pushback. State review above 25 MW by executive order; 14 counties paused or banned. The outlook above says what is pending.
Maryland sits in PJM. 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. Maryland's data center incentives were not pulled back in 2025 or 2026 as of 23 October 2026.
On Genloop's five-line rubric (1 least regulated, 5 most) Maryland scores grid connection 3, power rates 4, siting and land use 4, tax treatment 3, permits and water 3, a mean of 3.4. The most regulated line is siting and land use: Harford's ban (10 Jun 2026) and pauses in Frederick, Montgomery, Prince George's, Howard and Baltimore cover nearly every market, plus state review at 25 MW.
15 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 County Council passed Bill 63-26 as amended by 7 to 0 on 5 October 2026. It halts new data center development until 31 January 2028, or sooner if the county adopts comprehensive data center legislation. The bill began as a ban on new privately operated data centers and was changed to a moratorium in September. Projects already in the development process can generally continue. The report does not say whether the county executive has signed it.
Source: wmar2news.comQuantum Maryland LLC, managed by Catellus, sued Frederick County, its Planning Commission and County Executive Jessica Fitzwater in Frederick County Circuit Court on 8 October 2026, arguing the executive exceeded her authority by freezing data center applications despite council-approved zoning and acted for political reasons. It asks the court to invalidate the moratorium, restore access to the approval process and award damages it says could exceed $500 million. The county does not comment on litigation.
Source: foxbaltimore.comBaltimore County extended its pause to 31 December 2027 on 22 September 2026. Baltimore City has a one-year pause on facilities of 10 MW or more from July 2026, Howard's runs from 4 August 2026 to 2 November 2027, and Carroll adopted a one-year pause on 19 February 2026. Anne Arundel's council passed a moratorium to 31 January 2028 on 5 October 2026 (see separate item).
Source: wmar2news.comCounty Executive Jessica Fitzwater ordered a halt to intake and review of new data center applications on 1 July 2026, the day after the Maryland Supreme Court (30 June 2026) kept a residents' referendum on the roughly 2,600-acre data center overlay zone off the ballot. The order first ran to 31 December 2026; on about 14 September 2026 she rejected a proposed $110 million community benefits agreement with Quantum Maryland and extended the pause to 1 July 2027. Approved projects and construction under way are exempt. Quantum Maryland LLC sued the county, its Planning Commission and Fitzwater in Frederick County Circuit Court on 8 October 2026 to void the moratorium.
Source: foxbaltimore.comSigned by Governor Moore on 23 September 2026. Any facility or expansion with projected or actual peak demand of 25 MW or more is reviewed by a new Maryland Data Center Accountability Task Force in the Governor's Office when the developer seeks a state permit, incentive or support, or when a state agency, local government or the Public Service Commission refers it. Projects are rated Aligned, Conditionally Aligned or Not Aligned against ratepayer and grid protection, economic benefit, community voice, environmental protection and transparency. Not Aligned projects lose state facilitation, letters of support and Commerce-recommended incentives and have their permit reviews deferred until local land use approvals are documented. State agencies may not sign or renew nondisclosure agreements with developers, and a public dashboard updated at least monthly lists projects, power and water demand and commitments. Permits already issued are unaffected. Moore also said he will ask the 2027 session to repeal the 2020 data center sales and use tax exemption.
Source: governor.maryland.govEach utility had to file a large-load tariff by 1 September 2026 under the Next Generation Energy Act as amended by the Utility RELIEF Act. Tariffs must reach customers above 25 MW and pass PJM capacity costs assigned to those customers through to them. Potomac Edison and the Exelon utilities (BGE, Delmarva Power, Pepco) filed proposals in Public Conference 72; the Exelon companies announced theirs on 29 September 2026. The commission scheduled a hearing for 23 October 2026 and further hearings on 8 to 11 December 2026.
Source: kentcountycrier.comBGE, Delmarva Power and Pepco announced on 29 September 2026 that they had filed a Large Load Tariff proposal with the Public Service Commission under the Next Generation Energy Act and Utility RELIEF Act, meant to make large new customers pay their share of grid costs and post financial safeguards before transmission and distribution investments. The commission set a hearing for 23 October 2026 and further hearings for 8 to 11 December 2026. Potomac Edison filed its own proposal.
Source: kentcountycrier.comPrince George's adopted a two-year moratorium in early July 2026 after a task force review. Montgomery's executive ordered a six-month pause on permit applications in June 2026, and the council then passed an 18-month moratorium unanimously in late July 2026 (see separate item).
Source: venable.comThe 11-member County Council voted unanimously in late July 2026 (reported as Tuesday 28 July) for an 18-month moratorium, replacing the six-month pause the county executive ordered in June. It takes effect when signed, and existing data centers are not affected. The council plans to study noise, water use, the Potomac River and tax rates during the pause. The developer of a proposed data center in Dickerson said its project could not proceed for now.
Source: wtop.comThe council passed the ban unanimously and the county executive signed it on 10 June 2026, making Harford the first Maryland county to prohibit data centers.
Source: wmar2news.comSigned as emergency legislation on 12 May 2026. A large-load customer is now one with at least 25 MW of monthly demand and a load factor above 60 percent (down from 100 MW and 80 percent), and such customers must pay for the grid upgrades needed to connect them.
Source: mintz.comLarge loads must register with the Public Service Commission and report energy and water use, paying a fee of at least $1,000 per MW of peak load. A voluntary clean capacity program creates tiers that reward projects adding new clean generation, joining demand response or managing peak demand. Existing large loads must register by 1 March 2027 and utilities may not submit PJM load adjustments for unregistered customers after 1 July 2027.
Source: mintz.comA Republican-sponsored 2026 bill (Delegates Fisher, Chisholm, M. Morgan, Szeliga) would have barred construction and approval of new data centers until the General Assembly enacted legislation on co-locating data centers with gas, nuclear or small modular reactor generation. It had a hearing on 3 February 2026 in the Environment and Transportation Committee and died there.
Source: mgaleg.maryland.govGovernor Moore vetoed the study bill in May 2025; the legislature overrode the veto on 16 December 2025 (Senate 44 to 0, House 109 to 21). The Department of the Environment, the Maryland Energy Administration and the University of Maryland Smith School of Business were to report on energy, environmental and economic impacts, with the Department of Legislative Services to submit it by 1 September 2026. As of mid September 2026 the report was still described as forthcoming.
Source: technical.lySigned in May 2025. It required utilities to file separate rate schedules for large loads, then defined as 100 MW with an 80 percent load factor, and stated that residential customers should not bear the financial risk of large-load customers.
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