Graded Minimal and tightening. 11 laws, orders, rulings and local actions, each with its source, reviewed 23 October 2026.
HB 93 (Mar 2025) lets campuses self-power on private microgrids with little PRC scrutiny, and large loads reach the PRC only by special contract.
The PRC told legislators on 11 Aug 2026 it has no large-load rule and no rulemaking open; Meta's Los Lunas service runs on special contracts.
Santa Fe, Socorro, Sierra and Grant counties (22 Oct 2026) and Bernalillo town have pauses, none in the Doña Ana or Albuquerque markets.
No state data center exemption exists, but Doña Ana County's 2025 bonds give Project Jupiter a 30-year property tax exemption that stays in effect.
No water, air or disclosure rule is in force; SB 235's reporting mandate died without a House vote in Feb 2026.
Scored on rules in force, 1 to 5. 5 is the most regulated. Pending rules set the arrow.
A 2025 amendment to the grid law (HB 93) lets large campuses run private microgrids with little Public Regulation Commission oversight, and a 2026 attempt to regulate microgrids over 20 MW (SB 235) passed the Senate but never got a House vote. Project Jupiter, an Oracle and OpenAI campus in Doña Ana County backed by $165 billion in county industrial revenue bonds and a 30-year property tax exemption, is under construction while lawsuits over the approval continue. The state has no large-load rule and handles large loads through special contracts. Santa Fe, Socorro, Sierra and Grant counties and the Town of Bernalillo have adopted local moratoria since June 2026, and Democratic legislators are preparing a statewide data center moratorium bill for 2027.
The November 3, 2026 governor's race is the pivot: Democratic nominee Deb Haaland has pledged a day-one executive order pausing new large data centers until protections are in place, and Republican Gregg Hull opposes a moratorium. The 60-day 2027 session, starting in January, is expected to see the moratorium bill announced on July 2, 2026 by Reps. Lara Cadena, Rubio and Chavez and Sen. Hamblen, paired with a bill closing the microgrid loophole; its scope and length were still undecided at the August 11 interim hearing. The Environmental Law Center's Project Jupiter suits are moving to the merits, and the Pacheco petition, dismissed again on June 23, 2026, can be refiled. Grant County's one-year moratorium, adopted October 22, 2026, and Santa Fe County's 18-month pause run into 2027.
No statewide moratorium, but 4 local pauses are in force as of 23 October 2026, in Grant County, Santa Fe County, Socorro County, Town of Bernalillo (Sandoval County). Proposals and expired pauses are not counted.
Tightening. New Mexico is graded Minimal, which means few binding rules, with new incentives or fast-track permitting in force. Self-powered campuses allowed; counties pause projects and a 2027 moratorium looms. The outlook above says what is pending.
New Mexico sits in SPP and The West outside California. 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. New Mexico'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) New Mexico 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: No state data center exemption exists, but Doña Ana County's 2025 bonds give Project Jupiter a 30-year property tax exemption that stays in effect.
11 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.
Commissioners voted 4 to 1 on October 22, 2026 for a one-year ordinance barring the establishment, construction, expansion or operation of any data center or direct supporting infrastructure while the county decides whether to adopt regulations. Santa Fe, Socorro and Sierra counties already have moratoria in effect.
Source: abqjournal.comOn September 28, 2026 the town council adopted a resolution imposing an immediate three-month moratorium on data center approvals and development permits inside town limits while staff update ordinances.
Source: sandovalsignpost.comOn September 17, 2026 Democratic nominee Deb Haaland said she would order a statewide moratorium on new large data centers on taking office until protections with eight conditions, including self-supplied renewable power, are in place. Republican Gregg Hull opposes a moratorium and favors project-by-project limits. The election is November 3, 2026.
Source: abqjournal.comIn an August 11, 2026 briefing to the interim committee the PRC said large loads reach it only through special service contracts, large-customer tariffs and interconnection filings; Meta's Los Lunas campus runs on PNM special service contracts approved December 18, 2025 (Case 25-00048-UT) backed by 290 MW of solar and 268 MW of storage. No large-load rulemaking is open; the commission has held working group meetings only.
Source: nmlegis.govReps. Micaela Lara Cadena, Angelica Rubio and Eleanor Chavez and Sen. Carrie Hamblen announced on July 2, 2026 that they will file a 2027 bill pausing new large data centers while the state builds a framework on water, energy, emissions and ratepayer impacts, paired with a bill closing the microgrid loophole. At the August 11 interim committee hearing the scope and length were still undecided and Republicans asked for an economic study first.
Source: sourcenm.comCommissioners voted unanimously on June 30, 2026 for an 18-month pause on permits for new data centers above a megawatt threshold (cut from a 100 MW draft) while staff write rules on water, energy and noise. No projects were pending in the county.
Source: sourcenm.comCommissioners voted unanimously on June 9, 2026 to bar data centers and related infrastructure on unincorporated county land for one year and to form an advisory committee to recommend regulations.
Source: sourcenm.comOn March 20, 2026 District Judge Jennifer DeLaney denied the county's motion to dismiss the Environmental Law Center suit over the bond and tax break approvals and refused to pause them, so the deal stays in effect while the case goes to the merits; a second Law Center suit alleges Open Meetings Act violations. Resident Derrick Pacheco's separate petition was dismissed without prejudice for a second time on June 23, 2026 with leave to amend. The New Mexico Foundation for Open Government also sued the county that week over withheld records.
Source: sourcenm.comWould have given the Public Regulation Commission approval and oversight of microgrids over 20 MW, applied the Energy Transition Act's renewable targets to them and required annual energy and water reports. It passed the Senate 22 to 20 on February 14, 2026 but never got a House vote, so it did not become law.
Source: sourcenm.comIn 2025 the county commission approved $165 billion in industrial revenue bonds, a 30-year property tax exemption in return for $360 million in payments, and a gross receipts tax deduction tied to $50 million for water and wastewater works.
Source: haussamen.comA late floor amendment in the 2025 session lets campuses power themselves with private microgrids that face less commission scrutiny. Lawmakers disagree on whether these microgrids must follow the state's clean energy schedule. Project Jupiter plans two gas plants on this basis.
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