Data center opposition blocks US$130 billion in projects in record first quarter of 2026

Opponents of data centre developments blocked or delayed at least 75 US projects worth approximately US$130 billion in the first quarter of 2026, according to a new report from Data Center Watch.

The figure roughly matches the value of all US data centre projects blocked or delayed across the whole of 2025, which the report places at US$156 billion. It marks the most successful quarter for opposition since the group began tracking such projects in 2023.

Data Center Watch, part of the artificial intelligence (AI) intelligence firm 10a Labs, described the development as a structural shift rather than a temporary spike. The findings were first shared with NBC News.

The report attributes the change to communities having internalised an opposition playbook, alongside legislative sessions that introduced formal regulatory uncertainty for developers.

The halted projects involve cloud and AI data centres, which face mounting local and state resistance. Objections centre on energy use, water demands, noise pollution, geological and ecological impact, and limited employment opportunities.

Organised resistance has spread across almost the entire country. The report counts 833 anti-data centre groups active in 49 states in early 2026, a figure that has doubled year-on-year.

The number of petition signatures collected in the quarter nearly matched the total gathered across the second half of 2025, the report states. Opposition has also broadened beyond grassroots groups in affected communities.

Statewide organisations, advocacy groups and national voices focused on energy, water, land use and ratepayer impacts have increasingly joined the campaigns, according to the report.

Public sentiment appears to align with this resistance. Polling cited in coverage of the data centre debate indicates that a substantial share of Americans share concerns about the environmental, energy and quality-of-life effects of such developments.

The opposition has been matched by legislative activity. The report estimates that 300 state data centre bills were filed in the first six weeks of 2026, addressing data centres, AI or large power users.

Statewide moratorium proposals were introduced in 14 states, with restriction efforts coming from both sides of the political aisle. At least 14 states considered bills to pause or tightly restrict new data centre construction.

Maine came closest to a landmark outcome. State legislators passed a temporary halt on new data centres, which would have made Maine the first US state to impose such a statewide measure.

Governor Janet Mills vetoed the bill in April, narrowly preventing the historic ban. She indicated, however, that she would be willing to sign a shorter version of the moratorium.

Public demonstrations have continued. In May, hundreds of people gathered outside the Utah State Capitol to protest against the Stratos Project, a proposed 40,000-acre data centre campus planned for Box Elder County.

The growing campaign has drawn political scrutiny over its origins. A group of Republican lawmakers signed a letter alleging that foreign adversaries, including entities backed by the Chinese Communist Party, were funding efforts to block critical infrastructure needed for AI development.

The letter was addressed to the co-chairs of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology and to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel. It claimed such actors were bankrolling a disinformation campaign against data centre construction.

The social media analytics firm Graphika told Wired that it had not seen evidence of foreign manipulation in its social media monitoring, offering a counterpoint to the lawmakers' allegations.

Data Center Watch frames the quarter as evidence that opposition has reached effective national scale, moving from isolated local disputes into a multi-front political contest over the future of large-scale computing infrastructure.