The permitting path

The generic United States sequence: local land-use approval with environmental review where a statute requires it, then utility service, construction permits, and operational air permits. States with an authored profile override this.

#	Step	Authority level	Legal basis
1	Site control (deed or lease)	local	State recording acts (deeds recorded with the county recorder); land-use applications require proof of ownership or the owner's authorization
2	Environmental review applies where a federal action or a state review statute applies	local	NEPA for federal actions; state environmental review statutes where they apply
3	Land-use approval	local	Local zoning code under the state zoning enabling act
4	Rezoning applies where the site's zoning does not already allow the use	local	Local zoning code
5	Natural gas service applies where the facility uses natural gas	utility	Serving gas utility tariff
6	Utility interconnection	utility	Serving-utility tariff; FERC-jurisdictional interconnection for wholesale service
7	Wastewater service	utility	Serving sewer authority; state discharge rules for onsite systems
8	Water service commitment	utility	Serving water supplier's will-serve practice
9	Building permit	local	State building code as locally adopted
10	Stormwater and grading applies where land disturbance passes permit thresholds	local	Clean Water Act construction general permit; local drainage standards
11	Air permit for backup generators	regulator	Clean Air Act minor new source review as implemented by the state or district
12	Public agreements and incentives applies where negotiated with the host jurisdiction	local	State economic development statutes; local development agreements

Steps are shown in their typical order; steps at the same stage usually run concurrently, and conditional steps apply only where noted. Per-facility status against this path is tracked at ComputeCompute.

National law

Summary

No federal statute permits a data center as such. Federal law reaches a project through overlays: NEPA environmental review where a federal action is involved, Clean Air Act new source review for backup generator fleets as implemented by state and district permitting programs, Clean Water Act stormwater permits during construction, and Federal Power Act jurisdiction over wholesale grid interconnection. The siting decision itself is made under state and local law, and the state pages pick up from there. Congress and FERC are actively examining large-load interconnection and co-location questions raised by data-center demand, but as of this review no data-center-specific federal permitting statute is in force.

Clean Water Act section 402 (NPDES construction stormwater)

Construction that disturbs one acre or more requires stormwater discharge coverage, issued as a construction general permit by EPA or by states with delegated NPDES programs.

Citation: 33 U.S.C. 1342
Status: In force
Applies to: Both
Source: 33 U.S.C. 1342

Federal Power Act (wholesale interconnection)

Transmission-level interconnection and wholesale rates fall under FERC jurisdiction through utility and RTO tariffs. Retail service and distribution-level connections are state-regulated. FERC proceedings on co-located large loads at generating facilities are ongoing.

Citation: 16 U.S.C. 824 et seq.
Status: In force
Applies to: Private sector
Source: 16 U.S.C. 824 et seq.

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

Requires federal agencies to review the environmental effects of major federal actions. A data center triggers NEPA only through a federal hook such as federal land, federal funding, or a federal permit; most private projects on private land never enter NEPA review.

Citation: 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.
Status: In force
Effective date: 1970-01-01
Applies to: Government
Source: 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.

Clean Air Act (new source review)

Backup generator fleets are stationary sources. Most data-center fleets permit as minor sources under state or district new source review programs implementing the Act; very large fleets can cross major-source thresholds into prevention of significant deterioration review and Title V operating permits.

Citation: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Status: In force
Applies to: Both
Source: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Reviewed 2026-07-24. Confidence: high. Fast-moving area, verify before relying. Not legal advice.

Subnational jurisdictions

Jurisdiction	Instruments	Land use	Environmental review	Energy and grid	Water and utilities	Construction	Air and operations	Public agreements
California	9	In force	In force	In force	In force	In force	In force	In force
Virginia	6	In force	None	None	None	In force	In force	In force

Coverage is growing. Not legal advice; verify citations before relying on any entry.