Kotek Pauses Oregon Data Center Permits

Governor's directive halts air and water discharge permitting for new or expanded data centers until July 1, 2027, drawing local emergency response.

Updated on Nov. 1, 2026 in Data Centers

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Governor Tina Kotek directed the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality on October 9 to pause air and water discharge permitting for data centers until July 1, 2027. Umatilla City Council responded by declaring a local state of emergency on October 20.

Why it matters

Kotek has said the pause will give the Legislature time to consider reforms to the data-center industry. For Oregon, the directive affects how quickly new or expanded facilities can move through state permitting.

The directive halts air and water discharge permits for new or expanded data centers through July 1, 2027, and about $12 million in developer-funded water infrastructure improvements could be cancelled as a result. Umatilla has four data-center projects at different stages of development, and how many will be affected remains unclear.

The players

Tina Kotek

Tina Kotek is the Governor of Oregon, who directed state environmental regulators to pause data-center permitting while the Legislature weighs industry reforms.

Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality is the state agency responsible for issuing air and water discharge permits, and it received the governor's directive to pause data-center permitting.

Umatilla City Council

The Umatilla City Council is the local governing body of Umatilla, Oregon, which declared a local state of emergency over the permitting pause.

The details

Applications can continue through permitting until they reach the public-comment stage, at which point the pause takes effect. Umatilla expects industrial developers to help pay for property tax relief tied to its voter-approved police station bond, and North Plains City Council voted unanimously to begin the land-use process for a permanent data-center ban.

October 9, 2026: Kotek issues directive to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.
October 20, 2026: Umatilla City Council declares a local state of emergency.
July 1, 2027: The requested data-center permitting pause ends.

Roadmap

Oregon's directive to the Department of Environmental Quality places a temporary halt on the normal air and water permit review that data-center developers rely on. The pause sets up a legislative window, with the governor citing the need for time to consider industry reforms before permitting resumes.

Developers with projects in the pipeline face delays, and Oregon residents may see changes in local tax revenue and infrastructure funding tied to those projects. Permit timelines and cancelled water improvements could affect how and when local communities receive development-related benefits.

The takeaway

Permitting pauses can ripple through local budgets and infrastructure plans, so residents should track how state and county responses unfold over the coming legislative session. Watching both state permitting decisions and local land-use actions gives the clearest picture of what changes.