Graded Minimal and tightening. 10 laws, orders, rulings and local actions, each with its source, reviewed 2 November 2026.
No connection or own-power rule in force; HB 5469's bring-your-own-power mandate died without a floor vote in May 2026.
No large-load tariff or contract standard exists; the Millstone-adjacent proposals stalled and no tariff proceeding is open.
East Lyme's zoning ban (24 Oct 2026) and New Haven's 12-month pause adopted Sept 2026 are the only local limits; Hartford, Stamford and most towns stay open.
The 2021 sales, use and property tax exemption (PA 21-1) stays intact with its thresholds; SB 245's repeal died in May 2026 and only Cigna has used it.
No water, air permit or disclosure rule for data centers is in force.
Scored on rules in force, 1 to 5. 5 is the most regulated. Pending rules set the arrow.
Connecticut's 2021 law offers long sales, use and property tax exemptions to qualified data centers, but it has drawn only one applicant, Cigna, for an existing facility. Governor Lamont said in September 2026 that very large AI data centers are never going to be in Connecticut and that he would look at a project only if it brought its own power and water, after review by the utility regulator. A 2026 bill, HB 5469, would have required large electric loads to bring their own generation; it cleared committee 26 to 0 but died without a floor vote when the session ended in May 2026, as did SB 245, which would have repealed the 2021 incentive. No large-load tariff is in place and proposals such as the one beside the Millstone nuclear plant have stalled. East Lyme banned data centers by zoning from 24 October 2026 and New Haven adopted a 12-month moratorium in September 2026.
The 3 November 2026 governor's race pits Lamont against Republican Ryan Fazio, who wants the 2021 tax breaks repealed and a bring-your-own-power rule; Lamont's office said in October 2026 it is open to changing or ending the credit so hyperscale data centers cannot use it, so the incentive is likely to be revisited in the 2027 session whoever wins. Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff said on 22 October 2026 he will file a statewide moratorium bill for 2027 and Minority Leader Stephen Harding supports a pause and repeal of the incentive. HB 5469 reached the House calendar in April 2026 without a vote, so a bring-your-own-power bill would restart from committee. East Lyme's permanent zoning ban took effect on 24 October 2026, New Haven adopted a one-year moratorium in September 2026 with an exemption for its quantum computing hub, Cromwell's commission rejected a pause in September against a 300 MW fuel-cell proposal, and Waterford's first selectman says the town is no longer interested in the Millstone-adjacent project. No PURA large-load tariff docket for Eversource or United Illuminating was found.
No statewide moratorium, but 1 local pause is in force as of 2 November 2026, in New Haven. Proposals and expired pauses are not counted.
Tightening. Connecticut is graded Minimal, which means few binding rules, with new incentives or fast-track permitting in force. Incentive law on paper, governor says no to big AI campuses. The outlook above says what is pending.
Connecticut sits in ISO-NE. 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. Connecticut's data center incentives were not pulled back in 2025 or 2026 as of 2 November 2026, though the items below show what is pending.
On Genloop's five-line rubric (1 least regulated, 5 most) Connecticut 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: The 2021 sales, use and property tax exemption (PA 21-1) stays intact with its thresholds; SB 245's repeal died in May 2026 and only Cigna has used it.
10 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 zoning commission voted unanimously in October 2026 to prohibit traditional data centers, AI data centers and data center accessory uses town-wide. The change is a permanent zoning amendment rather than a moratorium and took effect on 24 October 2026. The commission cited water supply, noise and effects on nearby residents, and the town reports that no data center had been proposed there.
Source: wfsb.comSenate Majority Leader Bob Duff announced at a press conference in Groton on 22 October 2026 that he will introduce legislation in the 2027 session to pause new data centers until the state sets rules on power use, electricity costs and environmental protections. Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding said he would support some form of pause and repeal of the 2021 tax incentive. No bill text has been published.
Source: wfsb.comAlder Richard Furlow introduced an ordinance barring city departments from accepting or approving applications for new data centers or conversions of existing buildings for 12 months while the city studies the industry and drafts zoning rules. The Board of Alders Legislation Committee recommended it on 4 August 2026 with amendments exempting quantum computing and life sciences research facilities. CT Mirror reported on 25 October 2026 that the one-year moratorium passed in September 2026 with an exemption for the city's existing quantum computing hub.
Source: ctmirror.orgOn September 7, 2026 Lamont said a 1,500-acre AI data center will never be in Connecticut, that he would consider case by case a project supplying its own power and water after regulator review, and that towns have the final say through zoning. No executive order was issued.
Source: wshu.orgRepublican candidate for governor Ryan Fazio called on September 3, 2026 for an end to tax breaks for large data centers and for a bring-your-own-power rule. East Lyme residents are opposing a proposed AI data center in their town.
Source: wfsb.comThe Planning and Zoning Commission considered and rejected a proposed one-year data center moratorium in September 2026, with minutes dated 24 September 2026. Global Common proposes a 300 MW facility of about 550,000 square feet on more than 150 acres, powered by fuel cells fed by a buried gas pipeline. An online petition against the project drew more than 1,500 signatures.
Source: ctmirror.orgThe Energy and Technology Committee held a public hearing on 12 March 2026 and reported the bill favorably 26 to 0 on 19 March 2026. It was reported out of the Legislative Commissioners' Office as File No. 421 and placed on the House calendar as Calendar No. 305 on 7 April 2026, but neither chamber called it for a vote and it died when the session ended on 6 May 2026. The bill would have required large electric load customers to show generation sufficient to meet their own demand and would have licensed colocated electric suppliers through PURA.
Source: ctmirror.orgThe bill would have eliminated the sales, use and property tax exemptions for qualified data centers enacted in 2021 under Public Act 21-1. The Energy and Technology Committee heard it on 24 February 2026 and reported it favorably with a change of reference to the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee on 17 March 2026, but it was never taken up before the session ended on 6 May 2026. Only one company, Cigna, has used the incentive since 2021.
Source: prdext3.cga.ct.govThe Energy and Technology Committee voted 26 to 0 on 19 March 2026 to report HB 5469 favorably. The bill was filed with the Legislative Commissioners' Office on 20 March 2026 and reached the House calendar on 7 April 2026 as Calendar No. 305, but it was not taken up by either chamber before adjournment on 6 May 2026 and no public act resulted.
Source: fastdemocracy.comPublic Act 21-1, signed on 4 March 2021, exempts qualified data centers from sales and use taxes for projects investing at least 200 million dollars, or 50 million dollars in an enterprise zone or federal opportunity zone, and exempts improvements from local property tax subject to a host fee agreement with the municipality, under agreements running 20 or 30 years. DECD has reviewed only two applications since the program began and none in 2026. The only user is Cigna, whose 386 million dollar renovation of an existing Windsor data center saved an estimated 17 million dollars of 21 million dollars in sales taxes through 1 July 2025.
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