Howard County Government Seeks Applicants for Newly Formed Data Center Task Force

ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Government is seeking motivated and qualified applicants to serve on a recently created Data Center Task Force established by the Howard County Council under the “S.M.A.R.T. (Strategic Moratorium for Assessing Responsible Technology) Siting Act” or CB31-2026. The legislation, as passed on June 1, 2026, seeks to define and review best practices for the construction and operation of data centers within Howard County and, in the meantime, creates a moratorium on the development of new data centers in the jurisdiction through November 2, 2027. The deadline to apply is Friday, July 24, 2026.

The task force will consist of 11 members. The County Executive will appoint six members and the five County Council members will each separately appoint a representative. Applicants should have relevant experience in at least one of the following areas:

• Utilities infrastructure
• Water resource management
• Climate resilience and environmental science
• Acoustic mitigation
• Economic development
• Data center development
• Data center operation, or
• Building trades union representation.

In addition to developing a definition of “Data Center” for the purpose of Zoning Regulations, the task force is charged with assessing the impact of data centers on the Howard County Climate Forward: Climate Action and Resiliency Plan, as well as considering recommended best practices for:

• data center siting and location,
• setbacks and screening,
• water consumption and impact,
• power and energy infrastructure,
• noise and acoustic mitigation,
• impact fees or excise tax application,
• decommissioning plans, and
• removing the datacenter tax credit.

Within 12 months, the task force is mandated to hold a public hearing to receive public comments and, ultimately, report its findings and recommendations to the County Council and the County Executive.

Interested applicants should complete an application online by visiting www.howardcountymd.gov/applybc and selecting “Data Center Task Force” in the form. Eligible applicants are submitted to the County Executive for consideration. If approved, the appointment is forwarded to the County Council for confirmation. For any questions regarding the application process, please email ApplyBC@howardcountymd.gov.