Mass. Gov. Maura Healey signs executive order requiring local approval for data center development

Tim Dunn, Boston Herald on Sep 8, 2026

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Data center developers eyeing Massachusetts as a potential base of operations may be advised to cozy up to local municipal officials after Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order requiring local approval before state permitting can begin.

Healey signed the order, which prohibits the state from advancing a project that does not gain local approval along with a community benefits agreement, on Tuesday.

Developers must also comply with Healey’s newly created Data Center Framework, which in its Statement of Expectations requires development companies to bring their own clean energy supply, protect local water resources and provide transparent communication with surrounding local communities. Data centers that do not bring their own clean energy supply would be forced under the new order to pay a fee the administration says will be returned to ratepayers.

The governor is also banning the use of nondisclosure agreements between state agencies and data center developers during the permitting process.

“Unless a community says yes to a data center, we are saying no. We’re giving communities a voice and laying out the rules for what needs to happen in Massachusetts. I’m also making sure these data centers use clean energy, and that we protect people from higher energy costs – including by returning money directly back to ratepayers,” Healey said.

Data centers have become a growing issue across the country as local municipalities tend to push back against their development over fears of resource consumption and lack of a local economic benefit. This amid a growing need for data centers as cloud computing, daily digital services and a rapid expansion of artificial intelligence has vastly increased global demand for storage.

“There is a lot of concern across communities in Massachusetts and in this country about the impact that data centers are having or could have. So, that’s why I set out what I think will be a really responsible and thoughtful way to approach this, that does the things that we need to do to protect our communities to give them a voice, to protect their environment, to protect the grid infrastructure and to make sure that ratepayers don’t get hosed and left paying higher bills,” Healey said at a press conference announcing the executive order.

But some local officials in Massachusetts are pushing back even harder.

In New Bedford, Mayor Jon Mitchell announced Tuesday that he is proposing a complete ban on data center development in the Whaling City, filing the proposal Sept. 1, which is scheduled to be taken up by the City Council at a Thursday meeting.

“Data Centers have been shown to place significant demands on electrical and water infrastructure, generate noise from mechanical equipment and backup generators, consume substantial amounts of land, and impose other negative impacts on surrounding properties, depending on the scale and design of the facility,” Mitchell wrote in a letter to city councilors.

“Continuing to allow this use by-right and without performance standards exposes New Bedford residents to potential risks, which is why I am proposing immediate citywide prohibition,” he said.

Some groups, like the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, say Healey is only prioritizing local approval over the data center issue to score political points as she fights for reelection against Republican challenger Mike Minogue in the upcoming general election on November 3.

“Governor Healey has suddenly become a champion of local approval! Today, she signed an executive order requiring large proposed data centers to secure agreements with their host communities before moving forward with state permitting,” Mass Fiscal said in a post to X.

“Yet her administration has taken a very different approach toward solar and battery energy storage projects, where local communities have seen their authority greatly diminished. Why the double standard?” the fiscal and government watchdog continued. “Local control shouldn’t only count when it is politically convenient.”

Healey’s executive order goes into effect immediately.

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