Jefferson County

Moratoriums and bans

1. March 3, 2026 Birmingham: Moratorium. Six-month pause on accepting new applications for data centers using more than 20 MW; projects with completed applications already under review, including Nebius's Oxmoor-area proposal, were not covered. (WBRC, March 3, 2026)
2. June 9, 2026 Birmingham: Zoning rules. Council approved hyperscale data center zoning rules including a 500-foot setback from residential districts, a 5-acre minimum lot, closed-loop cooling, a ban on on-site gas turbines and 24/7 diesel generators, noise studies, peak-demand disclosure, and certified-mail notice to owners within 500 feet. (City of Birmingham, June 9, 2026; WBRC, April 28, 2026)
3. June 8, 2026 Leeds: Moratorium. Council voted unanimously for a one-year halt on development approvals and permits for data center campuses; none was under development in the city. (WBRC, June 8, 2026)
4. June 22, 2026 Homewood: Moratorium. Unanimous 12-month pause, extendable by six months, on approving data centers larger than 1 MW while city staff and the Planning Commission study standards; no applications were pending. (WBRC, June 22, 2026)
5. July 20, 2026 Pinson: Moratorium (proposed). City leaders proposed a 12-month data center moratorium, possibly with a size-based zoning category, and expected the council to consider it Aug. 6, 2026; no proposal had been received. (ABC 33/40, July 20, 2026)
6. July 2026 Fairfield: Moratorium. Council passed a temporary ban on new data center projects, reported July 22, 2026; it does not cover the pending Patmos proposal, which the council could still approve separately. (WBRC, July 22, 2026; WBRC, Aug. 12, 2026)
7. Aug. 27, 2026 Irondale: Zoning rules (proposed). Planning commission hearing on a zoning amendment setting conditional-use rules for micro, medium and hyperscale data centers. (City of Irondale, Aug. 27, 2026)
8. Sept. 2026 Tarrant: Moratorium. City approved a 12-month data center moratorium as a precaution, reported Sept. 8, 2026; no developer had approached the city. (ABC 33/40, Sept. 8, 2026)

Updates, newest first

1. Oct. 24, 2026 Lumen Birmingham colocation · Lumen's colocation location data sheet lists Birmingham, Ala., as a colocation site (sheet carries a 2025 copyright; checked Oct. 24, 2026). (Lumen Technologies, 2025)
2. Oct. 20, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · The city and the developers filed a motion to dismiss the residents' lawsuit. A non-jury trial is set for March 8, 2027. (ABC 33/40 (WBMA), Oct. 20, 2026)
3. Oct. 20, 2026 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · In a letter, QTS asked to postpone a meeting with the mayor, said site work was proceeding under city-approved permits, and said it had no plans to expand the campus. (ABC 33/40 (WBMA), Oct. 21, 2026)
4. Oct. 19, 2026 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · The mayor said the city served the developer a cease letter the evening of Oct. 19, saying permits must come through Bessemer. Reporters saw construction still going on the next day. (ABC 33/40 (WBMA), Oct. 20, 2026)
5. Sept. 2026 Tarrant: Moratorium · City approved a 12-month data center moratorium as a precaution, reported Sept. 8, 2026; no developer had approached the city. (ABC 33/40, Sept. 8, 2026)
6. Aug. 27, 2026 Irondale: Zoning rules (proposed) · Planning commission hearing on a zoning amendment setting conditional-use rules for micro, medium and hyperscale data centers. (City of Irondale, Aug. 27, 2026)
7. Aug. 13, 2026 Patmos Fairfield tech campus · Company gives 20 MW first phase and 45 MW build-out figures and says the property is under contract. (ABC 33/40, Aug. 13, 2026)
8. Aug. 12, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · At the plaintiffs' request, the judge skipped a ruling on a temporary halt to construction and moved to the question of a permanent one, setting the next hearing for March 8. (WBHM, Aug. 14, 2026)
9. Aug. 12, 2026 Patmos Fairfield tech campus · Hundreds attend a town hall; Patmos says that if the city approves, construction could begin in September 2026, with the first phase done in early 2027. (WBRC, Aug. 12, 2026)
10. July 22, 2026 Patmos Fairfield tech campus · Fairfield's mayor confirms the Patmos proposal the same week the council passes a temporary ban on new data center projects. (WBRC, July 22, 2026)
11. July 20, 2026 Pinson: Moratorium (proposed) · City leaders proposed a 12-month data center moratorium, possibly with a size-based zoning category, and expected the council to consider it Aug. 6, 2026; no proposal had been received. (ABC 33/40, July 20, 2026)
12. July 10, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · A Jefferson County circuit judge ruled the neighbors' zoning lawsuit could go forward, rejecting the argument that it should first have gone to the Zoning Board of Adjustment. The Greater Birmingham Humane Society filed its own suit the same day. (WBRC, July 10, 2026)
13. July 1, 2026 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · QTS confirmed it was pursuing a data center campus on the Project Marvel site. (WBRC, July 1, 2026)
14. July 2026 Fairfield: Moratorium · Council passed a temporary ban on new data center projects, reported July 22, 2026; it does not cover the pending Patmos proposal, which the council could still approve separately. (WBRC, July 22, 2026; WBRC, Aug. 12, 2026)
15. June 22, 2026 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · The judge granted a joint stipulation dismissing the rezoning lawsuit with prejudice. Court records gave no reason, according to WBRC. (WBRC, June 25, 2026)
16. June 22, 2026 Homewood: Moratorium · Unanimous 12-month pause, extendable by six months, on approving data centers larger than 1 MW while city staff and the Planning Commission study standards; no applications were pending. (WBRC, June 22, 2026)
17. June 9, 2026 Birmingham: Zoning rules · Council approved hyperscale data center zoning rules including a 500-foot setback from residential districts, a 5-acre minimum lot, closed-loop cooling, a ban on on-site gas turbines and 24/7 diesel generators, noise studies, peak-demand disclosure, and certified-mail notice to owners within 500 feet. (City of Birmingham, June 9, 2026; WBRC, April 28, 2026)
18. June 8, 2026 Leeds: Moratorium · Council voted unanimously for a one-year halt on development approvals and permits for data center campuses; none was under development in the city. (WBRC, June 8, 2026)
19. May 29, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · The Birmingham Industrial Development Board unanimously approved $3.2 billion in tax abatements over 30 years. (WBHM, July 1, 2026; WBHM, Sept. 3, 2026)
20. May 11, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · The city issued about $40 million in construction permits to Hoar Construction for the site. (Bham Now, May 18, 2026)
21. March 26, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · The Zoning Board of Adjustment recommended Nebius's substation request to the city council but denied a separate Alabama Power request for a switching station. (WBRC, March 26, 2026)
22. March 3, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · The city council passed a six-month pause on new large data center applications; Nebius was exempt because it applied earlier. (WBRC, March 3, 2026)
23. March 3, 2026 Birmingham: Moratorium · Six-month pause on accepting new applications for data centers using more than 20 MW; projects with completed applications already under review, including Nebius's Oxmoor-area proposal, were not covered. (WBRC, March 3, 2026)
24. Feb. 10, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · Trade press reported Nebius's affiliate had bought the Milan Parkway properties for about $90 million. (DatacenterDynamics, Feb. 10, 2026)
25. Feb. 9, 2026 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · A revised plan showed a 1,600-acre campus with 18 buildings, four substations and the Northern Beltline crossing the site. (WBRC, Feb. 9, 2026)
26. Jan. 13, 2026 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · The city attorney told the council the developer would seek to rezone about 900 more acres, partly to deal with the planned Northern Beltline route. (WBHM (Inside Climate News), Jan. 14, 2026)
27. Jan. 7, 2026 Nebius Birmingham AI factory (BHM01) · The city issued the project's first permit; a demolition permit for the existing building followed in January. (WBHM, July 17, 2026; Bham Now, May 18, 2026)
28. Dec. 9, 2025 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · In the homeowners' suit challenging the rezoning, a Jefferson County circuit judge gave the plaintiffs 14 days to amend their complaint and set a final hearing for March 19, 2026. (ABC 33/40 (WBMA), Dec. 9, 2025; WBRC, Dec. 9, 2025)
29. Nov. 18, 2025 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · The city council voted 5-2 to rezone about 700 acres from agricultural to light industrial for the project. (WVTM 13, Nov. 18, 2025; ABC 33/40 (WBMA), Dec. 9, 2025; DatacenterDynamics, Nov. 19, 2025)
30. June 17, 2025 Project Marvel (QTS Bessemer campus) · Bessemer's planning commission recommended for a second time allowing data centers in light industrial zones (7-1) and rezoning the 700-acre tract (6-2). Residents had sued over notice for the first round, and a temporary restraining order had paused council action, so the city started the process over. (WBRC, June 17, 2025; Alabama Reflector (Inside Climate News), June 23, 2025)
31. April 3, 2024 DC BLOX Birmingham data center campus · DC BLOX said it finished a new HPC-capable hall of up to 2.4 MW and cited 50-plus MW of future power available at the campus. (Trade and Industry Development, April 3, 2024)
32. July 11, 2019 DC BLOX Birmingham data center campus · DC BLOX held a ribbon-cutting for the first Birmingham unit, describing up to $785 million and 200,000 square feet at full build. (Business Alabama, July 11, 2019)
33. Sept. 13, 2018 Southern Telecom Birmingham colocation facility · Southern Company said Metro Optical would take space at Southern Telecom's carrier-neutral Birmingham colocation facility and build a point of presence there. (Southern Company, Sept. 13, 2018)
34. July 10, 2018 DC BLOX Birmingham data center campus · DC BLOX announced a data center on the 27-acre former Trinity Steel site, starting at 31,000 square feet and about 5 MW with room to exceed 200,000 square feet. (Alabama Public Radio (Associated Press), July 10, 2018; DatacenterDynamics, July 10, 2018)
35. Feb. 4, 2008 Southern Telecom Birmingham colocation facility · Southern Company announced the University of Alabama System picked Southern Telecom's Birmingham colocation facility to house regional fiber network equipment. (Southern Company, Feb. 4, 2008)

Statewide

Act 2012-210 (HB 154, 2012), the Data Processing Center Economic Incentive Enhancement Act, provided property tax and construction-related sales and use tax abatements for data processing centers (and warehousing and storage facilities) under Title 40, Chapter 9B, and amended income tax credit Sections 40-18-190 and 40-18-193. (LegiScan, April 19, 2012) Under Revenue Department rule 810-4-3-.03, abatable data center property includes servers, software, network and storage gear, cooling and power infrastructure such as substations and backup generation, and colocation tenants named in the abatement agreement get the same breaks as the owner. (Alabama Department of Revenue, Dec. 1, 2021) Act 2023-34 (Rep. Danny Garrett and Sen. Greg Reed; Senate version SB 164), part of the Enhancing Alabama's Economic Progress Act signed April 20, 2023, moved the end date for the 2012 data center incentives from Dec. 31, 2023, to July 31, 2028, along with Jobs Act and Growing Alabama extensions. (Alabama Legislature (ALISON), April 4, 2023; Alabama Senate Republican Caucus, 2023) HB 399 (2026, Rep. Leigh Hulsey; similar to SB 265), enacted April 17, 2026 and effective June 1, 2026, caps data center abatements at 20 years for abatements granted from Jan. 1, 2027 (up to 30 with a binding local-investment agreement), ends state abatements at placed-in-service and collects state sales tax on certain construction and power-equipment purchases for centers of 100 MW or more, sends that sales tax to the General Fund, and extends the application deadline to July 31, 2032; projects executed earlier, and their expansions for 10 years, are exempt. (LegiScan, April 17, 2026; Alabama Legislature (ALISON), March 18, 2026; Alabama Legislative Services Agency (ALISON), March 17, 2026) Act 2026-610 (SB 270, 2026, Sen. Bell), effective Oct. 1, 2026, adds Code Section 37-4-22.1: a utility contract with a data center expecting 150 MW or more of peak demand is in the public interest when the Public Service Commission finds it is expected to recover the incremental cost of serving that customer from the customer and to benefit other ratepayers. (Alabama Legislature (ALISON), April 9, 2026; ABC 33/40 (WBMA), Oct. 6, 2026) The PSC opened a generic proceeding on Alabama Power large-load data center contracts by order of July 8, 2026 (initially proposing deemed approval after 60 days), and on Oct. 6, 2026 adopted rules requiring a public summary petition, confidential filing of the full contract and cost analysis with staff and the Attorney General, and a commission vote within 90 days or the contract is deemed approved. (Alabama Public Service Commission, July 8, 2026; ABC 33/40 (WBMA), Oct. 6, 2026) Alabama Power says its large-load data center agreements include minimum bills, minimum terms, upfront payments and collateral, and that the PSC lengthened the post-filing approval period from 10 to 45 days in July 2026 for contracts reviewed before Act 610 took effect Oct. 1. (Alabama Power, Oct. 24, 2026) In north Alabama's TVA territory, the TVA board on Aug. 20, 2026 approved a higher wholesale rate for large data centers, effective Oct. 1, 2026, expected to raise their bills about 10% phased over three fiscal years, so they cover the full cost of serving them. (Local 3 News (WRCB), Aug. 21, 2026) Alabama data centers →