Data-center law in Colorado

C.R.S. 30-28-111

Applies to both

Authorizes the county planning commission, or the board of county commissioners in a county without one, to adopt a zoning plan regulating the height, bulk, and use of buildings and the use of land for trade, industry, residence, recreation, public activities, or other purposes in unincorporated county territory. A data center proposed on unincorporated county land is zoned, conditioned, or granted a variance under this enabling authority.

The current code text does not state a single day-precise commencement date for this framework, which has been amended repeatedly since its original enactment.

Source: Full text of law

C.R.S. 31-23-301 et seq.

Applies to both

Empowers the governing body of a municipality to regulate the height, density, and location and use of buildings and land, including zoning for trade and industry. A data-center project sited within a municipality is zoned, conditioned, or granted a special exception under this enabling authority. The current code text does not state a single day-precise commencement date for this framework, which has been amended repeatedly since its original enactment.

Source: Full text of law

C.R.S. 40-5-101

Applies to both

Requires a public utility, including an investor-owned or municipal electric utility, to obtain a Public Utilities Commission certificate of public convenience and necessity before constructing or extending a new facility, plant, or system, and separately requires the utility's new construction to comply with local zoning. A utility's grid build-out to interconnect a large data-center load proceeds under this authority.

The current code text does not state a single day-precise commencement date for this framework, which has been amended repeatedly since its original enactment.

Source: Full text of law

Colo. SB 26-102, 2026 Reg. Sess.

Applies to both

Would have defined a large-load data center as a new facility exceeding 30 megawatts of peak load, or 60 megawatts in aggregate, and required its operator, once the Public Utilities Commission determined a feasible hourly-matching percentage, to source up to 100% of the facility's annual electricity from renewable resources beginning January 1, 2031, fund grid infrastructure through a 15-year utility contract or up-front payment, and report annual electricity and water consumption to the Department of Public Health and Environment; it also would have barred a utility from offering economic development rates to a large-load data center.

The Senate Transportation and Energy Committee postponed the bill indefinitely on May 11, 2026 on a 9-0 vote.

Source: Full text of law

C.R.S. 37-90-102 et seq.

Applies to both

Declares designated groundwater subject to appropriation for beneficial use and directs full economic development of designated groundwater resources subject to protection of vested rights. A data center drawing well water from a designated groundwater basin obtains its supply through an appropriation administered under this article by the Colorado Ground Water Commission.

The current code text does not state a single day-precise commencement date for this framework, which has been amended repeatedly since its original enactment.

Source: Full text of law

C.R.S. 25-8-501 et seq.

Applies to both

Bars any person from discharging a pollutant into state water from a point source without first obtaining a Colorado Discharge Permit System permit from the Water Quality Control Division. Land-disturbing construction activity for a data-center campus that discharges pollutants, including sediment-laden runoff, to state waters requires permit coverage under this authority.

The current code text does not state a single day-precise commencement date for this framework, which has been amended repeatedly since its original enactment.

Source: Full text of law

C.R.S. 30-28-201, 30-28-211

Applies to both

Authorizes, but does not require, a board of county commissioners to adopt ordinances and a building code for the unincorporated territory of the county. A county that adopts a building code must also adopt and enforce a building energy code meeting or exceeding one of the three most recent International Energy Conservation Code versions. The current code text does not state a single day-precise commencement date for this framework, which has been amended repeatedly since its original enactment.

Source: Full text of law

C.R.S. 25-7-114.2 et seq.

Applies to both

Bars any person from constructing or substantially altering a building, facility, structure, or installation that will constitute a new stationary or indirect source of air pollution without first obtaining a construction permit from the Air Pollution Control Division. A data center's backup generator fleet obtains a construction permit under this section once it meets the major or synthetic minor source thresholds defined at section 25-7-114.

The current code text does not state a single day-precise commencement date for this framework, which has been amended repeatedly since its original enactment.

Source: Full text of law

Colo. SB 25-280, 2025 Reg. Sess.

Applies to private

Would have created a two-tier data-center certification program in the Colorado office of economic development, offering a certified operator a 100% sales and use tax exemption on qualified data-center and grid-enhancement purchases for 20 years plus negotiated utility rate incentives, conditioned on a $250 million minimum capital investment, 25 new full-time jobs, renewable-energy sourcing, water-stewardship commitments, and a utility feasibility assessment before interconnection.

The Senate Appropriations Committee laid the bill over unamended on May 8, 2025 after its amendments failed, and it did not advance further in the session.

Source: Full text of law

Colo. HB 26-1030, 2026 Reg. Sess.

Applies to private

Reintroduced the prior session's data-center tax-incentive proposal under a new Colorado data center development authority, offering a certified operator a 100% state sales and use tax exemption on qualified data-center infrastructure for 20 years, extendable for 10 more, conditioned on a $250 million minimum investment, new full-time jobs meeting craft-labor and prevailing-wage requirements, energy-efficiency certification, water-stewardship commitments, and a preliminary utility interconnection consultation. The House Energy and Environment Committee postponed the bill indefinitely on May 7, 2026 on an 11-2 vote.

Source: Full text of law