Subnational jurisdiction · as of 2026-09-06
Washington's data-center permitting spine runs through the Growth Management Act's local comprehensive-planning and zoning framework, the State Environmental Policy Act's environmental-review process, the Washington Clean Air Act's new-source and operating-permit programs for backup generator fleets, and, for the largest associated generation or transmission facilities, the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council's siting authority.
Washington also carries a significant data-center incentive, a sales and use tax exemption for eligible server equipment and power infrastructure that began as a 2010 rural-county pilot, was extended and given an urban-county tier for counties over 800,000 population by 2022 legislation, and has since been extended again, with no new exemption certificates after July 1, 2036 and the exemption itself expiring July 1, 2048.
No Washington statute enacts a siting or permitting regime naming data centers specifically; each of these instruments is a general permitting or tax statute that a data-center project must satisfy alongside every other qualifying land use.
5 instruments on record, grouped by the family of approval each one governs.
Who decides whether a data center may occupy a site, and through what approval?
Applies to both
Counties meeting the chapter's population and growth thresholds, and the cities within them, must adopt comprehensive land use plans and development regulations under the Growth Management Act, and every city located in a county that plans under this chapter must conform to it as well.
Source: Full text of law
What impact review must precede approval, and who leads it?
Applies to both
State and local agencies acting on a proposal for legislation or another major action significantly affecting the quality of the environment must include a detailed statement addressing the proposal's environmental impact, unavoidable adverse effects, alternatives, and the relationship between short-term use and long-term productivity of the environment.
Source: Full text of law
What authorizations govern grid connection and onsite generation?
Applies to both
EFSEC certification is required before constructing or materially enlarging an energy facility covered by this chapter, including an electrical transmission facility of at least 115,000 volts sited across more than one jurisdiction.
Source: Full text of law
What permits govern backup generators and ongoing emissions?
RCW 70A.15.2210; RCW 70A.15.2260
Applies to both
Notice, and department or local air authority approval, may be required before constructing a new air contaminant source; an air contaminant source above the applicable threshold separately holds an operating permit under RCW 70A.15.2260, administered by the Department of Ecology or a delegated local clean air agency.
Source: Full text of law
What fiscal agreements attach a data center to its host jurisdiction?
Effective 2010-04-01 · Applies to private
Sales to a qualifying business or qualifying tenant of eligible server equipment and eligible power infrastructure for an eligible computer data center are exempt from state sales tax under RCW 82.08.986, with a parallel use tax exemption under RCW 82.12.986.
Eligibility originally required location in a rural county with at least 20,000 square feet dedicated to housing working servers; 2022 legislation added a pilot exemption tier for computer data centers in counties with a population over 800,000. No new exemption certificates may be issued on or after July 1, 2036, and the exemptions themselves expire July 1, 2048.
Source: Full text of law
Every entry cites the instrument it describes. None of it is legal advice: verify a citation before relying on it. Full sourcing: read the methodology. The rest of the record: all jurisdictions.