DE — State Policy Updated 2026-07-17

Delaware

Sales/use tax New Economy Jobs Program tax credit Site Readiness Fund Delaware Strategic Fund (DSF) via Council on Development ... What is not identified in primary sources Utility interconnection pause for large load facilities New Castle County data center ordinance enacted Coastal Zone Act decision for Project Washington Moratoriums, zoning bans, and local bans Kent County proposed siting ordinance Utility Regulation

Method note

  • Updated July 17, 2026. Primary sources are used where available: Delaware General Assembly bill pages and engrossed texts, Delaware PSC/DPA materials, DNREC and Delaware River Basin Commission materials, county records, Delaware Code, and Delaware Administrative Code. Local reporting is used for meeting outcomes, community context, and project-status details not captured in static government pages.

1) Incentive programs (statewide, non-data-center-specific)

Sales/use tax

New Economy Jobs Program tax credit (corporate/other tax credits tied to hiring)

  • The New Economy Jobs Program provides credits against specified Delaware taxes/fees for qualified employers during the first certified year and the 10 taxable years thereafter; eligibility includes a track for at least 50 additional qualified employees in eligible jobs, with credit amounts tied to qualified withholding payments and capped in the statute (Delaware Code, 30 Del. C. §§ 2080-2084, accessed 2026-07-17).

Site Readiness Fund (infrastructure grants/loans)

  • The Site Readiness Fund provides grants, loans, or other economic assistance for infrastructure improvements that help attract or expand businesses, when the opportunity would create a significant number of direct, quality, full-time jobs; projects must be sponsored by a county or municipality and serve a public purpose (Delaware Code, 29 Del. C. § 8711A, accessed 2026-07-17).

Delaware Strategic Fund (DSF) via Council on Development Finance

What is not identified in primary sources

  • I did not identify any Delaware statute or regulation enacted between February 1 and July 17, 2026 creating a data-center-specific sales/use tax exemption, property tax abatement, franchise tax relief, investment tax credit, or new data-center incentive program. HB 310, however, passed both chambers on July 1 and awaited the Governor as of July 17. Its final text would condition a large energy use facility’s eligibility for Delaware’s qualified-facility business tax credits and license-fee reductions on producing or procuring 100% of its annual electricity under the new-generation and clean-energy conditions specified in the bill; it had not yet modified the incentive code as of this cutoff (Delaware General Assembly HB 310, 2026-07-01; Delaware General Assembly engrossed HB 310, 2026-06-30).

2) Restrictions and moratoriums

Utility interconnection pause for large load facilities (state-level regulatory action)

  • The Delaware Public Service Commission opened Docket No. 25-0826 to develop a large-load tariff and paused interconnection of new large-load facilities in Delmarva Power & Light territory until such a tariff is established; the PSC notice expressly references data centers and treats facilities using 25 MW or more as large-load facilities (Delaware PSC, 2025-10-14).
  • On April 9, 2026, the Division of the Public Advocate said it joined DNREC and PSC Staff in comments on Delmarva’s proposed large-load tariff, raising concerns about risks to Delaware customers and urging a more deliberate approach aligned with PJM, federal, and state developments (Delaware Public Advocate, 2026-04-09). The PSC’s large-load docket archive still listed the opening notice and April comments, but no final tariff order, as of July 17; the interconnection pause therefore remained operative at the research cutoff (Delaware PSC large-load tariff archive, accessed 2026-07-17).

New Castle County data center ordinance enacted (Ordinance 25-101)

  • New Castle County Council unanimously approved data center regulations on March 10, 2026 after months of debate, and County Executive Marcus Henry signed Substitute 3 to Ordinance 25-101 on March 18, 2026 (Delaware Public Media, 2026-03-11; New Castle County, 2026-03-18).
  • The enacted UDC revision creates specific standards for data center development or cumulative expansion above 20,000 square feet, including noise-study obligations, no data-center building within 1,000 feet of a residential district unless the Department approves a site-specific reduction to no closer than 500 feet, landscaping/buffer requirements, traffic-impact review, a prohibition on open-loop/once-through cooling unless reclaimed water is used, Tier IV or equivalent lower-impact generators, energy-storage safety practices, LEED-certified operation documentation, reserved area for future microgrid integration, decommissioning obligations, financial assurance, and annual compliance reporting (New Castle County UDC revision, 2026-03-10).
  • A floor amendment limited the ordinance to applications submitted after enactment unless an applicant opts in, so Starwood Digital Ventures’ Project Washington application was not made subject to the new county rules by the ordinance itself (Delaware Public Media, 2026-03-11; Spotlight Delaware, 2026-03-19).

Coastal Zone Act decision for Project Washington

  • On February 3, 2026, DNREC determined that Project Washington was prohibited in Delaware’s Coastal Zone because the proposal included 516 double-walled diesel belly tanks, each with 5,020 gallons of storage, more than 500 backup generators, more than 2.5 million gallons of stored diesel fuel, and potential air-pollution impacts associated with 516 smokestacks and generator operations (DNREC Status Decision, 2026-02-03).
  • Starwood appealed the status decision, and the Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board affirmed DNREC’s decision in an April 17, 2026 final order; the order describes an 11-building, approximately 579-acre campus with 1.2 GW of total demand, 504 3-MW generators, 12 1.5-MW generators, and 516 fuel tanks (Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board, 2026-04-17).

Moratoriums, zoning bans, and local bans

  • No statewide or local data-center construction moratorium or ban was enacted between February 1 and July 17, 2026. SB 353, introduced June 30, would pause state and local applications, approvals, and permits for proposed data centers with at least 100 MW of electrical demand through January 31, 2027, but it remained in the Senate Executive Committee without a vote as of July 17 (Delaware General Assembly SB 353, 2026-06-30). The operative restrictions remained the PSC interconnection pause in Delmarva territory, New Castle County’s standards for new applications, and the Coastal Zone bar applied to Project Washington.

Kent County proposed siting ordinance (not yet enacted)

  • Kent County introduced LC26-06, which would define data centers, allow them as permitted uses subject to conditions in the Limited Industrial and General Industrial districts, and establish location, setback, lighting, sound, cooling-water, generator, decommissioning, and related conditions. The Regional Planning Commission recommended approval on July 9, but the Levy Court public hearing was scheduled for July 21; consequently, the proposal was not law as of July 17 (Kent County Levy Court, status accessed 2026-07-17; Delaware Public Media, 2026-07-11).

3) Local governance and preemption

4) Community opposition and environmental issues

  • New Castle County’s enacted ordinance was explicitly framed by the county executive as a compromise shaped by residents, industry representatives, environmental advocates, and other stakeholders, following months of public input (New Castle County, 2026-03-18).
  • DNREC received nearly 400 comments during the Project Washington Coastal Zone status-decision comment period, and DNREC’s February 2026 decision treated diesel storage, backup generation, refueling, NOx emissions, and water/cooling-system uncertainty as central environmental concerns (DNREC Status Decision, 2026-02-03).
  • The New Castle County ordinance directly responds to several common data-center impact concerns by requiring noise review, buffers, closed-loop or reclaimed-water cooling, generator standards, energy-storage practices, decommissioning, and annual compliance reporting for covered new projects (New Castle County UDC revision, 2026-03-10).
  • The Delaware River Basin Commission began tracking data-center water demand and reported that, as of June 2026, no data center had applied to the commission. That finding identifies an unresolved basin-permitting and project-disclosure gap; it does not establish that Delaware proposals would have no water-resource effects (Delaware River Basin Commission, 2026-06).
  • HB 479, introduced June 30 as the Community Heat Protection and Industrial Accountability Act, would authorize DNREC to regulate thermal impacts and order reductions or shutdowns at covered heavy industrial facilities; the bill expressly keeps data centers within its scope, but it remained in the House Natural Resources & Energy Committee as of July 17 (Delaware General Assembly HB 479, 2026-06-30).

5) Legislative activity (2024-2026)

Local legislation

  • New Castle County Ordinance 25-101 is no longer merely proposed: Substitute 3 was approved by County Council on March 10, 2026 and signed on March 18, 2026, establishing the county’s first data-center-specific standards for new covered applications (Delaware Public Media, 2026-03-11; New Castle County, 2026-03-18).

State regulatory action

State statutory activity

  • SB 276 was signed on June 10, 2026 and became 85 Del. Laws, c. 290. It allows an electric cooperative to decline electric supply service to a user whose projected monthly demand exceeds 50 MW, while preserving the cooperative’s service obligation below that threshold (Delaware General Assembly SB 276, 2026-06-10; Governor Matt Meyer legislative advisory, 2026-06-11).
  • House Substitute 1 for HB 233 passed both chambers on July 1 and awaited the Governor as of July 17. The final bill covers facilities with at least 75 MW maximum demand at an 85% load factor, at least 100 MW instantaneous demand, or at least 30 MW under the data-processing NAICS code. It would require Electric Service and Transmission Security Agreements before service; create a separate rate class; impose long-term minimum-payment, security, curtailment, forecast, and advance-termination requirements; and directly assign facility-caused distribution, capacity, transmission, study, and reliability-backstop costs to the project or large-load class. Qualifying matching new generation could exempt a facility from specified curtailment-sequencing rules, but not from the ESA/TSA and cost-responsibility framework. The bill directs the PSC to adopt regulations, after which utilities must file conforming rates within 180 days (Delaware General Assembly HS 1 for HB 233, 2026-07-01; Delaware General Assembly engrossed HB 233, 2026-07-01).
  • SB 308, the Load Forecast Accountability Act, passed both chambers on June 23 and awaited the Governor as of July 17. It would require PSC review of regulated utilities’ PJM load forecasts, coordination with PJM and other states, access to relevant confidential agreements, and a public report each May 1 (Delaware General Assembly SB 308, 2026-06-23).
  • HB 445 passed both chambers on July 1 and awaited the Governor as of July 17. The final bill no longer requires generation solely within Delaware. It would require a large energy use facility to produce or procure 100% of annual consumption from new or previously uncommitted generation in the Delmarva Power zone or a land-contiguous PJM zone with sufficient transmission; the supply must meet Delaware’s renewable-portfolio minimum, and qualifying clean technology may include nuclear energy and storage. A 10-year ramp is available with curtailment, bonding, and pre-service generation and backup milestones (Delaware General Assembly HB 445, 2026-07-01; Delaware General Assembly engrossed HB 445, 2026-07-01).
  • HB 310 passed both chambers on July 1 and awaited the Governor as of July 17. As described above, it would tie qualified-facility tax-credit and license-fee eligibility for large energy users to the bill’s 100% new-generation procurement standard (Delaware General Assembly HB 310, 2026-07-01).
  • SB 312 passed both chambers on June 24 and awaited the Governor as of July 17. It would prohibit state agencies, counties, and municipalities from entering nondisclosure agreements that restrict public access to information about potential or actual Delaware data centers of at least 100 MW (Delaware General Assembly SB 312, 2026-06-24).
  • SB 205, which would require a PSC Certificate to Operate for large energy use facilities, was reported out of committee on March 11 but did not receive final passage by the session recess. A January amendment would raise its threshold from 30 MW to 100 MW and add water-impact review (Delaware General Assembly SB 205, status 2026-03-11).
  • SB 353 (temporary statewide moratorium) and HB 479 (thermal-impact regulation) remained in committee. No data-center measure was vetoed by July 17; SB 276 was the only identified 2026 measure in this group signed into law, while HB 233, HB 310, HB 445, SB 308, and SB 312 remained with the Governor and therefore were not yet operative (Delaware General Assembly SB 353, 2026-06-30; Delaware General Assembly HB 479, 2026-06-30).

6) Notable projects and operators

Project Washington / Delaware City-area campus (Starwood Digital Ventures)

  • Project Washington is a proposed Starwood Digital Ventures data-center campus in New Castle County; DNREC’s February 2026 status decision describes 11 two-story data-center buildings and onsite electrical infrastructure/generation, and the CZICB final order describes a roughly 579-acre project with 1.2 GW of total demand (DNREC Status Decision, 2026-02-03; Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board, 2026-04-17).
  • The project status is materially changed from early February: DNREC determined the project was prohibited in the Coastal Zone on February 3, 2026, and the Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board affirmed that decision on April 17, 2026. New Castle County’s ordinance does not apply retroactively to the application unless Starwood opts in, but that county exemption does not cure the state Coastal Zone barrier (Delaware Public Media, 2026-03-11; Coastal Zone Industrial Control Board, 2026-04-17).
  • By July 2, Starwood had not publicly clarified whether it would seek judicial review of the board order; the proposal therefore remained blocked, with no verified court reversal or approved redesign identified by July 17 (Spotlight Delaware, 2026-07-02, updated 2026-07-06).

White Clay Center Industrial Park data center

  • New Castle County’s active plans continued to list the White Clay Center Industrial Park minor redevelopment plan (App. 2025-0716-S): three light-industrial buildings totaling 847,450 gross square feet, plus a guard house, switchyard, and related improvements, with the proposed use listed as “data center” (New Castle County Active Plans, accessed 2026-07-17).
  • On June 10, the developer and County Councilmember David Tackett reached a nonbinding email/handshake understanding to pause the data-center proposal while the developer explores other uses. The arrangement depends on county willingness to preserve the existing application’s grandfathered rights, is not a binding county agreement, and does not eliminate the owner’s legal ability to proceed with the already-permitted use. No public investment, MW, jobs, or tax figure had been disclosed by July 17 (Spotlight Delaware, 2026-07-02, updated 2026-07-06).

Other New Castle County pipeline references

  • Utility records obtained through Delaware’s public-records process disclosed five Delmarva large-load inquiries: a 1,200 MW New Castle County project under review, a 300 MW New Castle County project and a 100 MW Kent County project awaiting cluster studies, an early-stage New Castle County inquiry without a stated size, and a separate 30 MW New Castle County request that was withdrawn. Reported matches to Project Washington, St. Georges, Harrington, or White Clay are plausible but not utility-confirmed, so the figures should not be assigned to named projects as facts (Technical.ly, 2026-06-11).
  • The possible St. Georges/Lighthouse Farm conversion still lacked a confirmed data-center application, and Kent County officials said no application had been filed for the potential former Harrington Logistics Center site by July 11 (Spotlight Delaware, 2026-07-02, updated 2026-07-06; Delaware Public Media, 2026-07-11).

Gaps and follow-ups

  • Track Governor Matt Meyer’s action on HS 1 for HB 233, HB 310, HB 445, SB 308, and SB 312; track committee action on SB 205, SB 353, and HB 479 when the General Assembly reconvenes.
  • Track Docket No. 25-0826 for a final PSC order and approved Delmarva large-load tariff.
  • Track any Superior Court appeal or revised application for Project Washington after the April 17, 2026 CZICB final order.
  • Track the July 21 Kent County Levy Court hearing and final disposition of LC26-06.
  • Pull project-level filings for White Clay Center Industrial Park, St. Georges/Lighthouse Farm, and the Harrington-area inquiry to verify ownership, MW, capital investment, water use, generator plans, tax projections, and final local approvals.