The IBEW is calling on members across the Eighth District to mobilize now and urge state legislators to oppose moratoriums and extreme restrictions on data center construction and instead support responsible development with strong labor standards.   

Restrictions and total bans are appearing across the Rocky Mountain states. In Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming, policymakers are endorsing moratoriums and excessive zoning limitations on data center development. Most of these policies only exist at the county and city level now, but momentum is building for broader statewide restrictions. These constraints threaten future projects, man-hours, and high-paying union jobs throughout the region.   

This issue is especially urgent for the Eighth District. Data center projects in the Eighth District are creating some of the highest-paying construction jobs for IBEW members today. Moratoriums and overly restrictive policies threaten these active projects, as well as future work opportunities, apprenticeship programs, and infrastructure investments that support communities.   

The IBEW supports responsible data center development with strong worker protections and reasonable standards, not total bans that eliminate union jobs, stunt economic growth, and send major infrastructure investments to other states. If IBEW members do not speak up now, these valuable projects could disappear from the region entirely.   

When built responsibly, data centers: 

• Create thousands of high-quality union construction jobs as well as permanent workforce opportunities in digital infrastructure 
• Generate significant local tax revenue and economic growth 
• Strengthen union apprenticeship and workforce training programs 
• Support critical energy investment and grid infrastructure improvements    

Why this matters to the IBEW: 

• Moratoriums eliminate good-paying union construction jobs across the Rocky Mountain region 
• Strong labor standards on data center construction ensures that these projects create high-paying jobs for skilled workers 
• Investment in union apprenticeship and training programs builds the next generation of skilled IBEW workers 
• Bans discourage investment and send jobs out of the area   

What does the IBEW support? 

• Project labor agreements (PLAs) 
• Registered apprenticeship and training programs 
• Responsible bidder requirements 
• Policies that protect workers, ratepayers, and responsibly built projects  
• Sensible standards that address grid reliability and community concerns while creating good union jobs   

Examples of existing or proposed restrictions:  

• Colorado:  
  • Larimer County: Emergency pause on data center development extended through August 25, 2026  
  • Denver: One-year moratorium on new data center development applications and permits 
  • Jefferson County: 10-month moratorium on new applications and rezoning requests  
  • Longmont: Ban on “hyperscale” data centers under serious consideration 
• Idaho’s Kootenai County: Emergency moratorium followed by highly restrictive ordinances that limit future data center development 
• Utah’s Provo City: City Council Code amendments that effectively ban large data centers 
• Montana:  
  • Active advocacy against data center development like local moratorium toolkits 
  • Four-year statewide moratorium on data center projects endorsed by state lawmakers 
• Wyoming’s Cheyenne City: Petitions for a one-year data center moratorium under consideration by city council    

Tell your state legislators to oppose broad data center moratoriums and support a worker-first approach that protects union jobs, future projects, and economic growth in the Rocky Mountain region by using the toolkit below: 

• Letter Campaign: Visit bit.ly/4o2OVxW to send a letter to your state legislators. Enter your mailing address, click “Start Writing,” and a sample letter will populate, telling them to oppose broad data center moratoriums and support a worker-first approach that protects union jobs, future projects, and economic growth in the Rocky Mountain region. 
• Social Media Post with Graphics: Share this post and one of the graphics on your social media to inform fellow IBEW members about this issue: 
  • “I’m a proud IBEW member from the Rocky Mountain region, and I oppose data center moratoriums because they threaten union jobs, union apprenticeships, and infrastructure investment. When built responsibly, data centers create good paying jobs and opportunities for economic growth. Stand with the IBEW to oppose data center bans and support worker-first policies like project labor agreements (PLAs), apprenticeships, and other strong labor standards. Write to your state legislators today. bit.ly/4o2OVxW” [Insert SM graphic 1, graphic 2, graphic 3, and/or graphic 4]