Executive Order No. 658, "Establishing Requirements for Responsible Data Center Development and Operations in Massachusetts to Protect and Support Ratepayers, Communities, and the Environment," was signed by Governor Maura Healey on September 8, 2026 under the authority of Part 2, c. 2, § I, Art. I of the Massachusetts Constitution. It runs to six recitals and fifteen sections and is effective on the date signed, continuing in force until amended, superseded or revoked by a subsequent executive order (Section 15). The topic page is Massachusetts Executive Order 658 — Responsible Data Center Development and Operations.
Recitals
The preamble records four premises: that demand for data storage, processing and computational tasks is producing data center expansion nationally and development proposals in Massachusetts; that data centers are energy- and resource-intensive facilities that can require substantial grid and generation investment and can affect energy affordability and reliability, air quality, water resources, noise, land use, public health and the environment "if not appropriately planned and regulated"; that the Commonwealth "has a responsibility to ensure that Massachusetts residents, businesses, and communities do not bear the costs or burdens of data center development, operations, or incremental energy and water needs"; and that the Framework of June 25, 2026 establishes that data centers "should be developed and operated responsibly by bearing the costs associated with their energy needs."
Two June 25, 2026 actions are recited: release of the Statement of Expectations for Responsible Data Center Development and Operations in Massachusetts, which the order calls the "Framework," and a pause on acceptance of applications for the data center sales and use tax exemption under section 6(zz) of chapter 64H of the General Laws.
Coverage threshold and definition
Section 13 adopts the 400 CMR 9.00 definition of a data center — "a building or series of buildings that houses and supports the high-performance servers, storage systems, networking equipment, and related computing infrastructure and equipment necessary for storing, processing, and distributing data and applications" — and limits the order to facilities built or expanded after the effective date whose peak electric demand exceeds 25 megawatts, or, for an expansion, that add 25 megawatts of peak demand. The Secretaries of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) and the Executive Office of Economic Development (EOED) may jointly approve an exemption from the threshold for a data center directly tied to an accredited college or university engaged in academic research, to the provision of medical care, or to a state-sponsored program.
Permitting conditions
Section 1 bars the Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), the Energy Facilities Siting Board, the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act Office and other relevant permitting agencies from issuing any permit or authorization for a covered project unless the applicant has (1) demonstrated conformance with the Framework, "including those related to air quality and public health, water use, and community engagement," and (2) submitted a community benefits agreement with key stakeholders aligned with the Standards and Guidelines for Community Benefits Plans and Agreements established by the Office of Environmental Justice and Equity (OEJE) within EEA.
The community benefits agreement is routed through OEJE alone. An applicant must consult OEJE before filing, must provide the agreement to OEJE for review and comment before submitting it to agencies, and must submit OEJE's written feedback alongside it. OEJE "shall serve as the state entity to determine conformance with the standards and guidance," and applicants "shall not be required to submit community benefit agreements for feedback or comment to any other permitting agency."
A second paragraph of Section 1 prohibits permitting agencies from using non-disclosure agreements with a data center project, "except as otherwise provided by law."
Section 2 directs the same agencies to review all permits or authorizations a covered project may require and, consistent with existing authorities, to amend all relevant regulations to align with the Framework's standards.
Electricity and ratepayer provisions
| Section | Agency | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Department of Public Utilities | Continue developing large-load rate schedules under Executive Order 654 (Massachusetts Executive Order 654 — To Secure Massachusetts' Energy Future (March 16, 2026)), aligned with the Framework, so that other ratepayers do not pay for distribution grid upgrades or associated infrastructure needed to support data center demand |
| 4 | DPU / electric distribution companies | Through fees, deposits or other requirements, eliminate speculative data center projects above 25 MW from interconnection queues, so study and interconnection resources are not consumed inefficiently and the viability of other projects — "such as housing, other businesses, or distributed energy resources" — is protected |
| 5 | MassDEP | Develop protocols ensuring covered projects have procured sufficient incremental new clean electricity generation to meet annual electric consumption, qualifying under the Clean Energy Standard at 310 CMR 7.75; determine whether that standard must be amended or regulations made under c. 21N § 3(c); and by December 31, 2026 establish an alternative compliance payment mechanism for projects that do not procure enough, with proceeds credited to a Ratepayer Protection Fund used "to mitigate electricity supply costs for all ratepayers" |
| 6 | EEA and MassDEP | Evaluate greenhouse gas emissions from covered projects as part of the Clean Energy and Climate Plan under c. 21N § 3(c), promulgate regulations under c. 21N, or institute other programs to reduce data center emissions |
The clean-electricity requirement is a Section 5 direction to develop protocols, not a Section 1 precondition to a permit, and Section 5 attaches no proximity condition to where the incremental generation is located.
Water, reporting, guidance and labor
Section 7 directs MassDEP to develop protocols requiring covered projects to protect water quality and quantity, including by demonstrating compliance with all applicable Massachusetts water, wastewater and stormwater requirements.
Section 8 directs EEA, with all relevant agencies, to establish guidance for annual reporting and disclosures by operating covered data centers consistent with the Framework, and requires every covered permit applicant to submit an attestation that it will file those disclosures.
Section 9 requires EEA, coordinating with EOED, to publish a Municipal Guidance Document for Data Center Development by December 31, 2026, developed with input from municipalities and organizations representing municipal leaders and staff, regional planning agencies, utilities, water resource agencies, organized labor, environmental justice and community-based organizations, businesses, the Attorney General's Office and the public.
Section 10 directs all departments and agencies to cooperate in implementation, including by assisting municipal governments actively evaluating a proposed project. Section 11 directs them to encourage covered developers to use project labor agreements and/or labor peace agreements, local hiring, workforce training and registered apprenticeship programs, and to ensure safe working conditions and "long-term employment opportunities that provide fair wages and benefits for residents of host and surrounding communities." Section 11 is hortatory; it imposes no permitting condition.
Section 12 requires EEA, with EOED and the Executive Office of Technology, Service and Security, to report annually to the Governor beginning in September 2027 on policy, regulatory and legislative changes supporting responsible data center development, and to identify opportunities to improve coordination among state agencies, municipalities, regional entities, communities and industry.
Section 14 provides that nothing in the order requires action inconsistent with applicable state or federal law.
Provenance
Captured September 11, 2026 from the Commonwealth's own publication in the Massachusetts law library, complete at fifteen of fifteen sections plus the preamble. Two instruments the order depends on are not held: the June 25, 2026 Statement of Expectations, and Executive Order 654 on the energy supply plan.
Relationships
- supports: Massachusetts Executive Order 658 — Responsible Data Center Development and Operations — the primary text behind the topic page.
- instance-of: Data Center Siting / AI Power Politics — a state permitting instrument for computing infrastructure.
- related: AI Data Centers, AI Environmental Impact — the energy, water and emissions consequences the order addresses.
- related: Pennsylvania Executive Order 2026-05 (Data Centers) — a contemporaneous state executive order on the same subject.