The Green nominee for governor issued two statements Wednesday, one before and one after the signing, saying the governor’s order does not go far enough.
By Michael Phillips | MDBayNews
BALTIMORE — Andy Ellis, the Green Party nominee for governor, called Wednesday for a statewide ban on new data center construction and permitting, and said Gov. Wes Moore’s executive order on the industry falls short. His campaign sent two press releases, the first at 7:29 a.m. ahead of the signing and the second at 10:48 a.m. after it.
Moore signed Executive Order 01.01.2026.16 in Annapolis on Wednesday morning. It creates a state task force to review large data center projects and a public dashboard tracking them. It does not impose a moratorium. Moore said final decisions on projects remain with local governments and that he will ask lawmakers to repeal the state’s 2020 sales tax exemption for data center equipment when the session opens in January.
The first release
In the first release, the campaign said Ellis is renewing his call for a statewide ban, and that the announcement came ahead of Moore’s order. The campaign said data center policy is on the agenda this week in seven jurisdictions, including Baltimore City and Baltimore, Calvert, Charles, Frederick and Prince George’s counties. It described opposition to data centers as broad and multipartisan.
The release made several claims about the state of local action:
- Since February, 14 of Maryland’s 24 counties have passed data center moratoriums or bans, covering 80 percent of the state’s population, according to the campaign.
- With the exception of Harford County’s June ban, all of them expire within 18 months, according to the campaign.
- Moore promised in 2024 to “supercharge” the data center industry, then vetoed a bipartisan study of its effects in 2025, according to the campaign. The General Assembly overrode the veto, and the campaign said the veto delayed the study’s original Sept. 1 delivery.
Ellis said moratoriums are only a pause and that a statewide ban would end the fight rather than postpone it. The campaign said he commends the grassroots coalitions that have won local moratoriums.
“Ellis said moratoriums are only a pause and that a statewide ban would end the fight rather than postpone it.”
The second release
The second release, sent after the signing, said Ellis believes Wes Moore stands with the data centers. The campaign said industry will have access to the task force’s members while the public gets a dashboard, and that residents will still have to keep showing up at local government meetings to fight lobbyists and lawyers.
Ellis called a moratorium a half-measure and described the task force as a gesture. He said that on the first day of an Ellis administration, his campaign would halt all new data center construction and permitting, and would then undo damage he said both parties have done over the past six years.
“Ellis called a moratorium a half-measure and described the task force as a gesture.”
The campaign said thousands of Marylanders in all 24 counties have spent more than a year resisting data centers and that Ellis has taken part in grassroots efforts to win local bans and moratoriums. It pointed readers to the campaign’s data center policy at gogreen2026.com/data-centers, which it said was written with community and grassroots groups.
Ellis and running mate Owen Silverman Andrews are the Green Party’s candidates for governor and lieutenant governor. The campaign describes itself as funded by small donors and says it refuses corporate and PAC contributions.
“On the first day of an Ellis administration, his campaign would halt all new data center construction and permitting.”
The race
Ellis is not the only challenger pressing Moore on the issue. Republican nominee Dan Cox has also called for a statewide moratorium on hyperscale data centers, Maryland Matters reported in August. Moore has said he would sign a statewide moratorium if the legislature sends him one, according to the Baltimore Banner.
“Ellis is not the only challenger pressing Moore on the issue.”
What to Watch
- January. Moore has said he will seek repeal of the 2020 tax exemption, and lawmakers are expected to weigh moratorium bills.
- The task force. Its first project reviews and public dashboard listings.
- November. Moore, Cox and Ellis are all candidates for governor.
Sources: Andy Ellis campaign press releases, Sept. 23, 2026 (7:29 a.m. and 10:48 a.m.). Executive Order 01.01.2026.16, Office of Gov. Wes Moore, Sept. 23, 2026. Christine Condon, Maryland Matters, Sept. 23, 2026, and Aug. 15, 2026. Adam Willis and Brenda Wintrode, The Baltimore Banner, Sept. 23, 2026.
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