The Pulse
San Francisco and Oakland Approve 45-Day Data Center Pauses
San Francisco and Oakland approved 45-day pauses on new data center approvals on October 6, 2026. The cities say the temporary measures will give officials time to examine energy, water, environmental and community impacts.
AI.info Team · Written with AI ·
On October 6, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and Oakland City Council each approved a 45-day pause on new data center approvals, giving city officials a short window to study the facilities’ local effects. The votes came as residents in both cities raised concerns about electricity and water demand, pollution and whether data centers deliver lasting community benefits.
Two votes, two review processes
San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors approved an urgency ordinance prohibiting data centers citywide for 45 days. The city’s legislative file identifies the measure as File 261021 and lists its status as “Mayors Office,” so the board vote alone does not establish that the ordinance has taken effect. The city’s official record lists as its sponsors Supervisors Shamann Walton, Connie Chan, Jackie Fielder and Chyanne Chen. Its text, as amended in committee on October 5, ties the start date to the mayor:
“This urgency ordinance shall become effective immediately upon enactment. Enactment occurs when the Mayor signs the ordinance, the Mayor returns the ordinance unsigned or does not sign the ordinance within ten days of receiving it, or the Board of Supervisors overrides the Mayor’s veto of the ordinance by a 4/5ths vote.”
San Francisco File No. 261021, ordinance text as amended in committee on October 5, 2026, Section 5
Oakland’s council unanimously approved its moratorium the same night. The measure blocks city approvals of land-use agreements and entitlements for data center development while staff work on regulations, community outreach and an assessment of possible effects on energy and water use, public health and the environment, according to Oakland North.
Residents question who benefits
At San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors meeting, Malik Seneferu of the Marie Harrison Community Foundation asked officials to weigh the city’s other needs. “I know we're talking about data centers. How about community centers? How about schools?” he said, according to CBS San Francisco.
In Oakland, Nichole Ghio, California director of Food & Water Watch, questioned the promised returns. “It's unclear really what the payoff is for us,” she said at a rally outside City Hall, CBS San Francisco reported. Gustavo Gutierrez of Communities for a Better Environment urged officials to account for the potential impacts and complete the study.
Residents’ concerns extend beyond the facilities themselves. Data centers can draw heavily on power and water, while backup systems and operations raise questions about air quality, noise and nearby communities. The two cities’ pauses offer time to examine those questions, but their votes do not by themselves establish what rules will follow.
Oakland sets a work plan; San Francisco faces a next step
Councilmember Carroll Fife said Oakland’s Planning & Building Department will develop a work plan during the 45-day period, outlining next steps and the regulations the city should consider. She said the city could extend its pause for another 45 days if it needs more time, Oakland North reported.
In San Francisco, the Planning Department is tasked with studying data center impacts and developing longer-term controls. The Board’s vote was unanimous, the San Francisco Standard and NBC Bay Area reported, but the city’s official file still lists the ordinance with the Mayor’s Office, and the ordinance takes effect only on enactment. San Francisco’s measure bars the city from issuing any approval or authorization for data centers; Oakland’s halts land-use entitlements and agreements for them while staff prepare a work plan.
The immediate test for both cities is whether their short review periods produce concrete rules on resource use and community effects. Oakland’s stated deliverable is a work plan; San Francisco’s ordinance requires a written Planning Department report, within 25 days of enactment, on the measures taken to address the conditions behind the pause. Both pauses run for 45 days unless they are extended.