South Dakota has 3 data center sites, 0 buildings where disclosed on the record: 1 running and 2 proposed. Most are in McPherson County (1) and Minnehaha County (1), and records are in 3 of 66 counties. The largest proposal is Rapid City Data Center in Pennington County, 10 acres (third party estimate); it is reported.
How to read this page. Every count comes from the records on this page and links to where it is counted. Nothing is published until a person reads its source, and a figure no source gives reads Not disclosed; nothing is estimated. A rating changes only when a person sets it.
| Facility and county | Stage | Operator | Power (MW) | Latest entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rapid City Data Center Rapid City, Pennington County | Proposed | |||
| Leola Data Center Leola, McPherson County | Proposed | In 2023, South Dakota PUC approved Montana Dakota Utilities request to establish new rate available to data center type facilities housing high density computer processing technology yahoo.com (opens in a new tab) national outlet reported September 2, 2026 | ||
| TierPoint Sioux Falls Sioux Falls, Minnehaha County | Running | TierPoint |
A blank cell means not disclosed by any source on file. Power is the developer's figure or a permit's, each linked on the record. All 3 South Dakota projects.
| Record | Place | Stage | Operator | MW | Basis | Located | Tier | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rapid City Data Center | Rapid City, Pennington | Proposed | centroid | 3 | 2026-09-25 | |||
| TierPoint Sioux Falls | Sioux Falls, Minnehaha | Running | TierPoint | centroid | 2 | 2026-09-17 | ||
| Leola Data Center | Leola, McPherson | Proposed | centroid | 4 | 2026-09-17 |
Tier 1: an official or company source. Tier 2: a news report resolving to the outlet's own page. Located: a site coordinate from a permit, a parcel or an address, or the county or town centroid. Verified: the last day a person read the source. A blank cell means not disclosed by any source on file.
| County | Census GEOID | Projects | Rules | Statements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McPherson County | 46089 | 1 | 0 | |
| Minnehaha County | 46099 | 2 | 0 | |
| Pennington County | 46103 | 1 | 1 | |
| Brown County | 46013 | 1 | 0 | |
| Lincoln County | 46083 | 1 | 0 |
A county without a record is listed, not linked.
What the state and its counties and cities have decided. Each row is rated by what it has decided, open, case by case, restrictive or closed, never by whether that is good or bad.
| Body | Level | Rating | In force until | Latest act | Acts | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Dakota | state | South Dakota passed a law requiring data center operators to cover their own electrical usage and infrastructure expenses. aarp.org (opens in a new tab) news outlet Sep 2, 202611 acts on this rowEvery act on the South Dakota row
| 11 | 2026-09-23 | ||
| Aberdeen | city | not rated | Aberdeen City Council held first of three meetings on Monday to discuss proposed data center ordinance. yahoo.com (opens in a new tab) national outlet Aug 171 act on this rowEvery act on the Aberdeen row
| 1 | 2026-08-18 | |
| Lincoln County | county | not rated | Commissioners voted 3 to 2 against the moratorium amendment with Landeen, Schmidt, and Otten voting against. argusleader.com (opens in a new tab) local outlet Reported Aug 262 acts on this rowEvery act on the Lincoln County row
| 2 | 2026-08-26 | |
| McPherson County | county | not rated | McPherson County Planning and Zoning Commission voted to postpone a decision following an executive session at a special meeting. dakotanewsnow.com (opens in a new tab) local outlet Reported Aug 111 act on this rowEvery act on the McPherson County row
| 1 | 2026-09-23 | |
| Minnehaha County | county | not rated | Minnehaha County presented an initial data center ordinance draft to the Planning Commission on Monday, August 25, 2026. dakotanewsnow.com (opens in a new tab) local outlet Aug 251 act on this rowEvery act on the Minnehaha County row
| 1 | 2026-09-23 | |
| Rapid City | city | not rated | Rapid City held a town hall survey on data center policy with over 220 residents participating, with most responses opposing data centers or supporting strict controls. sdpb.org (opens in a new tab) local outlet Oct 142 acts on this rowEvery act on the Rapid City row
| 2 | 2026-10-14 | |
| Sioux Falls | city | not rated | Sioux Falls City Council voted unanimously to pass the resolution with the amendment for the October 27 public hearing. argusleader.com (opens in a new tab) local outlet Reported Aug 261 act on this rowEvery act on the Sioux Falls row
| 1 | 2026-08-26 |
Reported: the source's date; the item names no day of its own. A rating rests only on a binding act in force; "not rated" means no person has set one. A blank cell means the record holds nothing for it.
No official summary on file for any of these 7 measures; each row links to the legislature's page for the text.
Prohibit nondisclosure of certain agreements related to data centers.
H.B. 1246 In committee
Impose a one-year moratorium on the construction or expansion of hyperscale data centers.
S.B. 232 In committee
S.B. 235 In committee
Limit costs and risks associated with electricity use by data centers and impose a moratorium.
H.B. 1301 In committee
S.B. 234 In committee
10 bills tracked, 2 signed · LegiScan, CC BY 4.0
| Number | Session | Status | Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HB1038 | 2026 Regular Session | Signed | 2026-03-30 | Allow the Public Utilities Commission to assess actual costs to data centers that are customers of public utilities. |
| SB135 | 2026 Regular Session | Signed | 2026-03-30 | Protect residents from increased utility costs and utility shortages caused by data centers and clarify authority to regulate data centers. |
| H.B. 1246 | 2026 Regular Session | In committee | 2026-02-20 | Prohibit nondisclosure of certain agreements related to data centers. |
| S.B. 232 | 2026 Regular Session | In committee | 2026-02-18 | Impose a one-year moratorium on the construction or expansion of hyperscale data centers. |
| S.B. 235 | 2026 Regular Session | In committee | 2026-02-18 | Protect residents from increased utility costs and utility shortages caused by data centers, to clarify authority to regulate data centers, and to modify provisions pertaining to the purchasing of goods and services by a data center. |
| H.B. 1301 | 2026 Regular Session | In committee | 2026-02-05 | Limit costs and risks associated with electricity use by data centers and impose a moratorium. |
| S.B. 234 | 2026 Regular Session | In committee | 2026-02-05 | Modify provisions pertaining to the purchasing of goods and services related to data center operations. |
| S.B. 127 | 2026 Regular Session | In committee | 2026-01-27 | Limit nuisances caused by data centers. |
| H.B. 1005 | 2026 Regular Session | In committee | 2026-01-13 | Provide a sales and use tax exemption for goods and services related to data center operations. |
| S.B. 177 | 2025 Regular Session | In committee | 2025-02-13 | Provide a sales and use tax refund for goods and services related to data center operations. |
10 bills tracked in South Dakota; 2026 Regular Session, legislature adjourned; last checked October 26, 2026. The last check found no bill not already tracked; the 10 tracked bills stand. Search terms: data center, data centre, large load, hyperscale, computing facility, server farm, high load factor (indirect), energy intensive facility (indirect), large electric load (indirect), digital asset mining (indirect), cryptocurrency mining (indirect), qualified technology facility (indirect), colocation (indirect), moratorium (with another term), sales tax exemption (with another term). The search on LegiScan. (opens in a new tab)
Bill data from LegiScan (opens in a new tab), licensed CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab). The record chooses the bills, writes each stage in its own words and cites the legislature's own page for every bill.
| Member | Party | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson (SD) | R | Yea |
A blank party cell means the clerk's roll gives none.
| Member | Party | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Rounds (R-SD) | R | Yea |
| Thune (R-SD) | R | Yea |
A blank party cell means the clerk's roll gives none.
Positions as the clerk records them. How bills and votes are recorded.
StatementRapid City
Moratorium rejectedSouth Dakota
Scorecard eventSouth Dakota
Scorecard eventSouth Dakota
OrdinanceRapid City
Scorecard eventSouth Dakota
Jessica Olson, city planning manager, stated that Rapid City is developing municipal policy to limit, prohibit, or regulate data centers of ten megawatts or greater.
Rob Skjonsberg, Rounds campaign advisor, defended South Dakota's existing regulations governing data center development and local control
Every South Dakota statement, by speaker (37)
Jeff Shelton, a Democrat running for the District 32 Senate seat, said Senate Bill 135 needs more comprehensive definitions and fine tuning to clarify what constitutes a data center and ensure it addresses harmful resource consumption.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: South Dakota Public Broadcasting (opens in a new tab).
Don Haggar stated South Dakota has probably the 16th lowest electricity rates in the country
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: South Dakota Public Broadcasting (opens in a new tab).
Don Haggar, South Dakota Public Utilities Commission candidate, said data centers are a large load and that the Data Center Citizens Bill of Rights ensures no data center costs pass to consumers and local communities weigh in on siting
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: South Dakota Public Broadcasting (opens in a new tab).
Erinn Williams, District 14 House candidate, argues data center opponents have legitimate concerns about water and power consumption and resource drain
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: The Dakota Scout (opens in a new tab).
Marty Jackley, Republican House candidate, said he would support hyperscale data center projects if they provide a net benefit to the grid, respect local control and private property rights, and do not raise electricity rates
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: AOL.com (opens in a new tab).
Nikki Gronli, Democratic House candidate, said she would support a moratorium on hyperscale data centers to assess water and energy impacts before proceeding
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: AOL.com (opens in a new tab).
Eric Wolff, business development manager for Black Hills Energy, said Sequitor Edge data center may be at risk of not coming to fruition due to the city's regulatory efforts
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Rapid City Journal (opens in a new tab).
Mark Cuban warned that communities need to protect themselves from data center projects with transparency requirements, punitive compliance measures, and facility closure bonds.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Northeast Radio SD (opens in a new tab).
Frank Kloucek is a candidate for the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: The Dakota Scout (opens in a new tab).
Vicki Fisher, Community Development Director for Rapid City, says communities have experienced issues with data centers including water usage, sewer impact, electric usage, noise and vibration
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: KOTA Territory News (opens in a new tab).
Brian Bengs, independent candidate for U.S. Senate, says over half a million dollars from Meta's Forge the Future Project political action committee was pumped into seventeen South Dakota legislative races
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: KOTA Territory News (opens in a new tab).
Stephen Tamang, Rapid City Council President, says that right now large scale data centers are not a net positive and are not welcome in Rapid City from his standpoint
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: KOTA Territory News (opens in a new tab).
Brian Bengs said he wants to ensure community interests are prioritized as the data center industry expands
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: kotaradio.com (opens in a new tab).
Brian Bengs, Independent U.S. Senate candidate, said Senator Mike Rounds received more campaign money from AI and data center companies than from South Dakota donors
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: kotaradio.com (opens in a new tab).
Kloucek said a moratorium would give people time to do homework and watch what's happening in other states, and expressed concern about putting consumers of electricity, natural gas, and water at risk
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: South Dakota Public Broadcasting (opens in a new tab).
Kloucek said data center development is the number one issue facing South Dakota
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: South Dakota Public Broadcasting (opens in a new tab).
Don Haggar, Republican candidate for South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, said the state does enough regulation on data centers
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: South Dakota Public Broadcasting (opens in a new tab).
Frank Kloucek, Democratic candidate for South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, advocated for a one year moratorium on data center development in the state
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: South Dakota Public Broadcasting (opens in a new tab).
Also reported by: Yahoo (opens in a new tab) national outlet .
Jeff Shelton, Senate candidate from District 32, says voters have told candidates knocking on doors that data centers are not wanted in South Dakota
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: The South Dakota Standard (opens in a new tab).
John Tsitrian says data center projects deserve examination and debate, not blanket opposition, arguing that some have succeeded while others have failed
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: The South Dakota Standard (opens in a new tab).
Amanda Potter, House candidate from District 9, says the pledge represents a meaningful commitment to action on data center expansion
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: The South Dakota Standard (opens in a new tab).
The pledge commits signers to draft data center regulations before the first day of the 2027 legislative session in January.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Argus Leader (opens in a new tab).
A group of South Dakota Democratic legislative candidates signed a pledge to establish protections against data centres.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Dakota News Now (opens in a new tab).
The pledge identifies tax incentives for data centres as an unacceptable policy issue.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Dakota News Now (opens in a new tab).
Amanda Potter, Democratic candidate for HD-9, and Jeff Shelton, Democratic candidate for SD-32, started the Data Center Accountability Pledge.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Argus Leader (opens in a new tab).
Joel Arends, Lincoln County commissioner, proposed a moratorium to pause hyperscale data center development and allow time for local government understanding
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Sioux Falls Live (opens in a new tab).
Sonja Mentzer, Democratic candidate for District 11 house seat, said millions of dollars from data centres flowed into races in the June primary.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Dakota News Now (opens in a new tab).
The pledge includes a refusal to take money from individuals or organizations interested in data center development.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Argus Leader (opens in a new tab).
Amanda Potter, District 9 House candidate, said data centres at the hyper scale level are a top issue on voters' minds.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Dakota News Now (opens in a new tab).
Jennifer McNamara, Lincoln County Speaker, suggested considering company ownership location requirements in data center ordinance parameters
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: dakotanewsnow.com (opens in a new tab).
John Marquardt, Yankton County Commissioners' Chair, said commissioners can take their time to get a good ordinance plan, noting that he does not think anybody wants to see a big 500 MW data center, but a 10 to 20 MW data center would be a $100 million project
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: Dakota News Now (opens in a new tab).
Hansen said bills trying to give big tech data centers massive tax breaks should be killed and he does not think financial incentives should go to data centers.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: KOTA Territory News (opens in a new tab).
Data Center Bill of Rights originally proposed to ban tax breaks for data centers; that provision was stripped before it was signed into law.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: KOTA Territory News (opens in a new tab).
Hansen co sponsored a Data Center Bill of Rights law that ensures utility rates do not go up due to construction, that water use is transparent, and that local authorities have a say in whether a data center is built.
Provenance: Paraphrased; said in the source itself.
Primary source: KOTA Territory News (opens in a new tab).
On the November 3, 2026 ballot in South Dakota: Governor (2), U.S. Senate (2), U.S. House, at large (2); 3 of 6 candidates with a statement on data centers on the record. Every candidate.
1 site is serving load, 1 of them in Minnehaha County.
3 projects are on the record in South Dakota: 2 reported and 1 running. Each is listed under Projects with its status history and sources. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows aboveRecords are in 3 counties: McPherson County (1), Minnehaha County (1) and Pennington County (1). The county table lists every county with its count, zero included. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows aboveNot disclosed. None of the 3 records on file for South Dakota states a power figure. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows aboveNot disclosed. None of the 3 records on file for South Dakota states a water figure. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows above1 developer is named on the record: TierPoint. 2 records name no developer; each name above opens the record, where the developer's source is listed. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows above6 county and city rows are on the record, none of them rated yet: Aberdeen has no rating yet: Aberdeen City Council held first of three meetings on Monday to discuss proposed data center ordinance (reported August 18, 2026, source (opens in a new tab)), Lincoln County has no rating yet: Commissioners voted 3 to 2 against the moratorium amendment with Landeen, Schmidt, and Otten voting against (reported August 26, 2026, source (opens in a new tab)) and McPherson County has no rating yet: McPherson County Planning and Zoning Commission voted to postpone a decision following an executive session at a special meeting (reported August 11, 2026, source (opens in a new tab)). The state's own row is rated case by case, with 11 dated acts listed under the scorecard. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows above2 records are not yet running. McPherson County: Leola Data Center (reported); and Pennington County: Rapid City Data Center (reported). A county name opens its page with the map and every record there. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows above2 state laws are on the record: HB1038 (signed, March 30, 2026, source (opens in a new tab)) and SB135 (signed, March 30, 2026, source (opens in a new tab)). The state's own scorecard row carries 11 dated acts, the newest reported September 16, 2026; the laws page has what each law requires in the words of its text. Resources: the questions people ask about data centers
answered from the rows abovesummed only where a record disclosed the figure
| Figure | Disclosed total | Disclosed | Without a figure | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 0 | 3 | ||
| Water, stated per day | 0 | 3 | ||
| Water, stated per year | 0 | 3 | ||
| Permanent jobs | 0 | 3 | ||
| Tax each year | 0 | 3 |
A blank cell means no record in South Dakota disclosed the figure. Third party figures on the same metrics are listed apart below; a figure a project disclosed about itself is never mixed with them.
| Figure | Disclosed total | Disclosed | Without a figure | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 0 | 3 | ||
| Water, stated per day | 0 | 3 | ||
| Water, stated per year | 0 | 3 | ||
| Permanent jobs | 0 | 3 | ||
| Tax each year | 0 | 3 |
A blank total means no record disclosed the figure; the count without one says how many.
Summed only where a record disclosed the figure; a record with no figure adds nothing and is counted as not disclosed. Water is summed per day and per year separately, as the sources stated it, and never converted. A tax claim given as a range is summed at both ends.
The disclosed totals are in the table above.
No source on file states what any of the 3 tracked facilities in South Dakota are for.
| Use | Records | Power | Water | Jobs | Tax each year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No stated use | 3 |
A blank cell means no record with that use disclosed the figure.
A record that lists several uses counts once under each. Each cell is the sum over the records with that use, disclosed rows only.
No source on file states how any of the 3 tracked facilities in South Dakota are cooled.
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Data Center Record, "Data center records in South Dakota", https://datacenterrecord.org/states/sd. Data: Data Center Record, datacenterrecord.org, CC BY-NC 4.0.
The structured rows are CC BY-NC 4.0. Link to this page; that is what turns a reuse into a citation. Prose stays under copyright.
