Virginia Governor Abigail D. Spanberger signed Executive Order 22 on September 18, 2026, launching a sweeping new framework for data centre accountability and artificial intelligence governance.
The order establishes five foundational pillars that data centre developers and operators must address to conduct business in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Those pillars are transparent community engagement, environmental protection, energy affordability, clean energy and grid reliability, and workforce value and local procurement.
Executive Order 22 rescinds previous directives issued by the Youngkin Administration while retaining some of their features until further notice, signalling a clear shift in state policy direction.
The Office of the Chief Energy Officer has been designated to lead implementation across a range of executive branch agencies, making it the central authority for the new framework.
Within 120 days, the Office must publish a Data Center Planning and Community Engagement Toolkit covering model information requests, disclosure templates, and siting and mitigation best practices for local governments.
The Secretary of Labor and Virginia Works must develop best practices and reporting criteria for quality jobs, local workforce opportunities, and project-level workforce data to be incorporated into the VA-LEAD programme.
VA-LEAD may operate as a tiered designation programme, with proposed scoring criteria addressing energy, water and land use, noise, workforce, clean energy, resilience, local materials, and community benefits.
Proposed criteria and an implementation plan are due to the governor by the end of 2027, and the highest VA-LEAD tier would receive priority for state incentives and expedited administrative services.
The order limits confidentiality protections, meaning the executive branch may not enter into agreements that prevent disclosure of material information about proposed commercial data centres, including incentives and community impacts.
Executive Order 22 also directs state agencies to accelerate development of noise regulations for data centres and review cumulative impacts of diesel and other backup generators on communities.
The Department of Environmental Quality, the Virginia Department of Health, and Virginia Energy are among those directed to conduct environmental reviews under the new framework.
A newly created AI Task Force will be co-led by the Chief Transformation Officer, Counsel to the Governor, and Secretary of Administration, supported by a newly created AI Policy Planning Unit.
The task force was established to address growing concerns about workforce displacement, data privacy, and cybersecurity risks arising from the rapid development of artificial intelligence.
EO 22 rescinds former Governor Glenn Youngkin’s January 2024 AI executive order and September 2023 directive, while expressly preserving policies and standards issued under the earlier orders unless replaced by future action.
State agencies and vendors should not assume that prior Virginia AI guidance disappeared on September 18, as the governance structure changed but earlier standards remain alive for now.
The order is effective immediately and carries significant legal and commercial implications for businesses, utilities, technology companies, local governments, and residents across Virginia.