On July 23, the White House released “Winning the Race: America’s AI Action Plan,” (the "Plan") in response to President Trump’s January 23 Executive Order, “Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence.” The Plan outlines a sweeping federal strategy to accelerate AI development and deployment by removing regulatory obstacles that, in the Administration’s view, impede private-sector innovation.
Among its three core pillars, Pillar II is particularly notable for its focus on overhauling America’s physical and digital infrastructure. The Administration proposes major changes to federal permitting requirements—especially for data centers, grid expansion, and semiconductor manufacturing.
Key recommendations in the Plan include:
- Establishing new categorical exclusions under NEPA for routine data center construction.
- Evaluating a new Nationwide Permit for data centers under the Clean Water Act (CWA Section 404) to address pre-construction delays.
- Streamlining or revising permitting requirements under the CWA, Clean Air Act, and CERCLA.
- Directing agencies with large federal land holdings to identify suitable sites for data centers and power infrastructure.
For projects in Ohio, the proposed new Data Center Nationwide Permit may be particularly impactful. Currently, unless an individual permit is required or all impacts to waters of the US are avoided, data centers are typically permitted under Nationwide Permit 39. However, Nationwide Permit 39 requires pre-construction notification in all instances. The new permit would eliminate that requirement—potentially shortening permitting timelines significantly. At the same time, impacts to isolated wetlands would still be subject to permitting by the Ohio EPA under state law.
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