The Trade Brief - 10 September 2026

Today's edition covers a Construction Dive analysis of the U.S. data center project pipeline, July nonresidential spending data that lays bare the two-speed construction market, the 20-day countdown to IIJA expiry with the BUILD America 250 Act still stalled in the Senate, and a state-level moratorium wave that now spans 32 states.

U.S. data center pipeline nearly tripled between March and August, even as state pushback intensifies. Between 16 March and 24 August 2026, the number of planned data center projects increased by 203% and operating projects jumped by 124%, according to a Construction Dive analysis of Cleanview market intelligence data^[1]. Behind the surge are commitments from the world's largest technology companies: J.P. Morgan estimates that large hyperscalers will invest a combined $697 billion in data center capital expenditures in 2026^[1]. Contractors with data center work on the books now carry 11 months of backlog - two and a half months more than those without - a gap that is reshaping how firms bid and staff^[1].

Data centers drove every dollar of nonresidential spending growth in July, while the rest of the market hit a three-year low. The monthly increase in nonresidential construction spending in July stemmed entirely from data center activity, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data released 2 September 2026. Excluding data centers, nonresidential spending fell for the second consecutive month and reached its lowest level since September 2023, said ABC chief economist Anirban Basu. Total construction spending in July dipped 0.5% month over month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2.17 trillion. For contractors without a data center contract in hand, the market is materially weaker than headline figures suggest.

IIJA surface transportation authority expires 30 September - 20 days from today - with the BUILD America 250 Act still stalled in the Senate. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act's surface transportation provisions expire on 30 September 2026. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed the $580 billion BUILD America 250 Act by a 62-to-2 vote in May, but the Senate has not released its own bill text. A Senate continuing resolution would extend IIJA authorizations to 11 December but would not continue the law's advance appropriations - funding that industry groups put at roughly $36.8 billion annually for the U.S. Department of Transportation. Without a separate congressional action, those funds would not carry into fiscal year 2027. Highway and transit contractors should treat the 30 September date as a hard planning boundary, not a formality.

New York enacted the first U.S. statewide data center moratorium in July 2026, and at least 321 restrictions are now tracked across 32 states. As of 1 September 2026, at least 321 data center moratoriums, bans, or restrictions have been tracked across 32 states, with 261 currently in force. New York became the first state to enact a statewide moratorium, in July 2026. In Virginia - the world's largest data center market by operating capacity - the state DEQ's Tier 4 emissions rules for new backup generators took effect 1 July 2026, and the legislature has introduced bills targeting the state's data center tax incentives. More than 300 data center bills were filed across 30-plus states in the first six weeks of 2026 alone. For developers and their GCs, the regulatory map is now as important as the power map: a project that clears grid interconnection may still face a local or state pause before a shovel breaks ground.