Original analysis · Updated 2026-10-22

Opportunity Zone Data Center Site Index

Of the 25,332 census tracts eligible to become Opportunity Zones in 2027, 3,097 have a 230 kV or higher transmission line within 2 miles and at least five square miles of land. 2,589 of them are wholly rural.

tracts eligible for 2027 designation (Rev. Proc. 2026-14): 25,332
within 2 miles of a 230 kV+ transmission line: 11,762
also have 5+ square miles of land: 3,097
of those are wholly rural (30% step-up): 2,589

Where the power and the land are

A large data center needs two things the Opportunity Zone map does not show: a high-voltage line close enough to connect, and enough land to build on. This index measures both for every eligible tract. Southern states lead, where 230 kV lines run through large rural tracts. States whose grids run at 138 kV and 345 kV, such as Ohio and much of Texas, score lower on the 230 kV test but very high on the 115 kV one (see the table).

Fig. 1Candidate tracts by state: 230 kV+ within 2 miles and 5+ square miles of land

North Carolina263
Georgia257
Texas246
South Carolina202
Florida154
California150
Alabama149
Louisiana133
Virginia121
Puerto Rico109
Mississippi100
Kentucky88

Top 12 states. Eligible tracts from the Rev. Proc. 2026-14 appendix, measured against HIFLD transmission lines and Census tract boundaries.¹^,3^,4

Every state

Download this table (CSV)

State	Eligible tracts	Rural	Within 2 mi of 115 kV+	Within 2 mi of 230 kV+	Within 1 mi of 345 kV+	5+ sq mi of land	Candidates	Rural candidates
North Carolina	807	431	73%	59%	61	385	263	231
Georgia	942	421	98%	73%	148	384	257	224
Texas	2,420	524	98%	38%	560	489	246	170
South Carolina	445	326	88%	71%	17	257	202	195
Florida	1,360	284	89%	60%	35	224	154	124
California	2,469	345	80%	56%	106	253	150	96
Alabama	563	302	97%	54%	44	269	149	128
Louisiana	620	309	93%	63%	50	247	133	102
Virginia	607	287	92%	67%	113	229	121	108
Puerto Rico	712	243	90%	48%	0	189	109	61
Mississippi	404	320	100%	52%	41	221	100	94
Kentucky	545	381	86%	24%	101	322	88	87
Arizona	500	137	85%	62%	82	123	88	68
Ohio	1,032	278	93%	29%	193	149	81	70
Washington	394	147	99%	64%	52	103	70	58
New York	1,702	303	76%	39%	264	133	64	62
New Mexico	257	163	96%	40%	64	121	62	56
Arkansas	310	216	98%	26%	47	183	62	51
Oklahoma	413	188	97%	19%	55	139	58	53
Tennessee	507	222	96%	19%	64	198	56	48
West Virginia	207	207	95%	31%	52	124	54	54
Oregon	229	106	100%	59%	26	73	52	47
Illinois	950	211	76%	37%	212	114	47	36
Colorado	360	101	98%	66%	15	85	44	39
Pennsylvania	866	274	85%	52%	55	84	44	39
Missouri	523	220	90%	19%	54	185	42	35
Minnesota	289	107	88%	34%	42	74	35	33
Indiana	501	120	96%	47%	120	55	35	27
Michigan	856	251	80%	23%	45	118	28	23
Maryland	451	77	86%	47%	12	42	23	19
Montana	58	37	93%	50%	3	34	19	19
Idaho	80	32	91%	59%	7	25	16	14
Iowa	175	58	88%	14%	11	38	14	5
Nevada	195	25	97%	62%	22	19	14	11
Utah	147	30	98%	76%	49	20	13	12
Kansas	210	76	94%	11%	10	44	13	11
Maine	78	74	76%	26%	12	51	12	12
Nebraska	112	28	95%	31%	19	19	10	9
Wyoming	20	16	100%	95%	1	9	9	9
South Dakota	52	35	96%	31%	4	29	9	8
Wisconsin	306	67	91%	21%	36	37	9	9
New Jersey	516	37	89%	88%	107	10	8	2
North Dakota	37	18	95%	60%	5	15	7	6
New Hampshire	53	36	89%	38%	10	28	6	6
Vermont	24	24	83%	33%	6	13	6	6
Massachusetts	410	58	93%	49%	72	13	6	6
Delaware	61	22	92%	80%	2	11	5	5
Connecticut	243	30	99%	40%	35	8	3	1
Alaska	32	21	53%	13%	0	18	1	0
District of Columbia	66	0	100%	85%	0	0	0	0
Hawaii	88	35	47%	0%	0	21	0	0
Rhode Island	55	1	96%	16%	5	0	0	0
American Samoa	16	16	0%	0%	0	5	0	0
Guam	20	20	40%	0%	0	7	0	0
Northern Mariana Islands	19	19	0%	0%	0	5	0	0
U.S. Virgin Islands	18	18	0%	0%	0	3	0	0

Percentages are shares of the state's eligible tracts. Candidates have a 230 kV or higher line within 2 miles and at least 3,200 acres of land. Sorted by candidates.

How the index is built

Public data, a published method, and every number reproducible from the downloads.

1.Eligible tracts: all 25,332 tracts in the IRS appendix to Rev. Proc. 2026-14, with the IRS rural designation (8,334 wholly rural).
2.Tract boundaries and land area: the Census Bureau's 2024 cartographic boundary files. Every eligible tract matched a boundary.
3.Transmission: 51,097 line segments rated 115 kV or higher (10,677 at 230 kV or higher) from HIFLD, excluding lines marked inactive. Lines under construction or with unreported status are included.
4.Distance: the shortest straight-line distance from each tract's boundary to the nearest line of each voltage class, in an equal-area projection. Distances beyond 100 miles (islands and territories with no line of that class) are left blank.
5.Candidate screen: a 230 kV or higher line within 2 miles, and at least five square miles (3,200 acres) of land in the tract.

What this index does not tell you

Whether a line has spare capacity, or how long a utility will take to connect a large load.
Whether land in the tract is buildable or for sale: tract land area is a proxy, not a parcel screen of zoning, flood zones, slope or ownership.
Water, fiber or local permitting conditions.
Which tracts will be designated. These are eligible tracts; governors could nominate up to 25% of them, and Treasury certification is under way.

For a site-level review, tell us about the land or read how to select an Opportunity Zone data center site.

Download the data

State summary ↓56 states and territories, CSV Every eligible tract ↓25,332 tracts with distances and land area, CSV (2 MB)

Free to use. Please cite “OZ Data Centers, Opportunity Zone Data Center Site Index” and link to this page.

Questions

How many Opportunity Zone-eligible tracts are near high-voltage transmission?

11,762 of the 25,332 tracts eligible under Rev. Proc. 2026-14 (46%) are within 2 miles of a transmission line rated 230 kV or higher, and 22,434 (89%) are within 2 miles of a line rated 115 kV or higher.

How many eligible tracts could suit a large data center campus?

By this screen, 3,097 tracts combine a 230 kV or higher line within 2 miles and at least five square miles (3,200 acres) of land. 2,589 of them are wholly rural, which matters because a Qualified Rural Opportunity Fund earns a 30% basis step-up at five years instead of 10%.

Which states have the most candidate tracts?

North Carolina (263), Georgia (257), Texas (246), South Carolina (202), Florida (154) lead on the combined power-and-land screen.

Are these the final 2027 Opportunity Zones?

No. These are the tracts eligible for nomination. Governors could nominate up to 25% of their eligible tracts, and Treasury is certifying those nominations now. The index will be re-run on the designated tracts when the official list is published.

Does being near a transmission line mean a site can get power?

No. Proximity is a first screen. Whether a line has capacity, and how long interconnection takes, depends on the utility and grid operator studies. Many regions now have multi-year queues for large loads.

Sources

1.Internal Revenue Service, “Rev. Proc. 2026-14, Appendix: population census tracts eligible for designation as qualified opportunity zones,” 2026.
2.Internal Revenue Service, “Rev. Proc. 2026-14,” 2026.
3.U.S. Census Bureau, “2024 Cartographic Boundary Files, census tracts (1:500,000),” 2024.
4.Homeland Infrastructure Foundation-Level Data (HIFLD), via ArcGIS, “U.S. Electric Power Transmission Lines,” 2026.

This website is for general information only. It is not an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any security. Any offering will be made only through confidential offering documents, to eligible investors, where permitted by law. Opportunity Zone tax benefits depend on each investor's circumstances and on rules that can change; consult your own tax and legal advisers.