First Data Center Project Enters Federal 'FAST' Permitting Program
Designation responds to federal push to streamline approvals for AI infrastructure amid rising demand.
April 10, 2026 – A Virginia data center project has become the first to enter a federal permitting program designed to speed up approvals for major infrastructure developments.
The data center expansion located near Richmond, Va., has been designated a FAST-41 “covered project” by the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council. The designation comes from the 2015 Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act.
The designation would allow the project to benefit from enhanced federal coordination and a more transparent permitting timeline, and may mark a milestone for data centers, which have not previously been included in the FAST-41 program, historically used for sectors such as energy, transportation and broadband.
