New York lawmakers propose a three-year pause on new data centers

New Yorker state lawmakers have done just that submitted a bill that would impose a moratorium of at least three years on permits related to the construction and operation of new data centers. Although the bill’s prospects are uncertain, Wired reports that New York is at least the sixth state to consider pausing construction of new data centers.

As tech companies plan to spend increasing amounts of money building AI infrastructure, both Democrats and Republicans have expressed concerns about the impact these data centers could have on surrounding communities. Studies have also linked data centers higher electricity bills at home.

Critics include progressive Senator Bernie Sanders, who has done so called for a national moratoriumas well as Florida’s conservative governor, Ron De Santis, who mentioned data centers will lead to “Higher energy bills so a chatbot can corrupt a 13-year-old child online.”

More than 230 environmental groups, including Food & Water Watch, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, recently signed an open letter to Congress calling for a national moratorium on the construction of new data centers.

Food & Water Watch’s Eric Weltman told Wired that the New York bill — sponsored by Senator Liz Krueger and Assemblywoman Anna Kelles, both Democrats — was “our idea.” Data center pauses have also been proposed by Democrats in Georgia, Vermont and Virginia, while Republicans supported similar bills in Maryland and Oklahoma.

According to PoliticoKrueger described her condition as “completely unprepared” for the “huge data centers” “aiming for New York.”

“It’s time to hit the pause button, give ourselves some breathing room to implement strong data center policies, and avoid getting caught in a bubble that will burst and leave New York utility customers with a huge bill,” she said.

Last month, New York Governor Kathy Hochul said announced a new initiative called Energize NY Development, which her office said would both modernize the way large energy users (i.e. data centers) would connect to the electric grid, and also require them to “pay their fair share.”