New York officials just passed what could become the country’s first state data center ban—but the bill still needs Gov. Kathy Hochul’s signature. This one-year pause would give lawmakers time to regulate data centers. The bill also orders the state environmental agency to measure how much electricity, water, and land these facilities gobble up.
The move has broad support: Heatmap polling found that a majority of US voters—both Democrats and Republicans—back a national AI data center moratorium (which has been proposed by Senate Democrats).
And in Illinois, Gov. JB Pritzker announced plans to temporarily suspend tax breaks for data centers (beginning July 1). The state has the fourth-highest number of planned and operating data centers, and residents have voiced concerns over high utility bills, a strained grid, and drained local resources.
Molly Glick
Energy Central Team
dom, jun 7