NEW YORK (AP) — New York is moving to halt construction of large new data centers across the state for as long as a year, giving officials time to craft rules that shield the environment and power grid from the enormous demands placed on them by facilities that support artificial intelligence technology.
Gov. Kathy Hochul is scheduled to sign an executive order Tuesday that will establish the nation’s first statewide moratorium on hyperscale data centers — massive complexes filled with thousands of computer servers that consume extraordinary amounts of electricity and require a constant flow of water to prevent overheating.
“As data center development threatens to hike up utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers, it’s my responsibility to take action and lead,” Hochul, a Democrat, said in a prepared statement.
Under the executive order, state agencies will be directed to stop issuing permits for new large-scale data centers while regulators develop guidelines addressing environmental concerns, energy consumption, water use, and related issues, according to the governor’s office.
Supporters of data center development, including technology companies, have pushed back against such restrictions, arguing they cost local communities jobs and weaken the United States’ position against China in the rapidly expanding artificial intelligence sector.
New York is not the first state to consider such a measure. Maine came close to passing a similar ban earlier this year, but the state’s Democratic governor vetoed it, citing concerns about blocking a planned data center in a community already struggling after a local mill shut down. While moratoriums have been proposed in at least a dozen states, most have not advanced — though some local governments at the county and municipal level have enacted their own temporary restrictions.
The executive order also carries weight politically for Hochul, who faces a reelection campaign and whose party is navigating competitive congressional contests this fall. Democrats have been working to address voter concerns about the cost of living, including rising utility bills. Hochul earlier this year scaled back the state’s aggressive greenhouse gas reduction targets, pointing to growing energy costs for residents.
Hochul’s Republican challenger in the governor’s race, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, has come out against a statewide moratorium. He argues that local governments should retain the authority to negotiate directly with technology companies on data center projects that deliver sufficient economic benefits to their communities.
The state Legislature had already passed its own moratorium bill this year, but Hochul’s office characterized that legislation as overly complicated and in need of further refinement. The governor chose instead to act through an executive order, which takes effect immediately upon signing.
At this point, New York has not been a major destination for the largest hyperscale data center projects.
