Gov. Healey Data Center Executive Order Can Strengthen Energy Affordability Bill

Cambridge, Mass. (September 8, 2026)-A new executive order was signed by Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey today with the aim of protecting ratepayers from rising electricity costs and the health and environmental impacts of data centers. Last month the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) urged the state legislature to incorporate stronger data center protections into the energy affordability bill, with the House and Senate versions currently in conference committee to be voted on before the end of the year.

Below is a statement by Paula García, senior manager of energy justice research and policy at UCS:

"Governor Healey's leadership against data center harms is commendable. It should also put the legislature on notice-Massachusetts residents deserve comprehensive safeguards against unmitigated data center growth now. With rising energy costs impacting people across the state, requiring data centers to pay for their own costs to the electricity grid is fundamental.

"Mandating data centers meet their power demands with clean energy while protecting air and water quality is a win for people's health, climate and the environment. However, cumulative impact analyses should still be required to ensure equitable siting of data centers and their electricity sources. This attention to siting should be paired with substantive community benefit agreements and responsible labor practices to boost local economies.

"As legislators work to codify these data center protections, the connection to clean energy and the right of Massachusetts residents to decide on the state's nuclear energy future, as well as make energy more affordable through efficiency programs like Mass Save, cannot be overlooked. This executive order should serve as the blueprint for improving data center protections in the long-awaited energy affordability bill the legislature must pass this session."