NYS Legislature Passes Data Center Moratorium

NYS Legislature Passes Data Center Moratorium

Victory

New York is one step closer to becoming first state in the nation to hit pause on building new AI data centers

Contacts

Nydia Gutierrez, [email protected]

Today, the New York State Senate and Assembly passed the Responsible Data Center Development Act (S10642) and put a one-year moratorium on AI data centers.

In response, Liz Moran, New York Policy Advocate at Earthjustice, said:

"1 in 4 New Yorkers already can't afford their energy bills, and that's without the rapid buildout of AI data centers. We applaud the legislature for putting the public first and bringing New York one step closer to becoming the first state in the nation to hit the pause button and conduct a thoughtful review before we experience the tremendous buyers' remorse that other states are facing. Now, we need Governor Hochul to sign the bill and protect New Yorkers' wallets and health. Governor Hochul, sign the Responsible Data Center Development Act now!"

Ample evidence shows that building new fossil fuel infrastructure to power data centers drives up utility rates for ratepayers, while renewable energy paired with storage is faster, cheaper and far less polluting for host communities.

The legislature's action can help ensure everyday New Yorkers will not be left to pay for the massive energy consumption of AI data centers and the fossil fuel infrastructure built to power proposed facilities that may never materialize. New Yorkers are already paying triple for energy from previous years while utilities that will serve AI data centers are raking in record profits, and data center proposals are already starting to crop up in the state.

States that previously welcomed and subsidized unchecked data center expansion are now adopting laws and policies to protect ratepayers and communities. Lawmakers are learning from these states by holding tech companies accountable for their energy use and environmental impacts, rejecting fossil fuel expansion, and protecting working families from rising energy bills.

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