New York becomes first state to impose one-year pause on new AI datacenters | New York

New York became the first US state to impose a moratorium on new data centers on Tuesday.

Gov. Kathy Hochul issued an executive order mandating a one-year statewide shutdown of major facilities used to power AI products, which she signed at a mid-morning news conference.

“As data center development threatens to increase utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers, it is my responsibility to take action and lead,” Hochul, a Democrat, said in a statement.

The governor’s office said the order would pause the state permitting process for “hyperscale” data centers, defined as having more than 50 megawatts of electrical capacity, and direct state regulators to create standards focusing on environmental impacts, energy demand, water use and other factors.

“This pause will continue for up to a year while New York creates the strongest possible framework to protect our community’s guardrails to reduce risk to our energy grid, minimize land disruption, noise pollution, and protect our national resources, especially our water supply,” Hochul said at the press conference.

Appetite for data center moratoriums is growing across the country as anger grows over the facilities’ impacts on energy prices and the local environment. Nearly three-quarters of Americans oppose a data center project being built near their home new Heatmap survey.

More than a dozen states have considered the moratorium option in response to residents’ fears about the potential costs of living, especially near data centers. higher bills and negative environmental impacts. Maine was the only other state to approve a moratorium through its legislature, but its governor vetoed the measure in April. A small city in Southern California became the first municipality to enact a building moratorium through a vote last month. Seattle passed a one-year ban on data center development in June, becoming the largest city to do so.

A. June survey A survey from the Siena Research Institute found that 46% of New Yorkers think a one-year moratorium on new permits for large data centers in the state would be good for New York, while 21% think it would be bad for New York.

The state is also exploring requirements for hyperscale data centers to pay more for or source their own energy, which would help keep electric bills low for New Yorkers, Hochul said during the press conference. He expects this process to be completed within the year. “Once this policy comes into effect, the moratorium will be reviewed and lifted,” he said.

While Hochul emphasized that data centers “can only be built, they should only be built in places that want them, and therefore can never be exempt from local zoning,” he also touted the state’s ability to lead innovation and “leverage AI as the technology of the future.”

During his speech, Hochul outlined the state’s broader vision for AI regulation. He instructed his administration to create a framework for communities that want to host data centers to ensure that residents also receive significant benefits.

“The larger the data center, the greater the investments that communities can and should expect,” Hochul said. He also proposed ending tax exemptions for large data centers.

The New York state legislature had already approved a one-year statewide moratorium bill that includes an environmental impact report and new labor, energy efficiency and transparency standards. The new order would apply to hyperscale data centers over 50 megawatts, a higher threshold than the 20 megawatts approved by the legislature.

So far, Hochul has not given the green light to the legislation, but state senator Kristen Gonzalez, who wrote the bill, welcomed his executive order.

“With this executive order, Governor Hochul protects ordinary New Yorkers by breaking new ground with a nationwide moratorium on new large data centers. By giving our state time to plan, we can ensure that growth and innovation do not come at the expense of all of us.”