Reuters reports that New York has become the first state in the US to stop construction of new large data centres. Governor Kathy Hochul has imposed a one-year moratorium on new facilities that plan to use 50 megawatts or more, as concerns over electricity bills, natural resources and local communities keep growing globally.
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Built on top of those concerns, there's a growing backlash against AI infrastructure, and the move reflects just that. Data centres try to expand rapidly to support the always-increasing AI demand, but their power and water needs are becoming a political issue across the US and beyond, as now many states consider restrictions or new rules. NY wants new environmental standards in place before allowing more projects, and during the moratorium state officials will study the impact of data-centre construction and operation. Hochul also plans to eventually repeal (remove) sales tax exemptions for large hyperscale centres.