Maine bill blocks data centers from state tax breaks

Maine lawmakers are considering a bill that would exclude new data centers from tax breaks for job creation and equipment investment. The bill aims to prevent data centers from taking advantage of these economic development programs, as they do not require a large workforce and have been criticized for their energy and water demands. The bill faces opposition from the Maine Building Trades union, which argues the debate should consider the construction jobs created to build data centers. The Legislature is also considering a temporary moratorium on new large data centers to study the issue further.