Maine governor criticized for nixing state data center moratorium: "Simply wrong"

Governor Janet Mills of Maine vetoed a bill on Friday that sought to implement a temporary ban on the construction of large data centers within the state. The proposed legislation, which had been endorsed by Maine legislators earlier in the month, aimed to address concerns regarding the environmental impact of these facilities, their significant power consumption, and the strain they place on local electricity grids and residents' bills. If signed into law, it would have been the first statewide data center moratorium in the US, pausing new construction until November of next year and establishing a council to assess the risks and benefits of proposed data centers. State Representative Melanie Sachs, a sponsor of the bill, strongly criticized the Governor's decision, calling it "simply wrong" and claiming it resisted the will of a majority of Maine people and her own task force's advice. Governor Mills defended her veto, stating that the bill failed to include an exception for a specific data center project in a region that had suffered a "devastating" economic blow from a mill closure three years prior. This debate unfolds amidst a national boom in data center demand, driven by generative AI, and rising electricity costs in states like Maine.