Pressure mounts for Kathy Hochul to sign data center moratorium bill
Advocates are pressuring New York Governor Kathy Hochul to sign the Responsible Data Center Development Act, which would establish comprehensive regulations and a broader moratorium on data centers across the state. This comes after Hochul issued a one-year executive order moratorium, which critics say doesn't go far enough to address concerns about energy-intensive projects like TeraWulf's proposed data center at the former Cayuga Power Plant.
A crowd gathered at Salt Point Natural Area in the Town of Lansing, New York, to urge Governor Kathy Hochul to sign the Responsible Data Center Development Act. This bill, passed by both houses of the state legislature in June, aims to establish comprehensive regulations for data centers and would impose a moratorium on facilities larger than 20 megawatts, expanding upon Hochul's existing executive order.
Governor Hochul previously issued a one-year moratorium on state permitting for data centers larger than 50 megawatts in July, citing public opposition to energy-intensive projects. However, advocates, including Indigenous leaders and state legislators like Assemblymember Anna Kelles and State Senator Kristen Gonzales, argue that the executive order is insufficient. The proposed bill, co-authored by Kelles and Gonzales, seeks to codify requirements for public participation, transparency, renewable energy use, labor standards, public benefits, and separate water and energy rate classes for data centers.
The push for stricter regulations is driven by local concerns, particularly surrounding TeraWulf's plan to transform the defunct Cayuga Power Plant into a 150-megawatt data center, with potential expansion to 400 megawatts. This project has faced steady opposition from environmentalists and has divided Lansing politics. TeraWulf CEO Paul Prager stated that their project would not be impacted by the executive order, and they are continuing development at Cayuga and Lake Mariner.
Hochul has until December 31 to sign or veto the Responsible Data Center Development Act; otherwise, it will be pocket vetoed. Lansing Town Board member Joe Wetmore noted that the town is consulting lawyers to determine its response to the executive order, clarifying that the town board does not make decisions on individual projects.