New Mexico Republicans push back on proposal for statewide data center moratorium

Democratic lawmakers in New Mexico are planning to introduce legislation for a statewide moratorium on data center development, following a legislative committee hearing where the proposal was met with skepticism from Republicans. Representatives Micaela Lara Cadena, D-Mesilla, and Angelica Rubio, D-Las Cruces, from Doña Ana County, are leading the effort, stating the moratorium would allow the state to establish clear parameters for data center operations.

The impetus for this proposal is Project Jupiter, a massive data center initiative in Doña Ana County backed by Oracle Corp. and OpenAI. This project has sparked debate over the state's capacity to support such large-scale operations, given its limited water and electricity resources. Concerns also include the Doña Ana County Commission's transparency in approving Project Jupiter, which involved $165 billion in industrial revenue bonds.

Republicans, including Rep. Joshua Hernandez of Rio Rancho, Sen. Nicole Tobiassen of Albuquerque, and Sen. Jay Block of Rio Rancho, argue against the moratorium, emphasizing the economic benefits like 7,000 construction jobs, 1,500 ongoing jobs, and $80 million in tax revenue already generated by Project Jupiter. They contend that data centers are essential for modern life and that New Mexico should not fall behind in this growing industry, pointing to existing facilities like Meta's Los Lunas data center as not degrading air quality. Sen. Block has called for a formal economic impact statement on potential losses from a moratorium.

While the proposed ban is temporary, designed to allow time for regulatory development, other New Mexico counties like Santa Fe, Sierra, and Socorro have already enacted similar moratoriums. Bernalillo County has also adopted resolutions to create 'guardrails' for data center development, reflecting a broader trend of communities seeking to regulate the rapidly expanding AI-driven data center sector.