NY State Legislature passes one year data center moratorium
The New York State Legislature passed a one-year moratorium on data center permits, aiming to establish new regulations on utilities, energy efficiency, community benefits, and labor standards. This action follows local efforts, such as Perth's town board enacting its own moratorium to address concerns over energy usage and maintain local control. The bill now awaits Governor Kathy Hochul's signature, facing both support for resource protection and opposition arguing for local municipal decision-making.
The New York State Legislature has passed a one-year moratorium on data center permits, a measure intended to provide time for the state to develop comprehensive regulations for the industry. This legislative action, which now heads to Governor Kathy Hochul's desk, would make New York the first state in the country to enact a statewide data center moratorium. Proponents argue that a pause is essential to consider reasonable regulations that protect critical water and energy resources, while opponents contend that individual municipalities should retain control over such decisions, expressing concern that the state could lose a competitive edge by missing out on data center development.
The proposed state law also mandates the creation of new rules covering utility usage, energy efficiency goals, community benefits, and labor standards for data centers. This move comes amidst growing scrutiny of data center impacts, with the New York Independent System Operator currently reviewing 24 data center proposals totaling over 9,000 megawatts. One such project, a proposed 180-megawatt data center at the former Kenwood Convent site in Albany, has already sparked significant criticism from the community, who felt "caught off guard" by the development. The developer, Guild Ventures, did not respond to inquiries.
Meanwhile, local communities are taking their own preemptive actions. In Perth, a town of fewer than 5,000 residents, the Town Board passed a local moratorium to prevent data center proposals from advancing. Supervisor Greg Fagan stated this effort aims to avoid spikes in energy usage and safeguard local control, citing past negative experiences with large-scale renewable energy projects. Perth has previously enacted moratoriums on solar, wind, and lithium battery storage facilities, reflecting a broader local desire to thoroughly assess the implications of such developments.