Newly Elected Officials Vow to Stop Data Centers
Governor-elect Gina Inahosa of Texas has promised to halt new data center construction until safeguards are established. Georgia Governor-elect Kesha Lance Bottoms also plans to pause new construction through an executive order, while OpenAI outlined plans to build trust with local communities.
Texas Governor-elect Gina Inahosa said she would halt construction of new data centers until safeguards are in place, a proposal that could affect a state expected to account for nearly 30% of U.S. data center capacity by 2030. The transcript does not identify a specific city or county for the proposed pause.
Georgia Governor-elect Kesha Lance Bottoms said she would sign an executive order pausing new data center construction after taking office. She attributed Georgia's rapid growth in the sector partly to tax and other incentives and said those agreements should be reviewed. Separately, OpenAI described plans to improve trust with local communities and collaborate with them on data center development.