For some time there’s been a growing rebellion by residents to proposed data center construction projects, but by and large these have been driven by citizens. Maine, however, has become the 1st state to press pause on new data center construction.
The Wall Street Journal reports the proposed law would pause new projects of 20 megawatts or more until November 2027 while the state studies the effects on the environment and the electric grid.
The bill passed the Maine House last month with bipartisan support and is expected to clear the Senate. Gov. Janet Mills reportedly backs a moratorium, though her office also supports an exception for one planned project in Jay, Maine.
Meanwhile, just down Interstate 95 in Rhode Island, the town of Smithfield is also preparing to ban the construction of data centers in the town. The Town Council was given a thumbs up by the town Planning Board to a proposed ban on data centers in Smithfield.
The ordinance also proposes a two-year period for the board or council to review it. With the ordinance in place, a developer could approach the town with a data center but would need to request a use variance.
The moves reflect a rebellion against data centers from citizens to local governments. Lawmakers in at least 11 states have introduced temporary data center moratorium bills this session, according to Stateline.
It’s getting harder and harder for governments to ignore the impact that data centers are having on their communities, consuming vast amounts of water and driving up electricity prices, experts say.
According to a Pew Research Center analysis, data centers consumed 183 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2024, more than 4% of total U.S. electricity use. That demand is projected to more than double to 426 terawatt-hours by 2030. The impact is significant. In 2023, data centers consumed about 26% of Virginia’s electricity supply, although Virginia is notable for having an extremely dense collection of data centers.
Alan Howard, senior analyst for infrastructure at Omdia, says he is not surprised at all. “The amount of national press coverage regarding what is arguably a limited number of data center ‘horror’ stories has many jurisdictions and states spooked over the potential impacts data center projects might have,” he said.
It’s an evolution that’s been coming for some time whereby local legislators have embraced the idea that they don’t want to learn the hard way as others already have, he argues.
“All that said, it seems unlikely that there will be broad bans on data center development that would cripple the industry. There’s lots of places to go in the U.S. and developers have warmed up to siting projects in places amenable to their needs, although not ideally convenient,” said Howard.