Maine could be the first state to successfully call a timeout on the AI race.
Lawmakers in at least 12 states have tried this year to slow Big Tech’s AI infrastructure buildout with legislation that would impose temporary bans on approvals and construction of new data centers.
The proposed moratoriums are a response to rising local resistance to data centers, as communities across the country raise questions about the impact of these facilities on local resources and infrastructure.
The US has 4,000 data centers, and 3,000 either proposed or under construction, according to the American Edge Project, a tech coalition. As their footprint has grown, local communities have mobilized protests over a wide range of concerns, from noise pollution to rising utility bills.
A Business Insider review of state legislative dockets found 12 data center moratorium bills brought by state lawmakers in 2026.
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Proponents of the bans said that pausing data center development would give state agencies time to study the impacts of data center growth on the environment, electricity rates, public health, local infrastructure, and more.
Of those 12 bills, only Maine’s hasn’t stalled out or been voted down.
On Tuesday, the state’s House and Senate approved the bill and sent it to the governor’s desk to be signed into law.
As long as Maine Gov. Janet Mills signs off, the bill would impose a temporary ban on AI data center construction in the state until November 1, 2027.
If passed, the bill would impose a temporary ban on AI data center construction in the state until November 1, 2027.
Nearly all of the moratorium bills called for temporary bans on data center construction of at least a year.
While Maine doesn’t have a large data center footprint, it has seen an uptick in developer interest as Big Tech’s AI infrastructure buildout spreads to every corner of the country.
Legislators in states with mature data center markets, such as Georgia and Virginia, have had less luck drumming up support for statewide moratoriums.
Maine’s moratorium isn’t guaranteed until the governor signs it into law — and there’s always a chance it could be vetoed.
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Last month, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduced federal legislation calling for a national pause on data center development to allow Congress time to better understand their impacts.
“Congress is way behind where it should be in understanding the nature of this revolution and its impacts,” Sanders said in a press release.
Here’s how 12 states have tried to pause new data center development.
Georgia
A group of Democrats in Georgia’s House of Representatives proposed a temporary halt to data center construction and development in the state. The bill never made it to the floor for a vote.
House Bill 1059 would have required the state to form a commission to study the impact of data centers on Georgia’s electric grid, water supply, and local infrastructure.
Georgia is home to 93 data centers, according to the bill.
Elon Musk’s xAI has a large data center in Atlanta, and Microsoft is building an AI infrastructure hub nearby.
Maine
Maine’s House and Senate passed a bill this week that would put a temporary pause on data centers in the state. They have sent it to the governor’s office for a final sign-off.
If the governor approves, Maine will become the first state to enact a moratorium on data center construction.
Maine isn’t exactly a data center hot spot. Business Insider’s data center map shows that, as of early 2025, only two facilities in the state had requested permits for diesel-fired backup generators.
Maryland
A group of Republican lawmakers in the Maryland House of Delegates floated an emergency measure immediately halting all data center construction in the state. It failed to gain traction.
If passed, the emergency measure would have remained in effect until Maryland passed legislation requiring all data centers in the state to generate their own electricity.
Instead, lawmakers next week are expected to pass broader energy legislation aimed at reducing residential electricity bills.
Although Maryland’s data center market is small, power-hungry facilities drive up electricity rates, according to the state’s official utility watchdog.
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Michigan
A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced a bill to temporarily suspend data center approvals in the state until April 1, 2027.
The legislation hasn’t gone anywhere so far and isn’t likely to succeed. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has previously indicated that she would oppose a data center moratorium in Michigan.
Meanwhile, grassroots efforts have taken off at the local level. In March, East Lansing approved a six-month moratorium to give the city planning commission time to study the potential impacts of data centers on the community.
Huron County, Delta County, and Big Rapids Township have approved moratoriums spanning from one to three years.
New Hampshire
A Democratic lawmaker tried and failed to push through a one-year moratorium on data center construction that would allow the state to study potential environmental impacts.
Rep. Peter Schmidt’s House Bill 1265 was voted down on March 11.
New York
State Sen. Liz Krueger’s S9144 would halt the issuance of new data center permits in New York for three years, pending an environmental review.
If enacted, the bill would also require the state’s public service commission to issue a report on the impacts of data centers on everyday ratepayers.
The bill is stalled in committee.
Oklahoma
A Republican Oklahoma lawmaker, Sen. Kendal Sacchieri, is pushing for a data center moratorium in the state through 2029 “to ensure that progress does not come at the expense of Oklahomans’ quality of life or their utility costs,” she said in a press release.
Introduced in January, the bill stalled early on in the state’s legislative session. That hasn’t stopped local communities from making progress.
Tulsa last month passed a nine-month data center moratorium. In March, the Seminole Nation became the first indigenous group to ban data centers in its territory.
South Carolina
Lawmakers proposed a moratorium in February. The bill hasn’t gained traction.
Google is expanding its presence in the state, and Meta is building a data center campus in Aiken County.
South Dakota
While a Senate committee in February killed a moratorium bill, South Dakota lawmakers didn’t go too easy on data centers.
Several proposed bills that would have given the industry a boost in the state failed to go through, including one that would have granted a 50-year sales tax exemption.
Vermont
Like its nearby state, Maine, Vermont isn’t home to any major cloud data centers.
That didn’t stop Sen. Rebecca White from proposing a moratorium this year. The bill was referred to the Senate’s finance committee in January and hasn’t moved since.
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Virginia
Lawmakers in Virginia, home to the world’s largest concentration of data centers, reviewed a moratorium bill and decided to punt it to 2027.
Virginia houses the world’s largest concentration of data centers and was one of the first states to offer the industry an exemption from sales tax on computer equipment.
In January, Virginia’s Department of Taxation said the exemption had cost the state budget $1.9 billion in the 2025 fiscal year.
The state legislature will convene a special session later in April to debate the future of the exemption, which is scheduled to expire in 2035. Lawmakers are fiercely divided over whether to end the program early or extend it through 2050.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin’s attempt to pause data center construction died on the Senate floor less than two weeks after it was introduced.
AB1099 would have implemented a moratorium on data center construction in Wisconsin until a statewide data center planning authority was established.
While state-level efforts failed, a Milwaukee suburb this week became the first city in the country to pass a data center referendum. Now, all future data center tax breaks in Port Washington, home to an Oracle-backed Stargate site, will require local voter approval.
