New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced the implementation of a statewide moratorium on the construction of new, large-scale data centers on July 14, 2026. The temporary freeze, lasting one year, aims to allow state lawmakers to draft regulations intended to protect energy resources. Hochul stated that the rapid growth of artificial intelligence has led to an increase in data centers that require significant amounts of electricity and water for cooling.
The executive order halts the construction of data centers that plan to use more than 50 megawatts of power and mandates the creation of a 'Community Investment Framework' to ensure local communities receive economic benefits from these facilities. Additionally, Hochul plans to pursue legislation to repeal sales tax exemptions for data centers.
Currently, New York has at least 133 data centers, while Virginia and Texas lead the nation with 637 and 504, respectively. The New York state legislature had previously passed the Responsible Data Center Development Act, which proposes a one-year moratorium on new permits and aims to establish energy efficiency goals and a community benefits program. However, Hochul's executive order is less stringent than the proposed legislation, which seeks to ban centers using more than 20 megawatts. According to a Siena Poll conducted in June, 46% of respondents supported a one-year moratorium on new permits for large data centers.