New York becomes the first US state to freeze new AI data centers

4:00 PM · July 14, 2026

New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed an executive order establishing the nation's first statewide moratorium on new hyperscale AI data centers, according to the governor's own office. The order immediately directs the state's Department of Environmental Conservation to stop issuing discretionary permits for large data center projects — those drawing 50 megawatts of power or more — for up to a year, though applications already deemed complete will still be processed. During that pause, the state will draft a Generic Environmental Impact Statement examining how these facilities affect energy demand, water consumption, and air quality, a process expected to take up to a year. Hochul framed the move around affordability and resource strain, saying data center development 'threatens to hike up utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers.' The executive order follows five weeks after the New York State Legislature passed its own moratorium bill, the Responsible Data Center Development Act, on June 4 — that legislative version would have applied to a broader set of facilities, using a lower 20-megawatt threshold, versus the executive order's 50-megawatt line. Similar moratoriums have been proposed in roughly a dozen other states without gaining traction, making New York's action politically notable both nationally and for Hochul's own re-election campaign amid rising utility-bill complaints.