Watch Senator Gonzalez’s speech on the bill’s passage here.

Albany, NY — New York State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, Chair of the Senate Internet and Technology Committee, announced the passage of The Responsible Data Center Development Act (S.10462), legislation requiring environmental impact assessments, new rate classes for electricity and water usage, and labor protections on the development of data centers. It notably includes a one-year statewide moratorium on new data center permits for hyperscale facilities with a peak load of over 20 Megawatts.  

The bill passed both the Senate and Assembly chambers yesterday, as the legislature adjourns for the year. It was introduced in the Assembly (A.11560) by Assemblymember Didi Barrett, Chair of the Energy Committee, and received 60+ memos of support. If signed by the Governor, The Responsible Data Center Development Act would be the first in the nation statewide moratorium on data centers. 

Senator Kristen Gonzalez said, "This is a historic moment for New York. For too long Big Tech has benefited from under-regulation, writing their own rules on large scale data center development with little accountability or transparency on local impacts. Technology should improve peoples’ lives, not drive up our energy bills or exhaust our natural resources and increase pollution. That’s why this bill takes a responsible approach to hyperscale data center development, putting New Yorkers in the driver’s seat and studying the environmental and economic impacts of data centers. I was proud to work with Assemblymember Barrett, Food & Water Watch, and a broad coalition of environmental justice organizations who understood the urgency of this bill. I look forward to this bill being delivered to the Governor’s desk, and signed into law.”

Today, data centers make up 4% of our country’s energy demand, and are on track to triple this amount in the next three years. There are 28 large data centers in the New York State Independent Systems Operator’s queue that is estimated to add an additional 9,682 megawatts of energy onto the state’s already constrained and aging grid.

Data centers use billions of gallons of water a year. In areas like Virginia and Georgia, where there’s been an increase in data center development, residents in the surrounding neighborhoods have seen an increase in their utility bills and disruption to their community. 

The Responsible Data Center Development Act, S10642, would: 

• Establish a one-year moratorium on new permits for large data centers with a peak load of over 20 Megawatts
• Require a public hearing with public comment in the local community prior to approval of any future permits
• Require the Department of Environmental Conservation to conduct an environmental impact report on data centers throughout the state to evaluate the number of data centers, energy and water usage, pollution, electronic waste, and other impacts
• Create a new electric rate class for data centers over 20 Megawatts
• Create a new water rate class for data centers over 20 Megawatts
• Establish energy efficiency goals for data centers with a peak load of over 5 Megawatts
• Create a host community benefit program that would require any data center operators with peak loads of over 20 Megawatts to make investments in the local community 
• Set labor standards for the construction of data centers with peak loads over 5 Megawatts to meet prevailing wage, work with apprenticeships and workforce training, and require all iron or steel used in construction to be made in the US