Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders have introduced legislation that would slam the brakes on new AI data center construction across the US. The Artificial Intelligence Data Center Moratorium Act would impose an immediate federal pause on building or expanding AI data centers until Congress passes comprehensive national safeguards.
What the bill actually does
Sanders introduced the Senate version, designated S.4214, on March 25, 2026. The House counterpart from Ocasio-Cortez followed on June 24, 2026.
The moratorium would remain in effect until Congress enacts what the bill describes as “strong national safeguards.” Those safeguards would need to address a laundry list of concerns: energy costs for consumers, environmental harm, job displacement, privacy rights, and civil rights.
The Senate bill was referred to the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. Its odds of passing in the current political climate are, to put it diplomatically, not great.
