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New York's moratorium on data centers could serve as an opening salvo for leaders in other states looking to rein in tech infrastructure — as well as congressional Democrats hoping to seize on the issue in the November midterms.The executive order that Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul signed Tuesday marks the first state-level pause on data center construction, following dozens of municipalities in red and blue states that have passed similar moratoriums. But industry supporters and detractors alike say it's unlikely to be the last, amid poll numbers showing growing public skepticism toward AI.The moratorium also serves as a bridge of sorts between moderate Democrats such as Hochul and progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who have clamored for more restrictions on data centers and artificial intelligence. The party as a whole remains torn on how hard a line to draw against one of Silicon Valley's top priorities, despite a trend of Democrats from Pennsylvania to California embracing the push for new guardrails on the sprawling, energy-hungry AI hubs.Sanders told POLITICO on Tuesday that the concept of a moratorium, dismissed just months ago as a "radical idea," is entering the mainstream."There is a growing understanding that maybe we better slow the process up in order to understand the extraordinary impact that AI is going to have on our economy, on our privacy rights, on the mental health of our kids, and existential threats as well," Sanders said.The senator introduced legislation with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) this year that would impose a nationwide pause on data center construction. A month later, one of the party's most powerful moderates — Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee — endorsed a federal moratorium as well.The moratorium call has yet to gain traction among congressional Democrats as a whole, but data center developers are expressing angst about where the trend is heading.
