"New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) is imposing the nation’s first-ever statewide freeze on new “hyperscale” data centers. Hochul is pausing state-level environmental permits for “up to” a year to give the state time to put together a framework to protect the environment, the energy grid and New Yorkers’ electric bills, her office said."
"The Trump administration is facing a new legal challenge over an emergency order keeping a Florida coal-fired power plant, which had been scheduled for retirement, in operation." "Advocacy groups said the order failed to establish an energy emergency. The Department of Energy partly attributed one to anticipated demand associated with data centers."
"Tech companies face a fundamental choice with no winning answer for keeping data centers cool."
"A court ruling shrinking the scope of the Clean Water Act has allowed new data centers to speed through the federal permitting process. Communities are feeling the effects."
"U.S. power consumption, which hit its second straight annual record high in 2025, will rise further in 2026 and 2027, driven by AI-hungry data centers and electrification, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) on Tuesday."
"As the data center buildout escalates, rural Pennsylvanians urge lawmakers not to repeat past mistakes."
"The House Energy and Commerce Committee will vote on bipartisan legislation this week to shield utility customers from the costs associated with data centers, while also advancing legislation aimed at bolstering the nation’s transmission system to meet surging demand."
"It would be the largest data center in the state; the parent company, Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing, LLC describes it as a hyperscale facility, “designed exclusively for advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning operations.”"
"The Trump administration is providing $17.5 billion to speed the development of 10 new large nuclear reactors to meet the skyrocketing power demand from massive data centers."
"The Trump administration urged a federal court on Monday to dismiss an environmental lawsuit against Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup, saying the company’s Grok government model and the data centers that power it are crucial to national security. The NAACP alleges that xAI has rushed to build and continue expanding its Colossus Gas Plant in vulnerable and heavily Black communities near the Tennessee-Mississippi border without legally required permits or pollution controls."
