Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez push bill to impose AI data center moratorium

WASHINGTON– Two leading progressive lawmakers introduced a bill Wednesday that would pause the creation of new data centers in the United States until national safeguards are in place to protect workers and consumers and ensure the technologies do not harm the environment.

The bill from Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont is unlikely to advance in the House or Senate, but it shows deep concerns shared by many progressives about the growing impact of data centers and artificial intelligence.

Communities across the country have witnessed a backlash against data centers due to fears over rising electricity prices and concerns about pollution and water consumption. Opposition to rising electricity prices was also a key factor in Democrats winning elections last year in states like Georgia, Virginia and New Jersey.

Although advances in artificial intelligence are seen by President Donald Trump and other leaders as essential to the nation’s economic and national security, their growing energy needs threaten to overwhelm the power grid. Trump has sought to allay public concerns about AI, inviting major tech companies to the White House earlier this month to commit to developing their own power generation.

“They need PR help because people think if a data center goes in there, electricity prices are going to go up,” Trump said.

Voters need much more than voluntary assurances from “Big Tech oligarchs” as they face “the most profound technological revolution in world history,” Sanders said Wednesday.

Changes related to AI and robotics will impact the U.S. economy and American democracy as well as “our privacy rights, our emotional well-being, our environment and even our survival as human beings on this planet,” he said at a news conference on Capitol Hill, adding: “Congress is way behind where it should be in understanding the nature of this revolution and its impacts.” »

A moratorium will give lawmakers, business leaders and others time to understand the risks of AI and data centers, protect working families and democracy and ensure the technology works for all Americans, Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez said.

Electricity consumption in the United States reached an all-time high in 2024 and is expected to continue to rise as data centers continue to expand at a rapid pace. A typical AI-driven data center consumes as much electricity as 100,000 homes.

Ocasio-Cortez said big tech companies are chasing “endless energy” and “are now so desperate to take advantage of the AI ​​boom that they are rushing to build thousands of giant AI data centers and raising the utility costs of ordinary Americans to pay for them.”

“Congress has a moral obligation to stand with the American people and stop Big Tech from ruining their communities,” she said.

Most MPs from both parties rejected the idea of ​​a moratorium.

Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania said he agreed with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s warning that a moratorium on data centers is tantamount to waving a “surrender flag” to China. “I refuse to help give AI leadership to China,” Fetterman wrote on X.

The Data Center Coalition, an industry group, said data centers “power modern life – from telehealth and digital classrooms to banking, air travel, financial transactions and online shopping.”

A moratorium “would limit internet capacity, slow essential services, eliminate hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs, drain billions in local tax revenue and increase costs for American families and small businesses,” said Cy McNeill, the coalition’s senior director of federal affairs.

The White House said last week that Congress should “preempt state AI laws” that it considers overly burdensome, setting out a broad framework for how it wants Congress to address concerns about AI without curbing growth or innovation in the sector.

The proposed legislation outlines a half-dozen guiding principles for lawmakers, focused on protecting children, preventing rising electricity costs, respecting intellectual property rights, preventing censorship and educating Americans about the use of technology.

Companies that have committed to Trump’s pledge to protect taxpayers include Google, Microsoft, Meta, Oracle, xAI, OpenAI and Amazon. The companies agreed to build or purchase new power generation sources for their data centers and cover expenses related to infrastructure upgrades.