“I think this is the right policy and we have to adopt national standards,” they said.
While the purpose of the AI suspension may not be to regulate physical infrastructure, Massie’s reaction illustrates the growing number of hot issues at hot issues centers across the country.
The rapid growth in the number of data centers throughout the United States has led to their corresponding increase in local reverses. When projects bring taxes, they often use a lot of electricity and water. A recent Bloomberg analysis found that U.S. artificial intelligence’s electricity demand is expected to triple in 2035, while data centers in Virginia are currently using electricity with 60% of the state’s home use.
A new report from a data center observation conducted by AI intelligence company 10A Labs found that local opposition to data centers has blocked or delayed their development in many parts of the country over the past two years, with data center observers counting more than 140 activists working in 24 states. The report pointed out that the pushback of data center construction is “two parties”, with Republican and Democratic politicians opposing public statements in their regions against data centers.
“From the use of noise and water to electricity demand and property value, server farms have become a new target of broader opposition to large-scale development,” the report notes. “The landscape of local resistance is shifting, and the data center is just in the crosshair.”
In Virginia, data centers have reshape the political front: the county chairperson was removed in 2023 after the community opposed a new data center complex. The data center also played a leading role in the recent debate on the Republican primary in Virginia’s 21st State Legislative District, with candidates focusing on issues surrounding tax rates and data center partitions.
Those who win the Republican primary later this month will face incumbent Democrat Josh Thomas in November’s election. Thomas said data centers have become a former center problem since taking office in 2022.
“I wanted to run to help families a place to live and help women maintain their reproductive rights, but it turns out that data centers end up being the first local issue,” he said. Thomas has proposed several legislations on the growth of data centers since taking office. One person passed with bipartisan support this spring but was rejected by Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
Sources told Wired that Biel Bill’s AI suspension was led by California Republican representative Jay Obernolte on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Obernolte is chair of the House Artificial Intelligence Task Force, which works in 2024 to develop policy recommendations on how to sponsor and address AI growth at the federal level. Although the group’s final report does not specifically mention state data center laws, it does recognize the “challenges” of high energy demand for AI and proposes recommendations on energy consumption, including strengthening “efforts to track and project AI data center power.”
In March, Obernolte described the recommendations from the task force report as a “List of Futures” at an event held in March by the right-wing think tank Cato Institute. Obernolte said at the event that he met with White House advisers, including sacks of AI policy, and he also said states “take their own action” in legislating AI models – a situation that he added would have to start regulating AI as soon as possible.
“We need to make it clear to the states what the guardrail is,” Obernolte said. “We need to do it all right away.”
It is not clear whether the suspension will survive in the Senate. On Friday, Punchbowl News reported that Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley will work with Democrats to remove AI Moratorium from the final bill text.
Jake Lahut contributed the report.
