TOWN OF TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Governor Kathy Hochul visited Western New York to highlight her executive order creating a moratorium on the construction of new data centers in New York state, meeting with community members and elected leaders at Tonawanda Town Hall.
The executive order pauses permits for new data centers for up to a year to give the state time to create a framework that Hochul believes will protect ratepayers, the environment, the energy grid and communities.
The moratorium comes as a $2 billion AI data center proposal in the Town of Tonawanda sits in limbo. Developers were planning to bring the center to the former Tonawanda Coke Plant along River Road. Neighbors have raised concerns over the amount of energy the center would use and how it could impact energy rates.
Hochul said her moratorium gives the state more time to further investigate the impact of data centers — from the grid to the environment to jobs. While she said she is on board with AI, she said as New York state works to scale the technology through data centers, it has to be done in the right way to understand the impact on communities.
WATCH: Hochul highlights data center moratorium amid proposal to bring $2B facility to Town of Tonawanda
"Right now I have 30 projects before us in the state of New York, and if I powered every one of them, you would not be able to turn on the lights tomorrow. That's how serious this is, so we have to be thoughtful about this, really thoughtful, and that's what I'm excited about doing over this next year, working with state agencies, elected partners and others," Hochul said.
Melisa Dettbarn, a teacher in the Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda UFSD, also spoke at the roundtable.
"We have a long history of embracing new technology in New York state like you said but we also have to think about the communities and the idea of not in my backyard too, we have to meet the moment," Dettbarn said.
With her executive order in place, Hochul said she will also pursue legislation to repeal tax exemptions for massive data centers across the state.
