Data centers are in the news due to AI and energy costs, tax breaks, and power deals shaping utilities. Big players push for cheaper energy and space.
As of early March 2026, President Trump hosted major tech companies including Google, Microsoft, Meta, and OpenAI to sign a voluntary 'ratepayer protection pledge.' The pledge commits these firms to build or buy their own power generation for AI data centers to prevent electricity price hikes for consumers amid surging energy demand. Experts remain skeptical about the pledge's enforceability and impact on rising utility costs.
Since March 2026, Iran-linked hackers have targeted US critical infrastructure by compromising programmable logic controllers (PLCs) used in water, energy, and government sectors. The FBI, CISA, NSA, and others have issued urgent warnings about disruptions and financial losses. Separately, Russian APT28 has hijacked thousands of routers globally to intercept credentials, escalating cyber threats.
Governor Janet Mills has vetoed a bill that would have paused large data center development in Maine until late 2027. She supports a moratorium but objects to the bill's lack of an exemption for a project in Jay, which is expected to create hundreds of jobs. Mills plans to issue an executive order to examine data center impacts.
Several large-scale construction efforts are moving forward amid legal challenges and funding concerns. In Ohio, a Browns stadium project near Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is proceeding while state funding sits in limbo due to a class-action suit. Meanwhile, US reports indicate expansion in immigrant detention and tech land-use plans renewed attention on local governance and disclosure.
Tom Steyer is under renewed pressure over his position on a moratorium for new data centers as voters weigh affordability and climate policy ahead of the June 2 primary. Greenpeace has disputed his current stance after his comments in a campaign survey.
NextEra Energy has agreed to combine with Dominion Energy in an all-stock deal that values Dominion at about $67bn and would create the world’s largest regulated electric utility, serving roughly 10 million customer accounts across Florida and the Southeast. The transaction is expected to close in 12–18 months, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
A wave of energy storage and grid-neutral projects is reshaping the power landscape. European microgrids in Dublin demonstrate how on-site generation paired with storage can stabilize supply, while a South Dakota project pilots thermal storage adjacent to a biofuels facility to ease wind-backed fluctuations. Simultaneously, a large-scale telecom-to-energy consolidation is prompting questions about consumer costs as regulators weigh rate implications.
States are reassessing data-center growth amid concerns about electricity demand, water use, and local disruption. Legislation and executive actions aim to pause or regulate hyperscale centers while studies assess environmental and economic impacts. Public and private actors push for clear regulations and local control.