Across 48 American cities yesterday, residents simultaneously marched to their city halls to say no to AI data centers — on the same day New York's legislature passed the nation's first statewide data center moratorium.
🏘️ **COMMUNITY** — The No Data Centers movement staged its largest-ever coordinated action on June 13, mobilizing 48 organizers simultaneously at city halls, municipal buildings, and 5 state capitol steps across the country. A March 2026 Gallup poll showed 70% of Americans now oppose new AI data centers in their neighborhoods — a rare bipartisan majority. More than $130 billion in data center projects have been blocked or delayed in the first four months of 2026 alone.
⚖️ **LEGAL** — New York's state legislature passed the Responsible Data Center Development Act (S10642/A11560) on June 4–5, voting 44–16 in the Senate and 102–39 in the Assembly. The bill imposes a one-year permit freeze on any new data center drawing 20 megawatts or more. If Governor Kathy Hochul signs it, New York becomes the first state in the nation with a statewide data center moratorium. At least 12 other states are watching the outcome.
⚡ **POWER** — The U.S. Department of Energy issued an emergency order in May authorizing PJM Interconnection — the grid serving 65 million Americans across 13 states — to curtail AI data centers during a hot-weather crisis. PJM capacity prices have surged 833% over two years. The grid operator projects a 6.6 GW reliability shortfall by 2027–28, as AI data centers add 5–7 GW of demand annually while new supply grows by only 2–3 GW.
🏗️ **NEW BUILD** — CloudBurst Data Centers and Evolve have broken ground on a 1.2 gigawatt AI campus in Central Texas — between San Marcos and New Braunfels in Guadalupe and Hays Counties. The site is anchored by a behind-the-meter natural gas plant via Energy Transfer's Oasis Pipeline (450,000 MMBtu/day). The first 50 MW phase goes live Q4 2026.
💰 **INVESTMENT** — Applied Digital signed a $5.2 billion hyperscaler lease on June 9, pushing its total AI factory portfolio to $36 billion. The company's Delta Forge 1 campus — $3.6 billion, 300 acres in Rapides Parish, Louisiana — is already under construction, with initial operations expected mid-2027.
---
If you found this useful, subscribe, leave a like, and drop a comment — it helps us cover more of these stories.
🔔 Subscribe · 👍 Like · 💬 Comment with questions or story tips
