Democratic Governor Janet Mills of Maine has vetoed a bill that would have made the state the first in the US to impose a moratorium on large new data centres. The decision highlights the difficult balance between environmental concerns, energy costs, and economic benefits.
The bill would have frozen approvals until October 2027 for data centres requiring more than 20 megawatts of power, while a state-appointed council analysed their impact on the grid, electricity bills, and the environment. Mills stated she supports a temporary moratorium but objected to the bill's failure to exempt a specific project in the town of Jay, which is expected to create over 800 construction jobs and at least 100 permanent positions.
The Jay project, valued at $550 million, repurposes infrastructure from a former paper mill that closed in 2023 after a boiler explosion, leading to hundreds of job losses. Mills argued the project would not significantly affect the electric grid or energy bills and would contribute property tax revenue.
Mills plans to issue an executive order establishing a council to examine data centre impacts and has signed a bill prohibiting such projects from state business development tax incentives. The veto comes amid growing opposition nationwide, with over a dozen states considering similar legislation.
State Representative Melanie Sachs, who sponsored the bill, criticised the veto as 'simply wrong', warning of potential consequences for ratepayers, the grid, and the environment. The decision reflects the tension between economic development in rural areas and the environmental and energy demands of large-scale data centres.
