President Trump Issues Statement After New York Enacts First Statewide Data Center Moratorium

President Trump criticized New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s move to impose a moratorium on the construction of new hyperscale data centers.

Democrat Governor Announces Nation’s First Statewide Data Center Moratorium

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“One of the biggest Driving Forces in the Future for Jobs, are Data Centers. They are big, strong, bold, and Money Machines for the State in which they are built. Governor Kathy Hochul, for political reasons, has terminated all Data Centers being built, or to be built, in New York State. These Companies are now being sought in Alabama, Florida, Texas, Arizona, and many other States. Both the Taxes and the Jobs amount to LIQUID GOLD! New York State has made a terrible decision,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“All of this Income, and other Benefits, will be going to Red States, and some Blue, where Data Centers are sought as Cash Cows, with Lower Taxes and Record Setting Jobs. They must pay for their own Water and Power, and any leftover goes back to the State and local Community. Data Centers are tremendous WINS for the States and Communities that are lucky enough to get them,” Trump continued.

“New York should change its Policy, IMMEDIATELY. The Radical Left Dumocrats must not be allowed to cause us to lose Data Centers, AI, and all of this incredible new Technology, to China, and other countries!” he added.

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Leaders of the data center opposition celebrated the governor’s decision.

“This one-year moratorium is a huge step forward for New York communities fighting against an onslaught of massive data center proposals,” stated Laura Shindell, director of New York State’s Food & Water Watch, a high-profile environmental nonprofit. “It comes as the direct result of immense public pressure from people across the state demanding their elected leaders protect them from Big Tech’s assault, which threatens the state’s clean air and water and New Yorkers’ financial security.”

Praise was not limited to environmental and community leaders, however, as it also came from the governor’s allies, both in Congress and in the state legislature.

“This one-year moratorium is fundamentally about trust,” said Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, in a statement provided to WRGB Albany. “Right now, New Yorkers aren’t convinced these massive facilities benefit them. Before we move forward, our communities need ironclad guarantees that their energy bills won’t spike, their water will be protected, and their air will remain clean.”

“Technology should make our lives better, not pollute our water, strain our energy grid, or drive up our utility bills,” State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, a Democrat, stated in the New York State announcement. “By giving our State time to plan, we can ensure that development and innovation do not come at the expense of all of us.”

Many, however, voiced their dissatisfaction, claiming that the moratorium would hinder New York’s — and the United States’ – ability to compete in a rapidly expanding technological field.

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“A statewide moratorium is the wrong answer to the right questions,” New York State Assemblyman Scott Gray, a Republican, and three of his colleagues wrote in a letter to the governor in June opposing data center moratoriums. “It freezes investment, takes decisions away from the communities that should be making them and duplicates or ignores work the governor’s own administration already has underway.”

“Siting belongs to local communities. Albany’s job is to set the regulatory framework, facilitate interconnection and protect ratepayers and grid reliability,” Gray and his colleagues wrote. “It is not Albany’s job to decide for a town or village whether it wants one of these projects. That is a local decision, and it should remain one.”

“New York has always been at the forefront of innovation and change but we’ve also always guaranteed that New Yorkers benefit. As data center development threatens to hike up utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers, it’s my responsibility to take action and lead,” Hochul said.

“New York will lead the way in creating the strongest standards in the nation for data center development, ensuring that when companies succeed because of New York, New Yorkers succeed too,” she added.

“The bottom line is: Progress shouldn’t arrive with a higher utility bill, depleted water supplies, or noise pollution,” Hochul said at a press conference.

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New York becomes the first state to impose a data-center moratorium. 'The bottom line is: Progress shouldn't arrive with a higher utility bill, depleted water supplies, or noise pollution,' New York Governor Kathy Hochul said https://t.co/9DvlhZuiZU pic.twitter.com/kmSCFh4sbU

— Reuters (@Reuters) July 14, 2026

Meanwhile, several Republican governors are joining Trump’s data center pledge, which companies agree to “protect American consumers from price hikes due to data center energy and infrastructure requirements, and lower electricity costs for consumers in the long term.”

GOP governors, utilities join Trump data center pledge https://t.co/UWdRhVSTUu

— POLITICO (@politico) July 15, 2026

POLITICO has more:

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon and Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe have all signed the White House’s so-called Ratepayer Protection Pledge, a set of principles committing data center developers to pay for their fair share of energy and water use, along with electric grid improvements and maintenance, according to officials in each state. Electric utilities are also expected to sign the pledge, according to seven people familiar with the plans.

The White House declined to confirm the signatories, but said the pledge was drawing new support. “There is nothing to announce at this time, but President Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge has been so impactful that additional stakeholders also want to sign it,” a White House official said in a statement.

It’s the Trump administration’s latest attempt to quell public concerns over artificial intelligence and rising energy prices. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, average electricity prices have risen 4 percent in the last 12 months, outpacing overall U.S. inflation, although the increase in power bills cooled last month. Federal forecasts say the cost is expected to rise even further in the coming years.

The participation of GOP governors alongside Trump, which has not been previously reported, underscores the political liability that data centers have posed to elected officials across the country.

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Staffers for several Democratic governors said the White House did not reach out to Democrats to sign the pledge. A White House spokesperson declined to comment when asked about contact with Democratic governors.