Maine's Governor Janet Mills has vetoed a bill that would have imposed the country’s first statewide moratorium on new data centers. The proposed law, L.D. 307, aimed to halt permits for such facilities until November 2027 and establish a council to study their construction.

With public opposition to data centers on the rise, other states have considered similar measures. However, Mills' veto was influenced by the need for an exemption for a Jay Town project which enjoys local support, stating that it would have signed the bill had that been included.

Mills wrote in a letter, 'Pausing new data centers would be appropriate given the impacts of massive data centers in other states on the environment and on electricity rates.' Melanie Sachs, the Democratic state representative who sponsored the bill, disagrees, warning against potential negative consequences for ratepayers and the electric grid.

The debate reflects a broader tension between local concerns over energy usage and global demand for cloud services. As data centers continue to grow in size and number, such conflicts are likely to become more frequent.