Data center moratoria will make life less affordable for Americans

Every text message, hospital record, digital streaming platform, bank transaction and smartphone app that Americans rely on operates through a data center. Data centers are the engine behind the new technology and infrastructure that Americans use daily, both now and in the future.

There’s a charged debate right now around data centers and a growing push for a moratorium on their construction across the country. Opponents have cited concerns about energy costs, water and grid strain — concerns worth taking seriously. However, a one-size-fits-all moratorium on the federal, state or local level, like the one recently announced in New York, would not address these concerns.

But a blanket moratorium would remove decision making from localities who are best positioned to evaluate responsible project and investment opportunities, the benefits they can provide and the community needs they can help address. A moratorium would eliminate the economic benefits that communities across this country are counting on, without addressing the underlying challenges. It’s also a bet against the tens of thousands of workers building, maintaining, operating, refurbishing and supplying the goods and services for data centers across the nation.

Although proponents have framed this as protection for ratepayers and the grid, halting construction will not fix the grid nor lower anyone’s electricity bill. Research shows that states with many data centers, like Texas and Virginia, have seen lower utility rates, not higher ones. Under the right conditions, data centers and other large loads can even lower rates for other customers. When large customers like data centers share the fixed costs of grid infrastructure, they can help reduce the burden on other........

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