Overview
- Maine’s Legislature, which voted Tuesday, approved LD 307 to pause approvals for new data centers that would draw more than 20 megawatts and sent the bill to the governor.
- The pause would last until fall 2027 and create a Data Center Coordination Council to study effects on the electric grid, ratepayers, water use, and the environment, with about $95,000 in funding.
- Mills has backed a pause in principle but sought an exemption for a proposed $550 million data center at the former Jay paper mill, an amendment lawmakers declined to add.
- Bangor’s city council, which adopted a six‑month local freeze Monday, illustrates how towns are moving quickly as they weigh heavy power needs, water demand, noise, and land use from large server facilities.
- If enacted, Maine would be the first U.S. state with a statewide moratorium, a step other states are studying as federal officials push tech firms to pay for new power generation tied to their data centers.