Ro Khanna Unveils 2,500-Foot Data Center Curbs as Voters Revolt Over AI Power Bills
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Aug 6
Ro Khanna Unveils 2,500-Foot Data Center Curbs as Voters Revolt Over AI Power Bills
2 articles · Updated · CNBC · Aug 6
Summary
Ro Khanna is introducing a “data center bill of rights” that would let communities reject AI data centers and block projects within 2,500 feet of homes, schools, hospitals and nursing homes.
The resolution responds to growing backlash over facilities’ heavy electricity and water use, with Khanna saying Pennsylvania voters told him they opposed data centers being pushed into farmland and residential areas.
States and municipalities would keep authority to impose moratoriums, regulate projects without state preemption, require clean reliable energy and demand protections against higher utility bills and local water depletion.
The proposal lands as data centers become a midterm political flashpoint, with several states already pausing projects and Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed backing moratoriums unless federal guardrails are adopted.