Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Company‘s weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. I’m Mark Sullivan, a senior writer at Fast…
Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Company‘s weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. I’m Mark Sullivan, a senior writer at Fast Company, covering emerging tech, AI, and tech policy. Sign up to receive this newsletter every week via email here. And if you have comments on this issue and/or ideas for future ones, drop me a line at [email protected], and follow me on X @thesullivan.
There were 41 ballot initiatives limiting data centers; all but one are on track to pass Voters in 10 states weighed in Tuesday on 41 local ballot measures related to data centers, Forbes reported. Ohio led with 21 measures, followed by Illinois with seven, Maine with four, and Kansas with three. Six other states—California, Florida, Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota, and Wisconsin—had one each. Of the measures with reported results, all but one went against data center development, reflecting widespread opposition to the facilities.
In Ohio, voters overwhelmingly backed restrictions on data centers, including outright bans in several municipalities. More than 80% of voters in Ashville rejected an agreement involving two proposed data centers, though the vote does not itself halt construction. In Kansas, Emporia approved a ban on high-impact data centers, while Ottawa voted to prohibit facilities consuming more than 25 megawatts of power. Boulder City, Nevada, rejected a proposal to permit data centers in the Eldorado Valley Transfer Area.
One notable exception came in Harwood, North Dakota, where voters rejected a measure that would have required additional review of certain industrial developments, including data centers. Democrats say AI hearings and legislation are coming “Two things will change next term,” Representative Ted Lieu of California, vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus, said at a press conference Wednesday. “We will hold public hearings on AI.
We will pass legislation, reasonable guardrails, on AI.” Lieu criticized Republicans for failing to regulate the industry while they controlled Congress and said Democrats would also consider restrictions on new data center construction. The odds of strong AI legislation “just shot up,” Shakeel Hashim wrote in Transformer. He argues that Democrats’ commanding congressional majorities would reduce the need for compromise. If the party wins 56 Senate seats—it currently has 54, with two races uncalled—it would need just four Republicans to overcome a filibuster.
This is a source-linked briefing. Read the original report from Fast Company .