Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York have introduced legislation that would halt all new construction of artificial intelligence data centers across the United States until a series of sweeping federal regulations are enacted.

The bill, formally titled the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Data Center Moratorium Act, was introduced into the House and represents one of the most aggressive legislative challenges to the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure in the country.

What the Bill Defines as an AI Facility

The legislation targets a specific class of data centers rather than the broader industry. Under the bill's definitions, an AI facility is any data center that consumes more than 20 megawatts of power, operates racks of 20 kilowatts or higher, uses liquid cooling systems, and is employed for the development or operation of artificial intelligence models at scale.

Any new construction or upgrades meeting those criteria would fall under the proposed moratorium. The scope of the pause is significant, given that these specifications describe the majority of large-scale AI infrastructure being built or planned across the United States at present.

Conditions That Must Be Met Before the Moratorium Lifts

The bill does not propose a permanent ban but rather holds construction in suspension until a set of separate federal laws are put into place.

Those prerequisite regulations cover a broad range of policy areas.

The federal government would be required to establish a process to review and approve artificial intelligence products before they are released to the public.

Additionally, policies would need to be in place to prevent job losses attributable to AI and to distribute the financial gains of large technology companies more broadly among American residents.

Any new data center or upgrade seeking approval under the framework would also need to demonstrate that it does not increase utility or electricity costs for consumers and does not negatively affect the climate.

Communities near proposed facilities would be granted authority to approve or reject projects outright, government subsidies for new AI data centers would be prohibited, and construction would be required to use union labor.

The bill also mandates ongoing federal oversight in the form of a quarterly report from the Secretary of Energy to Congress.

That report would be made publicly available and would track water usage, energy consumption, and associated costs, greenhouse gas emissions, wastewater discharge, and noise levels affecting communities near data center sites.

Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez Frame the Issue as Democratic Oversight

In his statement accompanying the bill's introduction, Sanders emphasized the pace and scale of change driven by artificial intelligence and robotics, describing it as the most sweeping technological revolution in the history of humanity.

He argued that Congress has fallen far behind in understanding the nature and impacts of that revolution and placed the responsibility for course-correcting squarely on lawmakers.

Sanders called out what he characterized as the outsized power of a handful of billionaire technology executives in shaping decisions that would affect the broader economy, democratic institutions, and the future of humanity.

He argued that serious public debate and democratic oversight were necessary and described the federal moratorium as an urgent and necessary step.

The bill draws on the words of prominent figures within the technology industry itself to underscore the risks of AI development. It cites statements from Elon Musk of SpaceXAI, Dario Amodei of Anthropic, Demis Hassabis of Google DeepMind, and Jeff Bezos of Amazon, all of whom have at various points spoken publicly about concerns including mass job losses, existential risks, and the potential for AI-generated propaganda.

Broad but Not Unanimous Congressional Support Among Progressives

The bill has attracted cosponsors from across the progressive wing of the House Democratic caucus. Representatives André Carson of Indiana's 7th district, Steve Cohen of Tennessee's 9th district, Jesús "Chuy" García of Illinois's 4th district, Dan Goldman of New York's 10th district, Adelita Grijalva of Arizona's 7th district, Jim McGovern of Massachusetts's 2nd district, Terri Sewell of Alabama's 7th district, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan's 12th district, and Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey's 12th district are all listed as cosponsors.

Local and State Momentum Behind the Push

The federal legislation arrives against a backdrop of growing opposition to data center development at the local and state levels.

According to the representatives behind the bill, more than 100 local communities across the country have already enacted their own moratoriums on data center construction.

An additional 12 states are currently advancing statewide moratorium proposals of their own.

The article in Data Center Dynamics noted that while the federal moratorium bill is highly unlikely to pass, given the current composition of Congress, the issue of AI infrastructure and its community impacts has become an increasingly prominent campaign issue at both the local and state levels.

Sanders's Broader Posture on AI Industry Governance

The moratorium bill is not Sanders's only recent legislative foray into regulating the AI industry. He has separately called for the United States government to acquire a 50 percent ownership stake in AI companies, including OpenAI and Anthropic, with the proceeds and assets channeled into a new sovereign wealth fund.

That proposal, like the moratorium act, reflects a broader effort by Sanders to assert public and governmental authority over an industry that has largely scaled without federal intervention.