Critics of proposed legislation say data center ban could send harmful economic message
By Dan Boyd and Algernon D’Ammassa
Albuquerque Journal
July 2, 2026
SANTA FE — New Mexico could become the first state to enact a moratorium on new data centers, under a proposal unveiled Thursday by four Democratic lawmakers.
Amid simmering public debate over the environmental impacts of data centers, the legislators said they plan to push for the moratorium during next year’s 60-day session, which begins in January.
While legislation has not yet been drafted, the proposal would specifically prohibit new large-scale data center projects until the state could set guardrails for evaluating water use, energy demand and other impacts. …