In the meantime, Hochul said it was her \u201cresponsibility to take action and lead,\u201d as \u201cdata center development threatens to \u2060hike up utility bills, deplete our natural resources, and create uncertainty for New Yorkers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNew York will lead the way in creating the strongest standards in the nation for data center development, ensuring that when companies succeed because of New York, New Yorkers succeed too,\u201d Hochul said in a statement.<\/p>\n
NY threatens to repeal tax giveaways<\/p>\n
Possibly providing a blueprint for other state-wide bans, New York\u2019s bold anti-AI stance was viewed as \u201ca striking setback for artificial intelligence companies that politicians once courted for investment,\u201d the Post reported. It comes after Maine\u2019s governor vetoed<\/a> a prior state-wide effort to temporarily ban construction out of concerns that Maine\u2019s legislation didn\u2019t exempt a favored project already underway.<\/p>\n Hochul is clearly taking a firmer stance against massive projects concerning New Yorkers. Although her office insists that she isn\u2019t anti-AI, she believes that she must take steps to ensure responsible growth of the industry in New York, where electricity prices are among the highest in the US. On Tuesday, Hochul indicated that she also planned to repeal sales tax exemptions for data centers, which could influence other states that, prior to the AI backlash from constituents, leveraged the tax giveaways to lure investments from the AI industry.<\/p>\n In New York, Hochul has suggested that old incentives and voluntary commitments that AI firms previously relied on to strike deals with officials were no longer enough. States need more information to assess whether residents will be protected from potentially harmful projects.<\/p>\n