U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) on Thursday issued a call for a “pause” on data centers in New Mexico, and released a set of standards she said such developments should meet before receiving approval.
Leger Fernández’s call follows concerns voiced by fellow Democratic New Mexico U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury last month about tech giant Oracle’s Project Jupiter, the data center under construction in southern New Mexico.
Project Jupiter has faced a variety of legal and regulatory challenges, and the New Mexico State Ethics Commission last week reported that the Oracle had spent more than $3.4 million in recent months on advertisements meant to influence the New Mexico Environment Department’s air quality permitting process for Project Jupiter.
Now, according to a Thursday report from Bloomberg, Oracle has sent Project Jupiter’s developer a notice citing “force majeure,” essentially a contract provision that would allow it to delay payments if Project Jupiter is not online by 2028. Numerous financial outlets report that Oracle stock dropped 4% following news of that notification.
Leger Fernández’s announcement also comes as state lawmakers gear up to consider a data center moratoriumduring next year’s legislative session, and as Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deb Haaland, a recipient of Oracle campaign contributions, says she would sign an executive order instituting such a moratorium on day one of her administration if elected.
Leger Fernández, in a news release, said data centers should abide by certain provisions if elected, which she titled the No Blank Checks for Data Centers Principles. Those principles include being able to demonstrate that a data center won’t increase electricity bills or negatively impact water resources and must meet the state’s renewable energy requirements. They would also have to create union jobs that pay well; not require taxpayer subsidies and have community approval.
“The role of government is to protect us from greedy corporations,” Leger Fernández said in a statement. “Data centers want our water, our land, and our power. Communities may want the jobs they could bring to New Mexico. But we will not give them a blank check.”
Leger Fernández also linked the concerns over data centers to the rising call for oversight of AI, saying in a statement: “We cannot let AI and data centers regulate themselves.”
