Put a PAUSE on HYPERSCALE DATA CENTERS
Hyperscale data center proposals demand unprecedented energy, water and land, and are coming at Minnesota towns more quickly than we have infrastructure or regulatory framework to receive them. We also have not had time to consider their economic impacts. A bill (Senate File 4298) has been introduced to the Minnesota State Senate that would prevent state and local governments from issuing any permits for new data centers before summer 2028. This would allow time for a comprehensive report from the Public Utilities Commission about the impacts of building data centers.
Support for a moratorium among Minnesota residents is bipartisan. Opposition to the moratorium, however, among legislators is also bipartisan. That makes a push by constituents particularly critical.
The report must:
Analyze how data centers are being used, their local and state-level economic impacts, and the taxes raised by / spent to support data centers.
Identify potential data center locations that minimize disruption of residential areas, limit impacts on residential utility infrastructure, and avoid concentrating data centers in one region.
Study the impacts of data centers on the treaty rights, resources & cultural practices of Tribal nations.
Determine how much energy, water and metals hyperscale data centers use.
Study the impacts of data centers on protected species.
The report would be due by July 2027 and no permits could be issued before July 2028.
Our Call to Action
Urge MN state senators to get a hearing on this bill.
Let Governor Walz know that you want moratoriums on data center permitting.
Contact Your State Senator
Find your state senators here:
https://www.gis.lcc.mn.gov/iMaps/districts/
If you live in Senator Tou Xiong’s district – which includes North Saint Paul, northern section of Saint Paul, Maplewood, Roseville, Little Canada, Oakdale, Lake Elmo and parts of Shoreview, Vadnais Heights and White Bear Lake – your outreach is particularly important. He is Vice Chair of the Energy Committee that will have to hear the bill first.
Vice Chair
651-296-6820
Suggested message
I am _______ and I live in _________. Optional: I am a member of Indivisible Twin Cities.
I ask that you urge the Senate Energy, Utilities, Environment and Climate Committee to hear Senate File 4298 that calls for a two-year moratorium on permitting data centers in MInnesota.
Add a sentence or two about why this important to you. For instance:
do you live in or near a community considering a data center?
Are you concerned about the environmental impacts?
Are you concerned about the public costs?
Are you concerned about the use of large amounts of water and energy as residents try to conserve in their own homes?
Contact the Governor:
651-201-3400 /800-657-3717
https://mn.gov/governor/connect/contact-us/contact-form.jsp
Suggested message:
I am _________ and I live _________. Optional: I am a member of Indivisible Twin Cities.
I want to see Minnesota put a moratorium on permitting hyper-scale data centers. We need to ensure that our communities, our water and our energy sources are not harmed.
Add a sentence or two about why this matters to you. Consider some of the same prompts in the suggested message above for your state senator.
Resources
https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/94/2026/0/SF/4298/versions/0/
https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/2025/cite/297A.68#stat.297A.68.42
https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/297A.68
