Artificial Intelligence Data Center Moratorium Act
Sponsored By: Senator Sanders, Bernard [I-VT]
Introduced
Summary
A nationwide moratorium on building or upgrading large artificial intelligence data centers. The bill would pause new or expanded AI data center projects until Congress enacts laws for pre-release federal AI safety reviews, worker and community protections, environmental limits, and export controls on computing hardware.
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- Communities and environment: The pause targets facilities that meet high-capacity thresholds, including those over 20 megawatts or racks designed to deliver 20 kilowatts. It would force public quarterly Department of Energy reports on water use, energy needs, greenhouse gas and air monitoring, wastewater and thermal outputs, cooling chemicals, and noise.
- Workers and local governments: New or upgraded centers built after the moratorium must meet worker and community conditions such as creating union jobs with prevailing wages, using registered apprenticeships and project labor agreements, and avoiding government subsidies. Reports must also show wages, benefits, and the number of temporary and permanent jobs.
- Industry and trade controls: The bill would define "computing infrastructure hardware" to include semiconductors and integrated circuits, and direct the Commerce Department to ban exports, reexports, or in-country transfers of that hardware for AI data center end-uses to countries without comparable AI laws. The measure links domestic construction limits to tighter export rules and supply chain controls.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 1 mixed.
Ban on exporting AI computing hardware
If enacted, the bill would direct the Commerce Secretary to prohibit export, reexport, or in-country transfer of "computing infrastructure hardware" for use in AI data centers or for training or deploying AI models at scale. Covered hardware would include semiconductors, integrated circuits, and products that contain them, such as computers, networking equipment, and data storage systems. The ban would apply to transfers to countries that do not have laws like the U.S. moratorium and to persons in those countries, effective on enactment.
Pause on building large AI centers
If enacted, the bill would pause construction and upgrading of "artificial intelligence data centers" starting on enactment. It defines those centers as sites used for AI at scale or sites with over 20 megawatts total power, 20 kilowatts or more per server rack, or that use liquid immersion or circulating liquid cooling. Work could not start or continue until new laws require federal review of AI products, protect workers and communities, and set environmental and utility limits. The required rules for new centers would bar government subsidies and require union jobs with prevailing wages and registered apprenticeships.
Quarterly Energy Department AI reports
If enacted, the bill would require the Energy Department to publish and send Congress quarterly reports on every artificial intelligence data center. Reports would list financial vehicles used, water and energy use, infrastructure needs, greenhouse gas emissions and fenceline air quality monitoring, wastewater and thermal outputs, cooling chemicals, noise, wages and benefits, and numbers of temporary and permanent jobs. The Secretary could verify data by issuing subpoenas, written interrogatories, inspections, and by conditioning permits on compliance.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Sanders, Bernard [I-VT]
VT • I
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov