Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., joined a growing list of lawmakers this week calling for a moratorium on new data center construction in their states, citing concerns over rising costs and growing pressure on South Carolina’s energy infrastructure.
“South Carolina is not Big Tech’s personal power grid,” Mace said in a statement calling for a one-year moratorium in South Carolina. “These companies are planting massive data centers across our state, driving up energy demand, and leaving families and small businesses to pick up the tab. South Carolinians are already stretched thin. The last thing they need is a higher electricity bill subsidizing Big Tech’s bottom line.”
Mace’s statement comes as the nation faces rising energy costs because of the high energy demands levied by data centers. According to Bloomberg, electricity costs have risen as much as 267% for residents living near data centers compared to five years ago. In Virginia, home to more data centers than any other state, the Electric Power Research Institute estimated data centers could consume up to 50% of the state’s electricity by 2030.
South Carolina is home to 44 data centers, most of which are located around the Charleston and Spartanburg areas.
Mace said a moratorium would give lawmakers time to put protections in place that require data centers to fully cover the cost of the energy they consume, and any gride upgrades they may need.
“When it is over, the rules are simple: data centers pay their own way or they do not come here,” Mace said.
Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., similarly warned in November that rising energy costs could harm South Carolinians, posting to X that “Electricity costs are up nearly 8% in South Carolina since last year. And what’s Trump doing about it? Hanging out with rich big tech CEOs whose data centers are spiking demand – while slashing investments in cheap, clean energy that could boost supply and drive prices down.”
Not everyone in South Carolina is pro-moratorium. Danny Black, president and CEO of the South Carolina Regional Development Alliance, said in March that data centers deliver significant benefits to the state, and that “the welcome mat is still out as more companies look to South Carolina as an attractive location for new centers.”
Other lawmakers have put out the call for a moratorium on data centers. They include Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., who called for a federal mortarium on data centers until better regulation is passed to oversee AI and its economic impacts.
Earlier this week, Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., introduced legislation that would require data centers to supply and manage more of their own energy needs to ease strain on the power grid, lower consumer energy costs, and reduce blackout risks. Numerous other legislative proposals seek to address rising energy costs, though parties have remained divided over the best solution.
Some of the largest U.S. tech companies have signed the Trump administration’s ratepayer protection pledge, under which the companies agree to negotiate dedicated power-rate deals with utilities and state governments and to pay for the electricity and supporting infrastructure to power their data centers.