As reported by The Verge, Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger signed an executive order addressing the risks associated with data centers and artificial intelligence. The order aims to give local communities more say in data center development and slow the approval process in a state that is already home to many data centers. Executive Order 22 prohibits executive branch officials from signing non-disclosure agreements for data center projects, requires expedited noise regulation and a review of backup power operations used by data centers, among other requirements. The order also creates an artificial intelligence task force responsible for assessing how state government can address risks to Virginians, such as workforce displacement and data privacy concerns, and determining how existing legislation can be applied to AI-related harms. The order is the latest signal that states are taking data center and AI policy into their own hands at a time when Congress and President Donald Trump have been slow to respond.
the need for change. On the same day, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order convening experts to address AI security concerns, and earlier, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott also took action to curb the rapid development of data centers. In addition to Virginia's new executive order, Spanberger introduced a new "Data Center Reporting Framework" that identifies additional priorities. These include eliminating "automatic approvals" as Loudoun County has had for years, allowing developers to build on certain sites without additional approvals, removing some government subsidies, establishing environmental standards and protecting residents from rising energy prices associated with data centers. The press release announcing the action included numerous statements from environmental groups that praised Spanberger's approach, but some expressed a desire for her to go further. For example, the Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) is a non-profit organization that has advocated for a moratorium on new construction to address existing problems. President PE
C Chris Miller said in a statement that "this is largely about standards for new data centers and does not address what has already been built and is in the process, nor the ongoing impacts accumulating in communities now." The material was prepared by a neural network based on the original publication. AI may make mistakes in details (numbers, names, dates, quotes) - for important information, check with the original source. AI system developed a chip to output data in two weeks A new AI model from the creator of ChatGPT has interested developers Gavin Newsom has signed bills requiring AI data centers not to pass on energy costs to residents. The UN is calling for urgent action to regulate AI, emphasizing the importance of safety. The US and China have begun discussing AI security risk notifications.
