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April 24 (Reuters) - The Democratic governor of ​Maine, Janet Mills, on Friday vetoed a bill that would have made it the first U.S. state to impose a moratorium on large new data ‌centers, even as local opposition to the electricity-hungry facilities grows.
The decision reflects the difficult trade-off facing political leaders, who must weigh the impact of data centers, opens new tab on the environment and household energy bills against the millions of dollars in investment and tax revenue they can bring.
If signed into law, the bill would have frozen approvals until October 2027 for data centers requiring more than ​20 megawatts of power while a state-appointed council analyzed their impact on the local grid, electricity bills, air and water.
Mills, in a letter to ​the Maine legislature, said she supports a temporary moratorium on data center projects - and would have signed the bill if ⁠it had included an exemption for a data center project underway in the town of Jay that is key to jobs and tax revenue.
"A moratorium is appropriate ​given the impacts of massive data centers in other states on the environment and on electricity rates. But the final version of this bill fails to allow ​for a specific project in the Town of Jay that enjoys strong local support from its host community and region," Mills said in a statement
The Androscoggin paper mill in the town shut down in 2023 after a boiler explosion, leading to hundreds of job losses.
Work to develop a $550 million data center, which reuses existing infrastructure that would not have had a major impact on the electric ​grid or energy bills, is expected to create more than 800 construction jobs and at least 100 high-paying permanent jobs, and would contribute property tax revenue ​to the town of Jay, Mills said.
Mills also said that she plans to issue an executive order establishing a council to examine the impact of data centers in Maine and ‌has signed ⁠a bill to prohibit data center projects from Maine's business development tax incentive programs.
American tech giants have pledged to spend more than $600 billion on artificial intelligence data centers this year as part of a spending spree that has boosted the U.S. economy and is considered the biggest since the telecom boom of the late 1990s.
But mounting opposition to that buildout has led more than a dozen U.S. states to weigh legislation that would halt or restrain development of ​the facilities, even as the Trump administration ​pressures states to stay out of ⁠AI regulation.
To ease worries about rising electricity bills, Washington last month got big technology companies to sign a voluntary pledge at the White House that they would bear the cost of new electricity generation to power their data centers.
Two Democratic lawmakers - ​Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez - have also introduced legislation to halt all construction on data centers until ​Congress passes AI safety ⁠legislation.
Maine lawmakers passed the bill against data centers last week, sponsored by Democratic state representative Melanie Sachs. The state was seen as a test case of whether such measures could be adopted in other places.
Limiting data center development would have, however, added to the economic pressure in a rural state already grappling with mill closures that have ⁠eroded one ​of its key industries.
Sachs said Mills' decision to veto the bill was "simply wrong".
While a veto might ​protect the proposed data center project in Jay, it poses significant potential consequences for all ratepayers, our electric grid, our environment and our shared energy future," Sachs said.
Virginia, one of the world's largest data ​center hubs, is among the U.S. states considering similar legislation.
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Key priorities include defining clear SEC and CFTC oversight roles, protecting non-custodial developers, simplifying disclosure rules, and avoiding a patchwork of state laws.
The letter cites the risk of returning to "regulation by enforcement," referring to a series of court cases brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) that defined policy under President Joe Biden.
More than 100 signatories are backing the effort. These include high-profile companies including Coinbase, Circle Internet, Kraken, Ripple, Andreessen Horowitz, Paradigm, Consensys, Anchorage Digital and Galaxy Digital alongside developer groups, state blockchain associations and university chapters of Stand With Crypto.
The coalition flagged six priorities for lawmakers to address. These include preserving consumer rewards tied to payment stablecoins, defining oversight roles for the SEC and CFTC, and protecting developers who build non-custodial tools.
It also called for disclosure rules that are easier to follow and a federal standard that avoids a patchwork of state laws.
Other major jurisdictions, such as the European Union, have already enacted comprehensive cryptocurrency frameworks, and the group warned that the absence of U.S. legislation risks pushing investment, jobs and development offshore.
America needs clear, comprehensive rules for digital asset markets. It is a global race to the top, and it is important for the U.S. to lead,” Ji Hun Kim, CEO of the Crypto Council for Innovation, in an email.
The Senate Banking Committee can build on years of bipartisan work and the GENIUS Act's success by advancing legislation that delivers regulatory clarity, robust consumer protections, and strong safeguards for developers. A markup will move us closer to durable rules that ensure the U.S. sets the global standard for digital asset markets,” Kim said.
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XRP is flat over the past 24 hours, but down more than 60% from its summer 2025 peak.
Such large-scale movements, often referred to as “whale transactions,” are closely monitored in crypto markets because they can hint at institutional or high-net-worth investor intentions. In many cases, inflows of this magnitude to centralized exchanges are interpreted as a potential signal that holders may be preparing to sell or rebalance their positions. This is because assets sent to exchanges are typically made more liquid and readily tradable than those held in direct custody in personal wallets.
That said, transfers to exchanges could also mean repositioning assets, engaging in over-the-counter settlement processes, or moving funds for custody-related purposes.
Still, the timing and size of the transfer is noteworthy for those trading the payments-focused cryptocurrency. As always in crypto markets, large movements can influence perception, even when their ultimate intent remains uncertain.
XRP is trading at about $1.33, flat over the past 24 hours, but down more than 60% since peaking in the summer of 2025.
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