New Hampshire is now on a path toward a statewide pause on data center development. Two separate efforts are moving at once. In the legislature, three lawmakers have pre-filed bill requests for the 2027 session that would put a temporary moratorium on data centers, delay their construction and expansion, or regulate how they are proposed. In the executive branch, Gov. Kelly Ayotte has said she will include a moratorium in her next biennial budget.

Neither effort can become law soon. Under the state's legislative calendar, the bills cannot be acted on until the 2027 session. The budget that would carry the governor's proposal is due to be finalized in summer 2027. For now, the public record holds only bill titles, the governor's public statements, and the local fights in Nottingham and Bow that came before both.

What Has Been Filed

The New Hampshire General Court publishes legislative service requests (LSRs) for the upcoming session. These are the placeholders lawmakers file before bill text is drafted. The 2027 list includes three data center measures:

  • LSR 2027-0002 (House): "establishing a temporary moratorium on data centers." Prime sponsor: Rep. Thomas Cormen.
  • LSR 2027-0091 (House): "relative to the development of data centers and the prohibition of non-disclosure agreements in their proposed development." Prime sponsor: Rep. Laurel Stavis.
  • LSR 2027-0301 (Senate): "postponing the construction and expansion of data centers for a certain period of time." Prime sponsor: Sen. Daniel Innis.

The legislature's listing shows titles only. No bill text has been published. That means the details are still unknown: how a "data center" would be defined, how long a pause would last, and whether facilities already in planning would be exempt. Rep. Stavis's request title also refers to a prohibition on nondisclosure agreements in the proposed development of data centers.

Sen. Innis has given some idea of the timing he has in mind. According to reporting by NHPR and the New Hampshire Bulletin, he envisions a pause that would expire at the end of 2027.

The Governor's Position

Ayotte's position appears in the public record in three steps.

August 20, Portsmouth. Speaking at the Rotary Club of Portsmouth, Ayotte said she now supported a moratorium, NHPR and the Portsmouth Herald reported. "It does not make sense at all to site a data center in New Hampshire," she said. "We don't have the energy for it." She cited a conversation with the head of ISO New England, the operator of the regional power grid.

Early September, Executive Council. At the end of an Executive Council meeting on a Wednesday, Ayotte said she opposed a potential hyperscale data center in Bow, according to the Valley News, which reported the remarks on Sept. 3. She said her opposition was in part because the state lacks the energy supply. She also said she planned to include a moratorium, likely lasting several years, in her upcoming budget. The Valley News reported that state and town officials had not shared the site or the size of the Bow proposal.

October 22, debate. At a debate, Ayotte said: "I oppose data centers... and I will work to get this moratorium done," according to NHPR and the New Hampshire Bulletin.

NHPR reported that Rep. Cormen and Sen. Innis both said Ayotte's request for a moratorium had motivated their proposals.

Why Two Tracks

A moratorium written into the budget and a standalone moratorium bill would arrive on different schedules. The Valley News reported that a moratorium in the budget would not take effect until after the budget passes, which would be July 2027 at the earliest. The paper also noted that an executive order could impose a ban sooner. No source reviewed for this article reports that the governor has issued or announced such an order.

The legislative bills follow their own calendar. NHPR noted that legislation cannot be acted upon until the upcoming session. The final shape of either vehicle, including how long a pause lasts and what it covers, will depend on bill text and budget language that have not been released.

The Local Backdrop

According to NHPR, the bill requests follow data center proposals floated for Nottingham and Bow, both of which drew public opposition. The NHPR and New Hampshire Bulletin report describes the batch of bills as a response to pressure from the public and from the governor.

As of the Valley News report in September, state and town officials had not shared the site or the size of the potential hyperscale facility in Bow. Only the title of Rep. Stavis's request on nondisclosure agreements is public, so it is not yet clear how any such prohibition would work.

The Regional and National Context

New Hampshire would not be the first state to pause data center development. NHPR reported that New York became the first state to adopt a one-year ban this summer.

The energy argument Ayotte has made ties the issue to ISO New England, the operator of the regional power grid. In the Valley News report, she said the head of ISO New England confirmed that a large data center would raise energy prices in New Hampshire and across New England. None of the sources reviewed here gives a capacity figure for the Bow or Nottingham proposals.

What Remains Unknown

  • Bill text. None of the three LSRs has published language. Definitions, durations, exemptions and enforcement are not yet public.
  • Budget language. The governor has described a likely multi-year moratorium, but the budget proposal itself has not been released.
  • Duration. The positions on record differ. Sen. Innis has described a pause that would expire at the end of 2027. The Valley News reported that the governor's budget moratorium would likely last several years.
  • The Bow project. As of September reporting, officials had not disclosed its site or size.

What Happens Next

The three bill requests, LSR 2027-0002, LSR 2027-0091 and LSR 2027-0301, cannot be acted on until the 2027 legislative session. Hearings and votes would come once bill text is drafted and the session begins. Gov. Ayotte has said she will propose a moratorium in her next biennial budget, which is due to be finalized in summer 2027. According to the Valley News, a moratorium passed in the budget would not take effect until July 2027 at the earliest.

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