Wyoming Legislature Considering Special Session For Data Centers

Rep. Daniel Singh [R-Laramie County] says a poll is being conducted among state lawmakers on a special session to deal with data centers.

That's according to a Thursday Facebook post. Singh goes on to say "To clarify- it is not a statewide moratorium. The session would be focused on state statutes having to do with large electrical generation, water issues, and relevant infrastructure realities amongst other things."

But he says the exact details of a special session--when it might happen and for how long--remain to be fleshed out.

Sen. Steinmetz Not Happy With Gordon Data Center Order

Sen. Cheri Steinmetz is asking fellow  lawmakers about a special session after Governor Mark Gordon issued his "Data Centers The Wyoming Way" executive order earlier this week,

In a news release, Steinmetz wrote the following:

"Now, despite growing public concern over water, electricity rates, land use, infrastructure impacts, and the lessons from other states already struggling with unchecked data center growth, the governor appears determined to fast-track data center development under the banner of doing it “the Wyoming way.”

She says the governor's order sounds more like a development plan for data centers than a plan to protect Wyoming

Further in the release, in a section titled  "The Legislature Must Act,", Steinmetz adds

"Under Wyoming’s separation of powers, the Legislature writes the laws and sets public policy; the executive branch carries those laws out. If Wyoming is going to decide how much water, power, infrastructure, and public risk should be committed to data centers, shouldn’t that decision be debated publicly by the people’s elected legislators?"

For his part, Singh says he wants more details on a possible special session. He told Townsquare Media  on Thursday "Ultimately, I would support a special session, but we would need to focus specifically on the concerns around data centers.