Wyoming opens to data centers, makes developers pay power costs

Governor Mark Gordon signed an executive order on June 3 that opens Wyoming to data center investment and requires developers to cover the additional electricity demand their projects create. The directive is titled Data Centers the Wyoming Way and frames rules for grid costs, water and wildlife protections, and workforce training for new facilities.

The order ties to a June 2 presidential memorandum on advanced artificial intelligence and sets eight guiding principles for data center development in the state. Central among them is grid stewardship: the order intends to shield households and small businesses from higher electricity bills by making developers responsible for the extra generation or transmission costs their facilities cause. State agencies were given 60 days to report implementation steps and policy recommendations.

Agencies were directed to design permits and contracts that prevent ratepayers from bearing increased generation or transmission expenses created by large computing facilities. The directive also asks state regulators to address water use, wildlife impacts and local workforce training so deployments align with local resources and needs. Formal recommendations are due in early August.

The order includes a statement on Wyoming’s advantages for data center investment. It reads: “Wyoming is an energy-producing state with abundant natural resources, a business-friendly environment, reliable infrastructure, and a proven commitment to innovation, which provides Wyoming a leading role in America’s digital future.”

Wyoming has taken other steps to attract digital industry, including authorizing its own stablecoin, the Frontier Stable Token, as part of broader efforts to court technology and finance firms.

Data centers have generated opposition in communities across the United States. Local concerns include noise, rising electricity costs and heavy water use. A March survey found that 70% of Americans did not want new AI data centers built in their local area. In Congress, Senators introduced legislation in March that would pause construction of large AI data centers.

Technology companies have disputed some resource claims. Google has said U.S. data centers use a small fraction of the water households use for lawns, and Microsoft’s chief executive compared a single data center’s annual water use to that of one restaurant.

Officials in other states and utility regulators are expected to monitor Wyoming’s rules and the agency reports due this summer for how to balance new data center projects with consumer bills, environmental protections and workforce needs.