More than 300 data center bans have emerged across the United States, and the construction of AI computing power facilities such as OpenAI Stargate has faced strong local resistance.

According to Beating's monitoring, since 2023, state and local governments across the United States have passed over 300 restrictions or bans on data center construction, with over 275 of them concentrated in 2026. This wave of resistance is most intense in the Midwestern and Southern United States, where tech giants are building large-scale AI computing facilities. In Michigan, OpenAI and Oracle's project to build the Stargate supercomputer cluster has encountered obstacles. Although Michigan offers tax breaks until 2050 for data centers that invest over $250 million and create over 30 jobs, Saline Township voted to block changes to Stargate's plans. After the Stargate team won their lawsuit, construction began on June 1, 2026. As a ripple effect, over 20 towns within 50 miles of the Stargate project have passed data center bans, and over 50 restricted areas statewide have been established. Polls show that a staggering 70% of American adults oppose building AI data centers in their areas, citing water consumption, rising electricity costs, and landscape damage as primary concerns. The boycott has transcended the political spectrum. Left-wing independent Senator Bernie Sanders and Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez jointly proposed a federal ban, while the right-wing conservative organization Humans First is organizing protests in multiple states. Most restrictions currently range from one month to one year, but more than a dozen states, including New Jersey, have already enacted permanent bans. At the state level, a one-year ban bill passed by the New York legislature is awaiting Governor Kathy Hochul's signature, while the governor of Maine vetoed a similar bill. Meanwhile, Ohio, Illinois, and Arizona have suspended tax breaks for data center developers until 2026.