Josh Hawley is a U.S. Senator from Missouri who has publicly advocated for restricting data center expansion in his state due to concerns about energy consumption and water usage.
Referenced in 8 briefingsLast referenced: May 26, 2026
Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are pushing a moratorium on new AI data centers, while Sens. Josh Hawley and Richard Blumenthal want consumer rate protection.
federal legislation from Sens. Hawley (R-Mo.) and Blumenthal (D-Conn.) would force new datacenters to secure dedicated power disconnected from the public grid.
The GRID Act, introduced by Connecticut Senator Blumenthal and Missouri Senator Hawley, is the first bipartisan federal bill targeting datacenter power costs.
The GRID Act introduced by U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) would codify this trend into law: any datacenter above 20 MW must source power off-grid, with existing facilities given 10 years to comply and $1 million daily fines for violations.
Separately, Sens. Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) introduced the Guaranteeing Rate Insulation from Data Centers Act on February 11, requiring facilities consuming 20 MW or more to procure dedicated generation, disclose consumption publicly, and yield grid priority to residential customers during shortages.