Rep. Lawler on Data Centers: I‘ve Always Supported Local Control of Zoning

RUSH EXCERPT:
LAWLER: "Well, the final bill did not include that provision. But secondarily, I‘ve always supported local control of zoning. I stood up to Kathy Hochul when she tried to eliminate local control of zoning in New York State. It‘s my opponent, Kate Connolly, who was bought and paid for by AI and Big Tech. She‘s got a no show job to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars from AI companies. Just a few weeks ago, she was saying, we need data centers. Now she‘s trying to change her tune because she knows this is problematic for her in the election. I have always supported local communities. East fishkill, orangetown, they have moratoriums in place now in my district, putting a moratorium on data center construction. But the fact is you need to have a coherent strategy at the federal, state and local level dealing with this issue. There are energy issues related to it, energy consumption. It‘s why I support legislation requiring these companies to help build generation for the power consumption that they use. And by the way, you look at New York, utility rates are up 58% over six years. Why? Because New York shut down nuclear power, banned natural gas extraction, blocked pipeline construction that drives up energy costs on residents. And that‘s part of the reason why New York is struggling to deal with the issues of data centers."