Veterans for Public Lands urged the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) to pause new data center projects on federal land, arguing that stronger public and resource protections should precede further development.
The campaign, announced on Veterans Day, calls on the DOI secretary to keep a pause in place as policymakers develop procedures for community input, environmental review, water and power needs, and Tribal consultation. The group also wants the incoming 120th Congress to advance legislation establishing a moratorium within its first 100 days.
Veterans for Public Lands says technology companies would use public land, water and power for private profit. The campaign joins a broader U.S. debate over data center limits; EconoTimes previously reported on data center policy concerns weighing on U.S. stocks. Brad Noone, the group's program manager, said veterans were standing with local communities, adding: “our public lands are not yours to take.”
With Honor Action said at least 69 veterans won congressional seats in the Nov. 3, 2026, election, including 65 House members and four senators. A nationally representative survey by the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center found opposition to local data centers at 61%, compared with 49% in a survey that ended in March. The survey of 1,320 U.S. adult citizens ran from June 16 to July 19, 2026, and asked about local projects rather than federal land or a nationwide moratorium.
The Townsite Data Center near Boulder City, Nevada, illustrates the land-use dispute. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) approved the project on 88.5 acres of public land in June 2026. On Sept. 1, 2026, the Interior Board of Land Appeals (IBLA) stayed the approval, finding the challengers likely to prevail in arguing that BLM could not rely on an environmental review prepared for a solar project. The board said the two projects were not “substantially the same.”
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported in October that an order allowed BLM to set aside its approval and reconsider the application. BLM said its original approval supported federal efforts to speed data center permitting under Executive Order 14318. Veterans for Public Lands' stated congressional target is action within the first 100 days of the 120th Congress.
