Florida lawmakers are hearing strong public backlash against AI data centers, driven by huge power use and already high electricity bills.
A typical AI-heavy site can draw the load of 100,000 homes, with future hyperscale builds projected at up to 20x that, which puts real pressure on Florida’s grid planning and generation mix.
Florida Power & Light backs data center growth but now has “large load” tariffs that force operators to prepay for grid upgrades and capacity, shielding existing ratepayers while refunding costs only if the promised load actually materializes.
State officials and utilities are emphasizing communication, local jobs, and new closed-loop cooling that can reuse wastewater to blunt criticism over water and community impact.
Governor DeSantis wants to bar utilities from shifting any AI data center costs to residents and give local governments more power to reject hyperscale builds, while advocacy groups push for a national moratorium.
For AI infra builders, Florida is signaling “you can come, but you self-fund your megawatts and face local veto risk,” which raises project financing and siting complexity.
Worth a read for anyone modeling GPU build-outs in high-growth, high-scrutiny power markets like Florida.
