General U.S. NewsSep 18, 2026·2 min read

Virginia governor creates an AI task force and moves to restrain data centers

The Verge – Tech

2h ago

Virginia governor creates an AI task force and moves to restrain data centers

Summary

Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed an executive order addressing data centers and AI risks. Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed an executive order addressing data centers and AI risks. Executive Order 22 bans executive branch officials from signing nondisclosure agreements for data center projects, requires expedited noise regulations, and requires a review of backup-generation operations used by data centers, among other requirements. The order also establishes an AI task force responsible for evaluating how the state government can address risks to Virginians like workforce displacement and data privacy issues, and determining how existing law can be applied to AI harms. The order represents the latest signal that states are taking data center and AI policy into their own hands as Congress and President Donald Trump have been slow or resistant to sweeping changes. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order convening experts to tackle AI safety issues, and earlier, New York Gov. In addition to Virginia’s new executive order, Spanberger unveiled a new “ Data Center Accountability Framework ” for the state, which lays out additional priorities. These include eliminating “by-right approval,” like the kind that existed in Loudoun County for many years allowing developers to build on certain land without additional approvals, removing some state subsidies, establishing environmental guardrails, and safeguarding residents against increased energy prices that are associated with data centers.

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Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger ordered the state government to take steps that could empower local communities to have a larger say in data center development and slow down approvals in a state that is already home to the data center capital of the world . Executive Order 22 bans executive branch officials from signing nondisclosure agreements for data center projects, requires expedited noise regulations, and requires a review of backup-generation operations used by data centers, among other requirements. The order also establishes an AI task force responsible for evaluating how the state government can address risks to Virginians like wo … Read the full story at The Verge.

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Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed an executive order addressing data centers and AI risks.[1]

With Congress unlikely to act before the midterms, California is angling to take the lead.[2]

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is positioning the state to take the lead on AI oversight, including the potential to mandate a “kill switch” for frontier models, with a new executive order issued Friday.[3]

Newsom’s order directs the state to convene a group of experts that will deliver recommendations within two months on how to strengthen AI safety measures in state law.[4]

The Verge – Tech(this article)2h ago

Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed an executive order addressing data centers and AI risks.

The Verge – Tech3h ago

There’s been a flurry of bill discussions in Congress in the wake of former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon’s post warning of a more than 10 percent chance that AI “could kill all humans” within a decade.

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