Maine’s Legislature voted on Wednesday to uphold Gov. Janet Mills’ (D-Maine) surprise veto of a bill that would have placed a temporary moratorium on the construction of AI data centers in the state.
The House gathered on “veto day” and voted 72-65 to overturn Mills’ decision but failed to meet the two-thirds majority required to defeat a gubernatorial veto.
In order to overturn a veto, both chambers must vote to overturn it, meaning that the House’s vote ensures that Mills’ veto will remain in effect.
The vote was largely along party lines, with Republicans broadly supporting the veto and Democrats working to overturn it, though a few representatives from each party voted against their party majorities.
Gov. Mills announced her veto of LD 307 on Friday, citing concerns about the negative impacts that a data center moratorium could have on a data center project at the former Androscoggin Mill in Jay.
In her veto letter, she explained that she would have signed the bill if it had included an exemption for the Jay project.
The Senate upheld Mills’ other veto of LD 1911, which would have automatically sealed some criminal records, in a 20-11 vote that narrowly failed to meet the required two-thirds majority.
All present Republicans voted to uphold the veto, while Democrats unanimously voted to overturn it.
