Plattsburgh Weighs 1-Year Moratorium on Crypto Mining and Data Centers

The move revisits an earlier chapter in the city's history. In 2018, Plattsburgh became one of the first jurisdictions in the United States to impose an outright moratorium on Bitcoin mining, after residents pointed to rising electricity costs. That restriction remained in place for 18 months.

BitKE noted that access to cheap and reliable power remains a central challenge for Bitcoin miners, whose specialized equipment runs continuously and consumes large amounts of electricity. As power costs climb, some jurisdictions with limited generating capacity have grown more cautious about the effect of mining on local energy markets, a pressure that BitKE said has pushed some mining firms toward artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.

The market structure bill fell short of the 60 votes needed to advance in the Senate, with Bitcoin dipping as the result became clear.