Inside A California Data Center As Communities Raise Concerns About Energy Costs Amid The AI Boom

CBS LA

July 30, 2026 / 7:06 AM PDT

Behind a secure door in an unassuming office building in Irvine, rows of servers quietly power hospital systems, financial institutions and emergency communications. While the activity inside one of DataBank's Southern California facilities is largely invisible to the public, data centers like it are drawing increasing scrutiny from lawmakers and nearby communities concerned about their environmental and financial impacts.

California is home to roughly 300 data centers, part of the digital infrastructure that supports online banking, video conferencing, cloud computing and artificial intelligence. As demand for computing power grows, so has opposition to the facilities, prompting some communities across the country to impose restrictions or temporary moratoriums on new development.

New York recently became the first state to ban the construction of certain new fossil fuel-powered data centers, while California lawmakers are considering several bills aimed at regulating the industry.

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