Amazon employees in Seattle back city data center moratorium, amid layoffs and concerns about infrastructure-driven gentrification.

In an unprecedented move, three Amazon software engineers publicly testified at a Seattle city hearing, pressing officials to impose restrictions on large-scale AI data center construction. Liesl Wigand, Patrick Schloesser, and Darius Irani—all members of Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, a collective of current and former workers focused on environmental and labor issues—addressed council members across two separate committee hearings. The Land Use and Sustainability Committee unanimously voted to advance a proposed one-year moratorium on new large-scale data centers.

Schloesser, who has spent nearly six years at Amazon Web Services, drew a direct connection between the company's capital spending and workforce reductions. "This year, Amazon is spending $200 billion on capital, with most of it going to data centers and AI," he stated. "Meanwhile, the leaders at my company have laid off 30,000 corporate employees in the last eight months." He called for data centers to be powered by renewable energy, urged tech companies to pay new taxes, and advocated for ending the use of nondisclosure agreements and shell companies in project announcements.

Wigand, who has worked at Amazon for over 12 years, characterized the company's strategy as an "all-costs-justified AI build-out" and argued that local governments should set the terms for data center development. Irani emphasized the need for transparency requirements around project ownership and ongoing water and electricity usage. Amazon spokesperson Margaret Callahan responded that the company respects its employees' right to voice opinions and has no current plans to build data centers within Seattle city limits.

The moratorium proposal was triggered when four developers submitted proposals to Seattle City Light for five large-scale facilities with a combined maximum demand of 369 megawatts—enough to power roughly 300,000 homes. The proposed moratorium would take effect immediately and last 365 days, accompanied by a resolution requesting impact studies on electrical grid capacity, water usage, utility rates, land use, public health, and job creation. Public opposition prompted two of the four developers to withdraw their proposals before any vote.

Seattle's action reflects a broader national trend. Fourteen states are weighing measures to halt or prohibit new data center facilities, and Data Center Watch has documented more than $156 billion in projects that faced delays or cancellations in 2025 due to community opposition and legal challenges. Data centers can consume up to five million gallons of water daily while drawing substantial power, raising widespread concerns about rising utility costs and environmental impact. Across Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta, capital expenditure commitments total roughly $700 billion for the year, with AI infrastructure absorbing the majority of that spending.