Exclusive: Senate Investigation Challenges Big Tech’s Case for AI Data Centers
A yearlong U.S. Senate investigation led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren found that major data center developers may be understating their projects’ costs, employment impacts and reliance on public subsidies. The report focused on electricity infrastructure, tax incentives, nondisclosure agreements and whether companies should pay more of the costs associated with their power demand, while Warren called for a national moratorium on new AI data centers until developers cover their full costs.
A Senate investigation led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, with Sens. Chris Van Hollen and Richard Blumenthal, examined Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, CoreWeave, Digital Realty and Equinix. Investigators said the companies declined to provide some employment data, sought nondisclosure agreements with local governments and generally opposed standards requiring them to pay for broader grid investments linked to their facilities.
The report highlighted the financial effects of data center expansion, including sales-tax exemptions for specialized equipment and potential increases in electricity costs. It cited Entergy’s planned purchase of a power plant in Richland Parish, Louisiana, which analysts have linked to Meta’s proposed data center and estimated could raise average customer bills by $8 to $13 per month; Meta disputes that its project is responsible for those costs.
Warren urged Congress to hold technology companies accountable and has called for a national moratorium on new AI data centers until developers agree to cover their full costs. A House bill addressing large-load customers passed overwhelmingly but stalled in the Senate, leaving state regulators and public utility commissions to decide how data center-related infrastructure costs should be allocated.