Lawsuit alleges FOIA violations with Google data center agreement in Botetourt County
A Botetourt County resident sued the county over a performance agreement tied to Google’s proposed hyperscale data center, alleging officials violated Virginia’s Freedom of Information Act. The lawsuit seeks to invalidate the agreement, which facilitated land purchases, expedited permitting and tax benefits for the project.
Botetourt County resident Robert L. Dallas filed a lawsuit in Botetourt County Circuit Court challenging the county’s Economic Development Performance Agreement for Google’s proposed hyperscale data center. The suit names the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors and alleges that officials failed to adequately disclose the substance of an agreement adopted after a closed-session meeting on June 24, 2025.
The agreement involved the county, its Economic Development Authority and Helio Capital LLC, a Google-owned entity. It finalized the purchase of land, expedited permitting and established performance grants that capped the project’s personal property tax burden. Dallas is asking the court to void the agreement, halt further actions under it and require the county to comply with Virginia’s transparency law. County officials declined to comment because the matter is pending litigation, while Google had not responded to requests for comment.