Ohio data center ban advocates are trying to get 413,000 signatures by July 1

A group of southern Ohio residents, including Austin Baurichter from Brown County and Nikki Gerber from Adams County, is spearheading an effort to get a constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would prohibit the construction of data centers with a peak load exceeding 25 megawatts per month. The petitioners face a tight deadline, needing to collect over 413,000 signatures from at least 44 of Ohio's 88 counties by July 1. After receiving approval from the Ohio Ballot Board about a month ago, the advocates are confident they will reach their signature goal, relying solely on volunteers. Their initiative is fueled by growing concerns over the substantial electricity and water consumption of data centers; a large facility can use as much electricity as 100,000 homes and up to five million gallons of water daily. Data centers currently account for 4% of U.S. electricity use, projected to rise to 9% by 2030. This statewide push comes amidst local resistance, with more than a dozen Ohio cities having already enacted temporary moratoriums on data centers. Furthermore, lawmakers in at least 11 other states are considering or have introduced similar legislation. In a related development, the Ohio House has unanimously passed a bill to establish a data center study commission, which now awaits consideration by the Ohio Senate.