Montgomery County Commissioner defends Google data center amid pushback, concerns
Montgomery County, Missouri, officials have released a cost-benefit analysis for a proposed Google data center project, which could bring billions in investment but also significant tax breaks. County Commissioner Ryan Poston defends the project's economic benefits, while critics, like the Show-Me Institute, question the job creation claims. A public hearing is scheduled for June 8th.
Montgomery County, Missouri, officials have released a cost-benefit analysis for a massive proposed Google data center project near Interstate 70. The project could attract billions of dollars in investment but also comes with substantial tax incentives for Google. Under the proposal, the county would issue up to $100 billion in industrial revenue bonds for equipment, potentially granting Google between $1.6 billion and $2.2 billion in personal property tax savings.
County Commissioner Ryan Poston defended the incentives, clarifying that they apply only to personal property taxes, not real estate taxes. He highlighted Google's commitment of $5 million annually in community benefit payments once the project is complete and projected around 300 full-time high-wage jobs from the two planned buildings, contrasting this with perceived outdated information about data centers. However, Avery Frank from the Show-Me Institute expressed skepticism, noting that data centers typically create fewer jobs than traditional manufacturing projects, primarily contributing property and sales tax revenue.
Frank urged communities to carefully evaluate the trade-offs of large incentive packages, warning against approving projects that might generate public anger without sufficient tax revenue benefits. The proposed Google incentives are significantly larger than those offered for a nearby Amazon Web Services data center project also planned for Montgomery County. A public hearing on the cost-benefit analysis is scheduled for June 8th.