Rutgers poll finds 55% of New Jerseyans say data center costs outweigh benefits
A Rutgers-Eagleton poll found that 55% of New Jersey residents believe data center costs outweigh their benefits, citing electricity and water use and potentially higher utility bills. Opposition is strongest to data centers built in residents' own towns, while the article also reports generally negative views of artificial intelligence's effects on jobs, education and the environment.
A statewide Rutgers-Eagleton poll of 1,004 New Jersey adults found broad public opposition to data center development. Fifty-five percent said the costs, including electricity and water consumption and possible increases in utility bills, outweigh potential jobs and tax revenue; 11% said the benefits outweigh the costs.
Opposition was highest for projects located in respondents' own towns or cities, where 72% were opposed, compared with 64% for a neighboring county and 62% for the state generally. Ashley Koning, director of the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, said no demographic group reached majority support for data centers in any of those locations.
The poll also found that New Jersey residents were more likely to view artificial intelligence negatively than positively in its effects on education, jobs and the environment. Results were collected Sept. 24-27, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.