Why Nevada candidates can't stop talking about data centers
Data centers have become a major talking point for Nevada candidates in various elections due to public opposition to their resource usage and tax breaks. Reno mayoral candidate Kathleen Taylor has criticized tax incentives given to companies like Google and opposed local moratoriums. State Senator Dina Neal plans to introduce legislation for a statewide moratorium and to repeal tax breaks, reflecting widespread voter sentiment against data center expansion.
Data centers have emerged as a significant political issue in Nevada, with candidates across the state's political spectrum actively discussing their development due to growing public opposition. This debate has seen substantial ad spending, with over $970,000 recently spent on ads mentioning data centers, representing a significant portion of all ad expenditures in Nevada.
Reno mayoral candidate Kathleen Taylor is a prominent voice in this discussion, having criticized her opponent, former Nevada treasurer and Lt. Gov. Kate Marshall, for her role in approving a $25 million tax break for Google for a data center in 2020. Taylor, who also opposed a data center moratorium introduced this year by the Reno City Council, expressed concerns about data centers in residential areas, their consumption of "precious resources" like water, potential increases in residential electricity rates, and tax abatements.
At the state level, Senator Dina Neal (D-North Las Vegas) announced plans to introduce a bill during the 2027 legislative session. This proposed legislation would aim to repeal existing tax breaks for data centers and impose a moratorium on new construction. Public sentiment aligns with this political discourse, as an Emerson College poll revealed that nearly 59 percent of Nevadans oppose the building of data centers in or near their communities, making the issue unpopular among voters.