Morrisey admin says it mistook data center opposition letter for data center application

The West Virginia Department of Commerce recently corrected an earlier report stating it had received an application for state certification for a data center project in Tucker County. Department spokesperson Andy Malinoski clarified on April 2, 2026, that a staff member had mistakenly identified a letter from an advocacy group opposing the development as an official "high-impact data center certification application." The controversial project is being developed by Purcellville, Virginia-based Fundamental Data LLC and has faced "staunch community opposition." Malinoski confirmed that as of April 2, the Department of Commerce had not actually received an application from Fundamental Data LLC for the project. Separately, a panel discussion on data centers took place on March 31, 2026, at the Stubblefield Institute at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, Jefferson County. Participants included Dado Slezak, executive vice president of utility innovation; Chris Morris, director of the West Virginia Data Economy Office; Amy Margolies, executive director of the opposition group Tucker United; Cara Keys, Jefferson County commissioner; and Steve Pearson, editor of Observer Weekly.