Ohio Lawmakers Creating Bipartisan Data Center Committee

Ohio lawmakers are establishing a new bipartisan data center committee to delve into the economic, environmental, and security ramifications of data center expansion across the state. Co-chaired by Ohio State Rep. Adam Holmes and Ohio Senator Brian Chavez, the committee aims to gather comprehensive information from various stakeholders, including data center companies like Google and Meta, citizens, and workers. The first meetings are scheduled for May 27 and 28, with a plan for weekly sessions to inform local officials and concerned residents about critical data center issues.

Rep. Holmes highlighted concerns among some Ohioans regarding excessive water use, land and wildlife impacts, noise, light, electromagnetic emissions, and increased local energy costs associated with data centers. The committee seeks to address these issues and establish sound data center development policies. This initiative follows the unanimous passage of Ohio House Bill 646, which also proposed a data center study commission, though Senator Chavez stated the new committee offers a faster approach.

Concurrently, a grassroots effort is underway to place a constitutional amendment on Ohio's November ballot that would prohibit the construction of data centers with a peak load exceeding 25 megawatts per month. This amendment requires over 413,000 signatures from at least 44 counties by July 1. Lawmakers acknowledged this citizen-led initiative, emphasizing the committee's role in providing accurate information to facilitate informed public discourse on data center development. The article also notes that similar legislation proposing temporary data center bans has been introduced in at least 11 other states.