A national coalition of AI companies, labor unions and investors is launching a campaign in Indiana calling for tighter guardrails on new data centers while pushing back against local moratoriums.
The American Infrastructure Alliance (AIA), a multi-million-dollar cohort of 20 organizations, began in September working with local and state officials to implement standards around data center developments.
Those standards include large energy users paying their own electricity costs, new developments having clear environmental standards and companies agreeing to enforceable commitments on costs, water use and community benefits.
The alliance is initially launching efforts in seven states — Indiana, Texas, Georgia, Ohio, Iowa, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.
Graham Newhall, a spokesperson for the AIA, said they included Indiana because the question of data centers is “very top of mind” and alliance members can bring a “unique perspective to bear on the conversations in these states that other organizations cannot.”
“This isn’t a flash-in-the-pan effort to try to sway voters … less than one month to the election,” he said. “This effort is very much focused on finding the right way forward for states and local communities.”
Guardrails instead of bans
The campaign comes to Indiana as at least 24 counties have passed moratoriums on data centers and three have outright banned them, according to an August report from the Environmental Resilience Institute at Indiana University.
According to an August survey funded by the AIA, just over two-thirds of Hoosiers hold negative views of data centers, while 17% had a positive view. Nearly three out of four residents opposed new data center construction, while 19% supported it.
Nearly 50% said the number one concern in Indiana was natural resource depletion, land preservation and rising energy costs. Environmental concerns and pollution ranked second at 13%.
But the poll also found opposition to data centers drops significantly when the alliance’s proposed guardrails are in place, with the percentage of those supporting more data centers in Indiana jumping from 19% to 44%.
Newhall said the polling shows a way for local officials to garner support for developments and avoid moratoriums that block communities from data centers’ economic benefits like increased property tax revenue and thousands of construction jobs.
“The lane for a politician … might be to grab this issue with both hands and say, ‘I’m going to protect my community. Here’s how I’m going to do it. But I also want to make sure that the communities get the benefits that they deserve,’” Newhall said. “A moratorium doesn’t answer any of those questions.”
Gaining traction
The AIA’s influence is already showing up.
Kokomo Mayor Tyler Moore last week announced Digital Realty was proposing a 476-acre data center campus in the city with 3 million square feet of floor space. The company is one of the members of the AIA.
In an op-ed piece published in August, Moore laid out five guardrails for new data centers in the city, including those proposed by the alliance. He also said projects won’t receive any tax abatements and will be built with local union labor.
“Some communities nearby are reaching for moratoriums,” he said in the op-ed. “But moratoriums are not a plan, and, by law, they cannot last forever. Preparation is a plan, which is why we wrote our rules before anyone files for an application.”
In a Facebook post last week, Moore argued the proposed development will be built within the guardrails and highlighted that the project is expected to generate $44 to $55 million in annual property tax revenue once it’s complete in 2033.
Mike Young, business manager for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 873 in Kokomo, said the mayor’s approach is “spot on” and the union is ready to help him execute his strategy. The IBEW is a member of the AIA.
“We also appreciate Mayor Moore not looking for moratoriums,” Young said in an op-ed. “They feel like action, but they’re a delay tactic, not a strategy.”
But whether the city’s approach wins residents’ support for the data center remains to be seen.
The mayor’s announcement came just days after the Kokomo Common Council voted to rezone the land so that it could be used for developments like data centers. During public meetings, many residents spoke out against the possibility of a data center coming to the city.
Local Democrats are now using the proposed project to hammer the mayor, who they say refused to give clear answers about whether a data center would be built on the rezoned land.
Hundreds of comments in response to Moore’s Facebook post also criticized the proposal and continued to push back against a data center in Kokomo, while other comments showed support for the development.
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FPI News reporter Carson Gerber covers pressing issues throughout the state and how local communities are tackling those challenges. Reach him at 756-204-4250 or carson.gerber@fpinews.org.
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