HAYMARKET, Va. (DC News Now) — Two Prince William County-area lawmakers held a town hall on Wednesday to discuss the findings from the newest report on the impact of data centers in Virginia.
The report discussed the economic impact of the $9 billion industry but also raised concerns about a number of issues including energy usage, the location of the data centers and the impact on the environment.
The commonwealth’s non-partisan research agency, JLARC, is behind the report.
It said the data centers – many of which are in Loudoun County and Prince William County – will drive a substantial increase in energy demand. It also said building the infrastructure for that demand will be difficult.
“It’s been about 15 years of unrestrained data center growth in Virginia,” Del. Josh Thomas, who co-hosted the town hall with State Sen. Danica Roem, said. “It’s time for some sensible guardrails.”
The report also said data centers’ energy usage could impact how much you’re paying, stating the typical Dominion Energy customer could see their costs increase by as much as $37 a month by 2040.
“That is directly affecting people’s pocketbooks,” Sen. Roem said.
Data center proponents, however, would point to the revenue they bring in — they make up about one-third of Loudoun County’s tax revenue and have allowed the county to cut real estate tax raises. Roem pushed back.
“If your electric bill is going up, then it’s kind of hard to say like, ‘Oh, thanks for the tax revenue,'” she said. “When the data center industry is suing Prince William County because they don’t like their property tax assessment, that’s a problem.”
A similar town hall is scheduled for Thursday, hosted by Del. Ian Lovejoy at Patriot High School.
