Larsen | I will not let them stick you with the bill for data centers

||| FROM THE OFFICE OF U.S. REP. RICK LARSEN |||

Data centers are expanding across the country, including here in the Pacific Northwest. This growth carries real consequences for our communities.

Data centers require enormous amounts of electricity and water to operate. Without strong guardrails, the costs of building and running these facilities can be passed on to ordinary ratepayers through higher electricity bills and increased strain on local water systems. At the same time, the public infrastructure that supports our communities, including the power grid, roads, bridges, and schools, requires significant investment. Data center development should strengthen these systems, not strain them.

Last month, I joined 110 House Democrats in a letter to tech industry leaders demanding that data center construction follow strict guardrails to protect consumers. In that letter, we stated that data center projects must be built and operated responsibly, with high-quality construction, good jobs, strong environmental stewardship, and genuine partnerships with the communities they serve.

We also stated that we would oppose new data center projects that fail to include strong labor standards, community benefits agreements negotiated with local leaders, and meaningful steps to protect local air quality, drinking water, and utility costs for residents. Developers must invest responsibly in grid infrastructure so that ratepayers do not bear the cost of powering these projects.

Next, I voted for the Ratepayers Protection Act, legislation designed to protect families from higher electricity bills caused by data centers in their communities. I am also a cosponsor of the Big Ugly Tax Breaks for Data Centers Act, which would roll back tax breaks for large AI data centers included in Republicans’ Big Ugly Law.

Finally, let me make this clear. I support tough, upfront restrictions on data centers, including:

• No high electric bills for local families and small businesses
• No federal tax breaks
• No construction without community approval and union labor
• Data centers must pay their fair share to connect to and use the grid
• Data centers must use closed-loop water systems

These bills are only a start, and there is a lot more work to do. Skagit County and Snohomish County have recently enacted temporary data center moratoriums. I support the ability of local jurisdictions to give themselves time to decide how they want to manage large data centers. I will keep working to understand how our communities could be impacted by the growth of data centers in the Pacific Northwest.