{"id":206623,"date":"2026-06-03T20:50:56","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T01:50:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/?p=206623"},"modified":"2026-06-03T20:50:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T01:50:57","slug":"lawmakers-hear-data-center-opposition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2026\/06\/03\/lawmakers-hear-data-center-opposition\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawmakers hear data center opposition"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Nick Evans\/Ohio Capital Journal<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

COLUMBUS — More than 100 Ohioans submitted testimony ahead of state lawmakers\u2019 Select Committee on Data Centers\u2019 single hearing for public comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lawmakers heard an array of concerns about the proliferation of data centers around the state \u2014 the environmental impact, the cost of tax breaks, and the use of nondisclosure agreements to avoid public scrutiny.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lawmakers also received pointed critiques from Ohioans who say elected officials have been too slow to respond to their frustrations, and their response thus far has been inadequate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many pressed lawmakers for a data center moratorium \u2014 a step lawmakers have so far been unwilling to take.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe citizens are going to continue working to ban them if the legislative body doesn\u2019t take action,\u201d Stephanie Stock, the president of Ohio Advocates for Medical Freedom, warned.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
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During a hearing held this week, a committee consisting of state lawmakers heard from citizens who expressed concerns about data centers. Van Wert independent file photo<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Organizers are currently\u00a0gathering signatures\u00a0for a constitutional amendment prohibiting construction of data centers that consume more than 25 megawatts a month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Broken trust<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many speakers made the drive from Adams County in Appalachian Ohio. They described a familiar pattern of new industries showing up in Appalachian communities to extract resources and leave residents with little if any benefit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI understand the importance of jobs; I understand economic development. I am not opposed to progress,\u201d Emily Young told lawmakers. \u201cI am opposed to communities being asked to accept risk before they have been given honest answers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No industry, she said, has asked local communities \u201cto surrender the amount of land, water, energy, and local control\u201d as hyperscale data centers have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To many speakers, the epitome of those demands is the industry\u2019s use of nondisclosure agreements to shield new developments from public input.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jessica Baker from Williamsburg brought in 16 NDAs from a data center project in a nearby town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She recited the officials \u2014 council members, the mayor, fire chief, village engineer, and more \u2014 as she flipped through the documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Like Young, Baker insisted she doesn\u2019t oppose technology or progress, she opposes the secrecy. And she expressed frustration that it fell to her to dig up answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEveryday Ohioans should not have to spend their evenings submitting records requests and digging through utility filings just to understand what is happening around their homes,\u201d she said. \u201cThat is why people elect leaders in the first place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carl Setzer is uniquely qualified to talk about data centers, he shared. After working for a firm testing tech companies\u2019 security systems, he started a company that grew into what he described as China\u2019s largest craft brewery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have dealt with private equity, I\u2019ve dealt with cooling systems, I\u2019ve dealt with wastewater management, I\u2019ve dealt with IT,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Setzer said we\u2019re in the midst of a speculative bubble, and \u201cthe reason why we need to build so many data centers yesterday,\u201d is so private investors can cash out before the broader public realizes \u201cthere\u2019s no there there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOhio residents are not in the way of progress,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re just anxious, and we\u2019re afraid that we\u2019re going to lose the little that we have left, to things that we never even asked for.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Environmental concerns<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research scientist Stephen Petty worries about what\u2019s in the water data centers use to cool their facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ohio state Sen. Shane Wilkin, R-Hillsboro, asked why state regulators\u2019 permitting systems aren\u2019t enough to protect residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re effective for chemicals that are regulated,\u201d Petty said. \u201cThey\u2019re not effective for chemicals that are not regulated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, he said, many materials including PFAS \u2014 microplastics known as forever chemicals \u2014 fall outside state regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That discharge could present health concerns, but it could cost local governments, too, Petty warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced<\/a> plans to rollback PFAS drinking water limits that were set to take effect in 2029.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But if PFAS eventually face regulation, and the chemicals have already been discharged into water systems, local governments could be on the hook for the cleanup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Petty described a city in New Jersey that spent more than $30 million on technology to filter the chemicals from its municipal water system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to concerns about water contaminants, speakers voiced concerns about the scope of water use generally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nikki Gerber works for a canoe and kayak rental company in Adams County and she explained the region\u2019s aquifers are some of the slowest in the state to recharge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have many people with private residential wells,\u201d Gerber said. \u201cWell, are those wells gonna go dry? That\u2019s their source of life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCows can\u2019t drink bottled water,\u201d she added. \u201cCrops can\u2019t grow off of bottled water.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other speakers complained about air emissions \u2014 particularly from backup generators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cathy Cowan Becker from Save Ohio Parks pointed to a Hilliard data center that will use a fuel cell system for backup power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to emit 1.5 million pounds of carbon dioxide per day,\u201d she said. \u201cThe equivalent of if you took 66,000 cars, parked them on site, and let them run 24\/7 next to hundreds of homes, an elementary school, a park, and the county\u2019s largest animal shelter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Co-chairs\u2019 thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The committee\u2019s Ohio House co-chair, state Rep. Adam Holmes, R-Nashport, acknowledged most speakers showed up to voice opposition to data centers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFrom the ground level, they\u2019re all opponents, but I did pick up various different concerns,\u201d Holmes said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat was really the intent of this whole process,\u201d he added. \u201c(To) understand specific concerns and specific areas that really don\u2019t have oversight at the state level.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senate co-chair, state Sen. Brian Chavez, R-Marietta, said the process is working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love the fact that we\u2019re having the public come in and give their point of view and their opinions,\u201d he said. \u201cI just want to make sure that we\u2019re not giving our own facts.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nick Evans\/Ohio Capital Journal COLUMBUS — More than 100 Ohioans submitted testimony ahead of state lawmakers\u2019 Select Committee on Data Centers\u2019 single hearing for public comment. Lawmakers heard an array of concerns about the proliferation of data centers around the state \u2014 the environmental impact, the cost of tax breaks, and the use of nondisclosure […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-206623","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-11 04:37:24","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206623","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=206623"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206623\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":206625,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206623\/revisions\/206625"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=206623"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=206623"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=206623"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}