Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown, currently running for re-election in Ohio, has shifted his public stance on the expansion of data centers. While Brown celebrated the construction of an Amazon data center in Central Ohio in 2015, he is now campaigning against such developments, characterizing them as a drain on the state's resources and a contributor to rising electricity prices.
In a 2015 press release, Brown praised the growth of data centers in Ohio, stating, "This new data center is great news for New Albany and central Ohio. Amazon’s growth in central Ohio signals that this region is not only a great place to do business, but a place where people want to live and raise a family." He also noted the creation of new jobs.
However, in recent campaign messaging, Brown has presented a different perspective. "Ohio’s electric grid — big corporations treat it like a game," he stated in a recent campaign video. "[They’re] gobbling up energy to feed their data centers no matter how much it raises our prices. It’s the latest way they’ve rigged the system." Brown has pledged to support legislation requiring data centers to cover the full cost of their electricity consumption.
Ohio has become a significant location for data center development, attracting investment from companies like Amazon and Google, partly due to state incentives. In 2013, Ohio passed legislation offering tax exemptions for data center equipment. This law allows the Ohio Tax Credit Authority to approve tax exemptions for companies investing over a certain threshold. While this has spurred investment, the state anticipates $1.6 billion in forgone revenue in 2025 due to these tax expenditures.
Brown's shift aligns with a broader trend among some Democrats who are raising concerns about the environmental impact, electricity costs, and potential job displacement associated with data centers. Discussions continue regarding the extent to which data center energy consumption affects local utility rates and whether companies should bear these costs. Brown is set to face Republican challenger Bernie Moreno in the upcoming general election.