A small Wisconsin town approved a ballot measure requiring voter approval for future data center projects, reflecting growing public pushback nationwide.
About 66% of Port Washington voters approved a referendum requiring city leaders to obtain voter approval before granting developers tax incentives exceeding $10 million or more. The ballot measure was proposed by residents and a local anti-data center group, Great Lakes Neighbors United.
The measure follows local opposition to Vantage Data Centers developing a $15 billion artificial intelligence campus in collaboration with tech giants OpenAI and Oracle. The campus is part of the Trump administration’s “Stargate” initiative, which is meant to expand AI infrastructure.
“The feeling is that, you know, especially with the Vantage data center project, that there just wasn’t enough public input on it,” Michael Beaster of Great Lakes Neighbors United told Fox 6.
“We want projects like that, if they happen in the future, to be given a voice by the people,” Beaster said. “Not saying that they can’t happen, but if they’re going to happen, they’ll end up being a lot stronger projects if the people in the city believe it’s the right direction to take.”
The ballot measure passage is part of growing resistance to the expansion of data centers across the country as residents raise concerns about energy prices, noise pollution, water use, transparency, and more.
For instance, Frederick County, Maryland, has seen grassroots efforts to hold a referendum on data center zoning plans.
Then, in Maine, legislators have moved to ban data centers until November 2027. Earlier this week, a city councilman in Indianapolis reported that his home was shot just days after voting in favor of a new data center, with a note reading “no data centers” left at the scene.
Data centers are highly energy-intensive and are rapidly growing at a time of steeply rising electricity prices. President Donald Trump has prioritized data center construction to support U.S. technological and economic strength.
In a report released earlier this year, the Electric Power Research Institute found that data centers are on track to consume at least double their current share of U.S. electricity in just four years.
INDIANAPOLIS CITY COUNCILMAN SAYS HOUSE WAS SHOT AT AFTER VOTING IN FAVOR OF NEW DATA CENTER
The report forecasts that data centers will consume 9%-17% of U.S. electricity by 2030, nearly 60% higher than projected two years ago. Currently, these large-load facilities consume about 4%-5% of U.S. electricity.
Last month, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) introduced a bill that would halt construction of data centers until there are restrictions enacted on artificial intelligence.
