West Virginia leaders are escalating the debate over data centers, with Gov. Patrick Morrisey unveiling a seven-point plan developed with lawmakers to reduce and eventually eliminate the state income tax while addressing concerns about natural resources and infrastructure. The plan comes as data centers are becoming a political flashpoint nationwide, with states looking to cash in on billions of dollars in investment and new jobs while communities raise concerns about utility costs, water use and local control.
The massive facilities needed to power the artificial intelligence boom are also driving electricity demand higher, putting new pressure on power grids across the country. Under the plan, West Virginia would dedicate 50% of revenue generated by approved hyperscale data center projects to reducing and eventually eliminating the state personal income tax, while directing some remaining revenue to counties and infrastructure projects. "Today, as the world stands on the cusp of a new digital and economic frontier, West Virginia is stepping forward once again to lead, not by repeating the mistakes of other states, but by implementing a proactive, 20-year development strategy on our terms," Morrisey said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital.
The process was established under a separate 2025 state law. Morrisey’s plan includes "direct tax relief for citizens," with none of the HIDC revenue entering the state general fund. AN OVERLOOKED RED STATE QUIETLY BUILT ONE OF AMERICA’S MOST COMPETITIVE TAX SYSTEMS "By law, 50 percent of project revenue is dedicated directly to reducing and ultimately eliminating the State Personal Income Tax," the plan reads.
Counties hosting data centers would receive 30% of the revenue for schools and local government, while 10% would be distributed to all 55 counties and another 10% would fund infrastructure upgrades, including public water systems. Water infrastructure has become a flashpoint across parts of southern West Virginia that have struggled since the coal industry’s decline. ONE MONTHLY BILL AMERICANS CAN’T AVOID IS QUIETLY SURGING THANKS TO EMERGING INDUSTRY: DATA "This shared framework gives us the exact blueprint we need to attract billions in private investment, create thousands of high-paying construction and technology jobs, lower taxes for our citizens, and revitalize economically distressed regions, all while preserving the wild and wonderful state we call home," Morrisey said.
But the promise of tax relief comes as some West Virginians are raising concerns about who could bear the costs of the state’s data center expansion. The bipartisan bill underpinning the governor’s plan also sought to protect utility customers from added costs — a major concern across the Eastern Panhandle, which borders the Washington, D.C. metro area. MARXIST ORGANIZER LEADS CAMPAIGN AGAINST VIRGINIA AI DATA CENTER AS FOREIGN INFLUENCE CONCERNS MOUNT "No Data Centers" signs are becoming common along roads in Jefferson and Berkeley counties and neighboring Clarke County, Virginia, as residents point to nearby Loudoun County, Virginia, where sprawling data center development has increasingly pushed up against residential subdivisions and commercial centers.
"We are a cautionary tale for the rest of the country," Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va., of Ashburn said in recent remarks critical of the data center explosion. "[I]f my district were a country, it would have more data centers than almost every other country in the world." TEA PARTY FOUNDER LAUNCHES NATIONWIDE 'DATA CENTER REVOLT' AGAINST AI DATA CENTER EXPANSION Back in West Virginia, some state lawmakers are pushing for additional safeguards as data center development accelerates.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
