Ohio Farm Bureau is urging its members to contact their Ohio legislators to ask them to repeal the Data Center Sales Tax Exemption.
A recent veto is allowing a major tax exemption for data centers to stand, giving multi-billion-dollar (and even trillion-dollar) companies a significant advantage, while Ohio farmers and rural communities are left to figure out how to manage these significant influxes of needed resources.
It is understood that data centers may provide some benefits to the nation, state, and local areas, but the potential negative impacts of data centers on agriculture, natural resources, the electricity market, and land use have Farm Bureau members rightly asking, “Are we doing this too quickly? And at what cost?”
Ohio Farm Bureau has already testified in support of House Bill 646, which would establish a study commission to examine many of the issues that concern members. Even with quick passage, however, that commission will only be creating recommendations that, at best, could be released by the end of the year, after numerous, thorough hearings that allow for public testimony and rigorous research.
Ohio Farm Bureau Executive Vice President Adam Sharp said, “While we are extremely supportive of the creation of that commission, we believe that action is needed now to slow the proliferation of data centers.”
Agriculture is facing one of the most difficult economic climates since the 1980s. Trade uncertainty, soaring fertilizer costs, stagnant markets, and rising land prices are putting intense pressure on farm operations. Developers are offering tens of thousands per acre, which are prices farmers simply cannot compete with.
“This veto protects an uneven playing field that benefits data centers, not farmers, and not rural communities,” Sharp said. “Overriding this veto would ensure that if these types of facilities continue to locate in Ohio, they will provide the maximum benefit to Ohio taxpayers.”
Online extra
Ohio Farm Bureau sent a letter to the leaders of the Ohio House and Senate, urging their support for a veto override that would repeal the Data Center Sales Tax Exemption.
Ohio Farm Bureau is urging its members to contact their Ohio legislators to ask them to repeal the Data Center Sales Tax Exemption.
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Leah Curtis joins this Legal with Leah to talk about what data centers mean for local communities and how to stay engaged in the development process
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Ohio EPA has recently proposed allowing data centers to obtain ‘general’ National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for their stormwater/wastewater discharges.
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