If you’ve never given much thought to data centers, you’re not alone. Most people don’t see them, don’t visit them, and don’t think about them, until something changes. Like your electric bill. And for millions of Americans, those monthly bills have skyrocketed lately. Understanding what data centers are and how they affect our communities is the first step toward making sure they grow in a way that’s fair, affordable, and clean.

First things first: What is a data center?

A data center is a large facility filled with servers, aka powerful computers that store data and keep the internet running. Every email you send, movie you stream, photo you upload, or file you store, or AI inquiry in the cloud relies on data centers.

Virginia, especially Northern Virginia, has more than 500 data centers, more than anywhere else in the world. Companies build them here because of strong internet connections, access to power, and business-friendly policies. 

But while data centers power our digital lives, they also consume enormous amounts of energy and resources.

Why data centers matter for energy and electric bills

Data centers use a lot of electricity, far more than most people realize.

• A single large data center can use as much electricity as tens of thousands of homes.
• As more data centers are built, Virginia’s overall electricity demand rises sharply.
• To meet that demand, utilities often propose new power plants, transmission lines, and substations.

Those projects are expensive, and the cost often shows up on residents’ monthly electric bills, even if households aren’t using more electricity themselves. This means Virginians can end up paying higher energy costs, while large corporate customers are not equally affected.

The $1.6 billion fairness question

Currently, data centers in Virginia receive some of the largest tax breaks of any industry, totaling about $1.6 billion in 2025 alone. These exemptions were meant to attract investment, but they also come with few requirements around energy efficiency or requirements to use clean power.

So while families feel rising electricity bills, data centers often avoid paying the full cost of new energy infrastructure and don’t always account for pollution impacts on nearby communities.

That raises an important question: Who is really paying for Virginia’s energy future?

Wait, how is water involved?

Many data centers use water-based cooling systems. Some facilities consume hundreds of millions of gallons of water every year, competing with local water supplies, especially concerning during droughts or in rural areas.

Without strong planning and zoning, they can also replace farmland, forests, and scenic land that communities depend on.

A better way forward is possible

Data centers don’t have to drive up bills or increase pollution. With the right rules in place, they can grow responsibly and support clean energy progress.

Some states are already acting. In Pennsylvania, Washington state, and New York, leaders have announced plans to require large data centers to secure or fund their own power supply.

What clean, responsible data centers should do

In Virginia, proposed legislation like HB 897 and SB 465 would take a commonsense step forward by tying data center tax exemptions to:

• Strong energy efficiency requirements
• New clean energy, like solar and wind, procurement standards
• Battery storage instead of polluting backup generators
• No new gas fired power plants to power data centers

Your energy matters

This isn’t about stopping technology or economic growth. It’s about making sure growth is fair, clean, and accountable, and that benefits do not come at the expense of increased pollution or higher residential energy prices.

Virginia can lead the country, not just in data centers, but in showing how the digital economy and clean energy can grow together. We all benefit from making our clean energy future possible.