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Your Money · Report · File No. 261113-425

Spanberger seeks local votes on big data centers as Virginia power bills worry voters

Virginia's governor wants local approval for large data centers and a ban on secrecy deals with local officials. The state has more data centers than any other, and residents worry about their electric bills.

By the Kitchen-Table Desk · · 2 min read

Every quote in this story (1) was matched word for word against its source. How we work

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Abigail Spanberger
Abigail Spanberger. Photo: U.S. House of Representatives, Public domain

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat, has laid out her 2027 legislative agenda with the state's top Democrats. It includes new limits on data centers, the large computer warehouses that power artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet 1.

The agenda would ban non-disclosure agreements that keep local staff, supervisors, planning commissions or zoning boards from speaking about data center projects 1. It would also require local approval for any data center that uses more than 25 megawatts of power, regardless of any earlier approval 1. A megawatt is enough power for hundreds of homes.

Why Virginia matters

Pew, the research group, counts more active and planned data centers in Virginia than in any other state. Loudoun County in the north is nicknamed "Data Center Alley." The state has 398 active data centers and 287 more planned 1.

A bill called the Data Center Oversight Act would require operators to disclose ownership, water and energy use, and costs that could be passed on to utility customers. Companies that fail to comply could face fines of up to $1 million a day 1.

From Channel GOPRaskin asked Bondi about Trump's $10 billion claimRep. Jamie Raskin · 450 plays · captioned, with the source named
Abigail Spanberger
In the years before I took office, data centers came to Virginia and the Commonwealth did not have a clear or coordinated plan to address their impacts on Virginians — on their electric bills, their water, their land, their air, or their quality of life,
Abigail Spanberger, Governor of Virginia, Democrat1

Spanberger's September executive order, known as Executive Order 22, started the effort. It bans nondisclosure agreements for state agencies and employees on data center projects. It does not cover local officials 2. Her plan stops short of a moratorium, which would pause new development 2.

Many of the proposals need approval from the General Assembly, Virginia's legislature, in the 2027 session 2. Her plan would also limit "by-right" approval. That is the rule that lets projects meeting land-use standards skip local public hearings 2.

Critics on both sides

Critics say the plan does not go far enough. Sen. Louise Lucas, a Democrat from Portsmouth, noted that the September order left about $2 billion in sales tax exemptions in place 2. The Piedmont Environmental Council said a moratorium is the first step needed 2.

Del. Terry Kilgore, a Republican from Scott County, argued the plan limits on-site natural gas and backup power while expecting data centers to support the electric grid 2. The Data Center Coalition, an industry group, said it shares the goal of responsible development but wants more details 2.

Joe Luppino-Esposito, a Loudoun County resident and policy director at the Pacific Legal Foundation, said regulators should avoid rules that merely slow data centers down. He said the goal should be improving residents' lives 1.

What happens next

The state audit commission, known as JLARC, estimates data centers support 74,000 Virginia jobs and add $9.1 billion a year to the state economy 1. Residents still worry about their electric bills, water, noise and land use 12.

That matters beyond Virginia. Other states are weighing the same trade-off between new jobs and higher costs for households that pay the power bills 1. Lawmakers will decide in 2027 how much of Spanberger's plan becomes law.

The Record

  1. Spanberger issues Executive Order 22, a data center accountability framework and AI task force, without a moratorium 2.
  2. Newsweek reports her 2027 agenda would ban local-level NDAs and require local approval for data centers over 25 megawatts 1.
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Sources

  1. Newsweek, “Why Virginia Is the Next Hotbed for AI Data Center Debate” (2026-11-13). newsweek.com/why-virginia-is-next-hotbed-ai-data-center-deba
  2. Cardinal News, “Spanberger issues executive order to hold data centers accountable, form AI task force” (2026-09-18). cardinalnews.org/2026/09/18/spanberger-issues-executive-orde

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