For months, Louisiana residents have watched as major decisions about economic development and the state’s energy future have taken place largely out of public view. They have involved the use of non-disclosure agreements and backdoor proceedings among state and local leaders, Entergy and Meta to create a $50 billion artificial intelligence data center in Richland […]
A Democratic lawmaker in North Dakota is calling for the Legislature to address data centers while legislators are gathered for a special session next month. But a top legislative leader is skeptical that a three-day special session, focused on regulating kratom, is the right time to debate data centers. Sen. Tim Mathern of Fargo plans […]
One of the less noticed features of the Virginia Way is the long-running tendency of the commonwealth’s leaders to conduct their decision-making behind closed doors. While the Virginia Freedom of Information Act presumes all government business is by default public and requires officials to justify why exceptions should be made, too many Virginia leaders in […]
Another filing asked the court to permanently halt any efforts by the county to restrict the signature gathering process as the data center initiative's deadline approaches.Â
Nearly 100 Monticello residents, decked out in red shirts, crowded into City Council chambers in February — nearly doubling the average attendance — holding signs protesting future data center development. The meeting stretched for nearly three hours, as residents interrupted debate between council members, calling for a moratorium on data centers. It’s a familiar scene […]
A reasonable dialogue about the startling proliferation of huge data centers in North Dakota (and elsewhere) has been effectively nullified by special interests that don’t want elected officials, regulators or members of the public scrutinizing their multi-million-dollar installations. They have skillfully managed and manipulated the debate by pitting neighbor against neighbor, community against community, and […]
