It’s Time For A Thoughtful Discussion About Data Centers.

Perhaps the biggest political hot potato at the moment is the debate over data centers and the power needed to fuel artificial intelligence. Politicians at all levels of government are scrambling to figure out what to do, while candidates use AI-generated videos to attack their opponents…over being “pro-data centers.” Heh.

As a public policy professional, I can tell you this topic is a hot one in the public policy world as folks try to balance issues of national security, environmental protection, economic growth, and keeping America on the cutting edge of a transformational technology.

This morning’s Georgia Flyover has several bits of news on this front, including a link to this Georgia Recorded article on a recent action taken by the Public Service Commission:

The Georgia Public Service Commission approved an investigation into whether Georgia Power’s industrial customers who are heavy energy consumers, like data centers, are shifting some costs to residential customers.

The investigation was part of an agreement the utility company and PSC staff reached in May that slightly lowered the amount of the utility’s fuel and Hurricane Helene cleanup costs could be passed on to residential customers. The investigation will focus on a pricing structure used primarily by data centers and other large industrial customers that the commission staff said in a filing could drive the average cost for residential customers by up to 11% per month by 2028, which is likely to increase as demand for energy to power data centers grows.

Staff members with the Public Service Commission recommended commissioners sign off on further investigation, which they did Tuesday.  

The move was celebrated by environmental advocates. Ja’Mae Rooks of the Georgia Conservation Voters Education Fund, an environmental advocacy organization, said in a statement that “Georgians deserve to understand exactly who is paying for the massive growth in electricity demand from data centers, and who isn’t.”

“This investigation is a critical first step toward transparency. Families, small businesses, and churches shouldn’t be paying for Jeff Bezos’ data centers,” Rooks said, referring to the founder of Amazon.

Before I go further, I’ll point out the ongoing debate over the funding of data center opposition. I’m not accusing everyone opposed to data centers of taking foreign money, or anyone specifically, but given the history of Soviet funding of communist groups in the U.S. and the alleged funding of hate groups by the SPLC, we’d be foolish to ignore the possibility of foreign or malevolent influence in the data center debate. America’s adversaries want to win the AI race just as much as we do.

What’s needed here, in my opinion, is thoughtful debate based on facts, not fear. All sorts of conspiracy theories, misunderstandings, and outright lies are being thrown around at the moment, making it hard to have any kind of discussion on the issue. The temptation for politicians and regulators would be to give in to the loudest voices and slam the door shut to further AI development. But that would be a huge mistake, in my opinion.

The PSC has done a good thing by ordering the investigation into who bears the cost of data centers and other large power-consuming facilities. I’d suggest following up on this with legislation like Senator Hufstetler’s SB 34, which would require data centers to bear the full cost of their electricity.

My plea then to local and state officials is to act wisely and cautiously. It won’t be easy given the noise, but it’s important. My plea to the public is to arm yourselves with facts – REAL facts, not internet gossip or secret information from YouTubers. Is that too much to ask? I hope not.