Virginia urged to pause data center development and reform tax breaks

PEC President Chris Miller (op-ed) calls on the Virginia General Assembly to eliminate the data center sales tax exemption, adopt SB619 and SB339, and pause new data center development pending cumulative-impact reviews.

• Main action: The op-ed urges the General Assembly to remove the data center sales tax exemption (~$2 billion per year), adopt SB619 and SB339 into the budget to require State Corporation Commission (SCC) review of large-load applications and investigate rate structure subsidies, and to pause data center development until cumulative analyses and public comment are completed.
• Background and details: The piece notes Dominion Energy has signed contracts for 51 GW with an additional 19 GW requested (70 GW total), argues most new generation/transmission won’t be available for a decade or more, and highlights concerns about hundreds of substations, thousands of miles of transmission lines, and dozens of power plants needed to serve these contracts. This is an op-ed calling for policy change rather than an official government announcement.