Virginia urged to pause hyperscale data center approvals

The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) urges the Virginia General Assembly to pause approvals of hyperscale data center projects and to require full transparency and planning for energy, water, air, and community impacts (Warrenton, Va., Jan. 5, 2026).

• Main announcement: PEC calls for an immediate pause on approvals of hyperscale data center proposals, a full accounting of energy and infrastructure commitments by utilities, and a comprehensive and transparent plan to protect the grid, water, air and communities. The statement was made by Christopher Miller, president of The Piedmont Environmental Council, and includes specific legislative asks such as State Corporation Commission review of interconnection, statewide reporting on data center energy use, water consumption, and emissions, and air quality studies of cumulative generator impacts.
• Background and details: Monitoring Analytics, LLC raised concerns to FERC that adding more data centers risks reliability and affordability; PEC highlights that the state sales tax exemption for data centers cost Virginia $1.6 billion in FY2025. Other concrete requests include denial/rollback of the Department of Environmental Quality change on backup generator use, review of the massive state sales and use tax exemption, and protections to prevent residents and businesses from subsidizing data center infrastructure.