COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio lawmakers have introduced a bill to create a bipartisan commission to study the impacts of the state’s rapidly expanding data center industry, amid rising concerns over energy use, water consumption, and environmental effects.
House Bill 646, sponsored by Republican state Reps. Gary Click of Vickery and Kellie Deeter of Norwalk would establish a 13-member Data Center Study Commission charged with examining the economic, environmental, and social implications of data centers.
The panel would include three appointees, each from the governor, the House speaker, and the Senate president, plus two each from the minority leaders of the House and Senate. Members would serve until resignation, removal, or the commission’s dissolution, and receive $250 per meeting attended.
The commission would hold at least four public meetings—two for public testimony and two with invited experts—and must report its findings to the governor and General Assembly within six months of the bill’s effective date. It would then dissolve.
Topics for review include environmental impact, electrical grid effects, water usage, noise and light pollution, farmland and local economy impacts, contributions to national security and artificial intelligence, and foreign opposition campaigns, among others. The bill declares an emergency, citing the rapid proliferation of data centers without clear regulatory guidance.
Critics of the industry have raised concerns over the economic benefits often promised by data center projects. While construction phases generate temporary jobs in trades like electrical, HVAC, and plumbing, permanent employment at the facilities is typically small, ranging from a few dozen to roughly 150 people. Some argue that economic incentives and tax breaks disproportionately favor capital-intensive projects while offering limited long-term benefits to local communities.
Ohio has emerged as a major hub for data centers, fueled by demand from tech companies for cloud computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure. The state’s concentration of facilities, particularly in Central Ohio, has at times strained local electric grids, prompting utilities to pause new approvals. Data centers also require large amounts of electricity and water, raising costs for consumers and prompting some local governments to impose moratoriums on new developments.
Supporters of the industry highlight large capital investments and indirect benefits to local trade sectors, with projections for continued construction and ancillary job growth.
The bill has several Republican cosponsors and one Democrat, state Rep. David Thomas, and is awaiting committee assignment in the GOP-controlled House.