Recent Polls Reveal Virginians Expect Legislators to Act, Not Kick The Can Again
WARRENTON, VA (Feb. 4, 2026) – On Monday, Feb. 9, nearly 200 Virginians from across the state will travel to Richmond to advocate for data center reform legislation as part of the Virginia Data Center Reform Coalition’s Lobby Day. Lobby Day kicks off at 8 a.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 815 East Grace Street, with remarks by:
- Senator Danica Roem
- Delegate Josh Thomas
- Delegate John McAuliff
- Tim Cywinski, Communications Director with Sierra Club
- Julie Bolthouse, Director of Land Use with Piedmont Environmental Council
- Kyle Hart, Mid Atlantic Senior Program Manager with National Parks Conservation Association
Members of the media are invited to attend this kick off meeting before coalition members depart for meetings with their legislators. Media: Please RSVP to Mike Doble, as seating is limited.
Dozens of legislative proposals have been introduced this year to regulate and reform data center development, and recent poll data shows Virginians are ready for the General Assembly to finally take action. Several data center reform bills may be up for floor action on Feb. 9.
A CCAN Action Fund poll found that the vast majority of voters want state legislators to take action to manage the impacts of data centers and don’t like big corporations getting special tax breaks to build new data centers.
Christopher Newport University’s Wason Center poll shows residents’ clear support for site assessments before data center approvals that look at water usage, the electric grid, carbon emissions, and agricultural impacts and prohibit locating them within a mile of a national park, state park, or historically significant site.
“The mood of people, as well as many rank and file legislators in the state, has changed. “Business as usual” is not what Virginians want from their elected representatives. They want a smarter development approach, not rubber stamped approvals for the data center industry while it degrades air quality, depletes critical water and other natural resources, industrializes our neighborhoods, and heaps costs on every Virginian for the benefit of the richest companies in the world”, said Julie Bolthouse, Co-Chair of the Data Center Reform Coalition. “We need to pause and plan to get us out of the crisis by contract created by localities approving data centers without any state oversight of broader impacts on ratepayers, the grid reliability, water supplies, air quality, etc.”
A list of priority bills, supported by the Coalition, is summarized below.
The Coalition supports four pillars of reform, and there are several active bills that address each of these areas:
- State oversight to evaluate and plan for the far-reaching regional impacts of data center development affecting neighboring jurisdictions and state policies (HB155/SB619, HB284/SB371)
- Enhanced transparency around each data centers’ energy use, water consumption, and emissions (HB507, HB496, HB589/SB553)
- Ratepayer protections that ensure average residents and businesses aren’t shouldering industry risks and subsidizing the operation of the wealthiest companies in the world (HB658/ SB339)
- Tax incentive reform that ties tax breaks for data centers to best practices, pollution reduction and energy efficiency (HB897/SB465)
The Data Center Reform Coalition is made up of more than 50 organizations and hundreds of advocates and concerned citizens from across Virginia. As Virginians across the Commonwealth feel the impacts of unconstrained data center development, the Coalition’s annual Lobby Day provides an opportunity for constituents to meet with legislators and make their voices heard on critical data center issues impacting Virginia communities. The Coalition works with lawmakers and data center leaders to establish fair, transparent regulatory oversight for this rapidly growing industry.
Partner quotes:
“The data center industry is determined to push Virginia’s grid to the breaking point, force families to choose between food and energy bills, and drive up air pollution. The state has repeatedly failed to act and must now move beyond tepid reform to truly protect Virginia’s communities and environment.” – Victoria Higgins, Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) Action Fund, Virginia Director
“Unchecked data center growth is driving up electric bills, locking Virginia into decades of toxic pollution and putting public health at risk,” said Brennan Gilmore, executive director of Clean Virginia. “Families and small businesses should not be forced to subsidize an industry owned by the wealthiest corporations in the world. Lawmakers must act now to protect our health and keep our energy system clean and affordable.”
“Data center reform in Virginia is long overdue, and the stakes couldn’t be higher,” said Renee Grebe of Nature Forward. “Unregulated data centers put the health of Virginians at risk by jeopardizing our drinking water and poisoning our air. The financial impacts, including skyrocketing utility bills and rising land costs, threaten to make housing unaffordable for working families. Now is the time to take action to protect both our environment and our communities.”
Ken Wright, Virginia Policy Director for the Potomac Conservancy said: Water is the lifeblood of Northern Virginia, and the Potomac River is that source. Without constraints, current projections from the ICPRB suggest that data centers could use 33% of the Potomac Basin’s water. That would devastate our communities. The data center industry has fought legislation that would further transparency and data collection on water usage at every turn. Inaction is not a choice; overconsumption by data centers threatens our health, our quality of life, and the world around us. To quote W.H. Auden, “Thousands have lived without love, not one without water.”
“Data centers require extraordinary amounts of land, energy and use up to millions of gallons of water per day to operate, said Kyle Hart, Senior Program Manager for the National Parks Conservation Association. “From Shenandoah to Manassas, these industrial complexes are one of the biggest threats facing our 22 national parks here in Virginia. They bring noise, air pollution, and irreversible damage to historic sites and green spaces. Our national parks hold our shared American history and showcase some of our most awe-inspiring views, and offer endless adventures. We’re proud to join Virginians from across the state in calling on our lawmakers in the General Assembly to pass strong data center reforms that protect our parks and communities.”
“Since its inception in December of 2014, The Coalition to Protect Prince William County has been sounding the alarm on an industry that consumes critical resources like no other – Power, Water, Fossil Fuel, and critical Farm Land. Virginians everywhere are suffering under the burden of this unconstrained onslaught of data center industrialization, whether it’s their behemoth buildings, substations, transmission lines, gas turbines, or diesel generators. The Virginia Data Center Reform Coalition will be taking their FOURTH trip to Richmond, leaving at the crack of dawn from towns and counties across the Commonwealth. We will not stop demanding oversight that protects our energy grid from black outs, our utility bills that are rising exponentially, and our air quality as Data Centers increasingly rely on dirty diesel generators as their de facto ‘micro grid.’”
“Data centers drive up electric bills, pollute our neighborhoods, and destroy local quality of life—all so Big Tech can pad its profits,” said Paige Wesselink of the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter. “This issue isn’t about right vs left. It’s about whether our state legislature believes some neighborhoods are expendable or if they’re willing to fight for the people who deserve better.”
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The Virginia Data Center Reform Coalition is a statewide coalition of more than 50 nonprofit organizations, community groups, HOAs and individuals urging state lawmakers to institute commonsense reforms for the data center industry, around four key pillars: 1) transparency; 2) state oversight and regulation, including requirements for mitigation; 3) financial protection for families and businesses; and 4) tying data center tax exemptions to standards that reduce pollution