(Radio Iowa) – Democrat Rob Sand says if he’s elected governor, he’d sign a bill banning tax breaks for data centers. Sand has been discussing the topic on the campaign trail and posted this statement on social media in July.
Data centers can claim sales tax refunds on computer purchases. There’s also a property tax exemption for the computers and equipment used to operate a data center. Sand today (Tuesday) released a series of steps he says will ensure data centers are contributing to Iowa’s economy, like requiring data centers to pay 100 percent of the costs of infrastructure upgrades and energy usage. Sand says any data center deal with a local Iowa government should be a public record and include information about water and energy usage as well as the wages workers will be paid.
Sand says data centers should hire construction workers who are Iowa union members and there should be open public hearings and town halls when data centers are proposed in a city or county.
