Data centers become a top midterm issue as states push reporting and moratoria

State and policy voices told C-SPAN that data center development has moved from a niche infrastructure topic to a central campaign issue in many 2026 races. New Jersey Gov. Mikey Sherrill said her state signed a law requiring data centers to report electricity and water use twice a year and to pay for connections and services, arguing, "If you're gonna use our land and resources, you better invest here too." (Governor Sherrill's comments were reported in the program's New Jersey segment.)

Nicole Turner Lee, director of the Brookings Institution's Center for Technology Innovation, said public sentiment flipped quickly as communities observed rising utility costs, questions about local job gains, and concerns about concentrated private wealth. "It has been a a complete turnover in terms of how people feel about data centers," she said, urging better community engagement and guardrails. Industry voices such as Dan D'Aurel of the Data Center Coalition urged regulators to work with companies, saying the industry must "ensure that they have robust community and stakeholder engagement early and often."