Republican Ohio lawmakers announce joint data center committee

Ohio House Energy Committee Chairman Adam Holmes, R-Nashport, and Senate Energy Committee Chairman Brian Chavez, R-Marietta, announced a new joint legislative committee to study and discuss the Buckeye State’s data centers, which many Ohioans consider to be the bane of the state.

During a news conference, Holmes and Chavez announced the creation of the Ohio Joint Data Center Committee that is supposed to provide Ohioans with “accurate, relevant, and usable information” about the data centers in the state, which includes information about how those data centers affect the local economy, environment, and security,” according to a release.

“Energy and information are not only the economic drivers for the 21st century. They are also a national security imperative,” Holmes said in a release. “It’s crucial Ohio establishes sound data center development policies that benefit all Ohioans.”

Holmes added that he and other Ohio lawmakers “recognize the concerns that have arisen in some citizens about the impact of data centers on our local communities,” bringing up the issues such as high water consumption, negative environmental effects, increased energy costs, including electricity, and “excessive sound, light, and electromagnetic emissions.”

“The mission of this committee is to ensure that Ohio citizens have accurate, relevant, and usable information concerning the economic, environmental, and security impacts of Ohio data center development,” Holmes said in a release.

The Ohio House previously passed House Bill 646 that would create the Ohio Data Center Study Commission. The legislation was sponsored by state Reps. Gary Click, R-Vickery, and Kellie Deeter, R-Norwalk.

“We began with an open concept anticipating input from our colleagues in both chambers. This is the culmination of those efforts,” Click said, according to The Toledo Blade. “I look forward to a final product that will provide a reasoned and rational response to the questions Ohioans are posing.”

Chavez and Holmes, however, said, according to the news source, that their legislative committee can become operational quicker than Click’s commission.

Holmes also said that “there’s a lot of decision-making by citizens this year, so we want to get this information out as quickly as possible,” The Blade of Toledo reported.

“We are embarking on this fact-finding mission to understand the perceived and actual impacts of data centers and to share reliable information with local officials and concerned citizens,” Chavez said, according to the press release.

Among the state senators appointed by Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, to help Chavez on the committee would be Bill Reineke, R-Tiffin, Shane Wilkin, R-Hillsboro, and Willis Blackshear, D-Dayton, according to a release.

Among the state representatives who will be appointed by Speaker of the Ohio House Matt Huffman, R-Lima, to help Holmes would be Thad Claggett, R-Newark, Heidi Workman, R-Rootstown, and Chris Glassburn, D-North Olmstead, according to the release.

The Blade also reported that state Sens. Michele Reynolds, R-Canal Winchester, and Kent Smith, D-Euclid, as well as Click and Deeter, will participate in the committee process.