{"id":11,"date":"2026-05-11T15:08:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T15:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=11"},"modified":"2026-05-11T15:08:00","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T15:08:00","slug":"nc-bills-target-data-center-boom-seeking-tax-changes-consumer-protections-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=11","title":{"rendered":"NC bills target data center boom, seeking tax changes, consumer protections"},"content":{"rendered":"
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North Carolina lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are working on regulating data centers this year, receiving guidance from Democratic Gov. Josh Stein and local municipalities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more NC bills target data center boom, seeking tax changes, consumer protections<\/a><\/p>\n

The measures come about amid an anticipated data center boom in the state.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the moment, North Carolina offers sales tax exemptions on data center purchases of electricity and equipment. These tax breaks were initially enacted in 2006 and expanded in 2015 as a way to attract more data centers as economic development projects.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNow they\u2019ve proliferated everywhere, so I don\u2019t know that there needs to be an incentive to get more of them here,\u201d Speaker Destin Hall (R-Caldwell) told reporters on Thursday. \u201cBig companies like that, they ought to pay the same taxes as any other business.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The North Carolina Department of Commerce estimates that data centers currently receive about $50 million each year in state sales and use tax exemptions. If all the data centers proposed for the state are built, that figure would balloon to about $450 million each year, Commerce estimates.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Last month, Stein <\/span>asked<\/span> the legislature to modify or repeal sales tax exemptions for data centers, citing the need to prevent consumers from rising energy costs and tax rates.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe must be clear-eyed about the cost of data centers to ratepayers in terms of higher power bills, and clear about their cost to taxpayers in terms of lost revenue,\u201d Stein said at a North Carolina Energy Policy Task Force meeting in April.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

House Bill 1063<\/span>, \u201cRatepayer and Resource Protection Act,\u201d has a slate of Democratic representatives as sponsors, including Leader Robert Reives (D-Chatham).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It follows Stein\u2019s request to repeal existing sales tax exemptions for data centers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s our state legislature\u2019s job to create a comprehensive policy,\u201d said Rep. Lindsey Prather (D-Buncombe), a primary sponsor of the bill. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be consistent and predictable so companies know what to expect when they\u2019re coming in, but it\u2019s also going to protect consumers and those of us who pay utility bills.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The bill would also require the owner of a prospective data center to submit a disclosure statement to the Department of Environmental Quality, North Carolina Utilities Commission and local governments where the data center would be located. Such documents would need to include projected electricity and water consumption.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Utilities Commission declined to comment on pending legislation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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