State Leaders Unveil Data Center Development Plan; Some Skeptical

State leaders joined Gov. Patrick Morrisey Tuesday to unveil the West Virginia Responsible Data Center Development Plan.  

“West Virginia has a very rich energy history,” Morrisey said. “Today, as the world stands on the cusp of a new digital and economic frontier, West Virginia is once again stepping forward to be a technology leader.” 

The plan builds on the legislative authority of House Bill 2014, signed into law in April 2025, to establish development criteria for hyperscale data centers.  

Key Principles of the plan include:  

• Comprehensive State Planning: Developers must demonstrate baseline financial capacity, committed capital, and clear power load projections to qualify for certification. 

• Direct Tax Relief for Citizens: 50% of project revenue is dedicated directly to reducing and eliminating the state personal income tax. Local host counties receive 30% for schools and government operations, 10% is distributed across all remaining West Virginia counties, and 10% is allocated to local water, wastewater, and electrical infrastructure upgrades. 

• Ratepayer Protection: Developers must build, bring, or procure their own energy resources and fully fund their own infrastructure and microgrid costs. Utility customers will not bear construction, operational, or grid upgrade expenses. 

• Water Protection: Environmental oversight under the Water Resources Protection and Management Act and West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection regulations remains fully intact. To further safeguard resources, the state is pioneering a shift toward next-generation technologies – including closed-loop systems, liquid immersion cooling, and reclaimed water integration. 

• Community Leadership & Local Oversight: A Data Center Advisory Council will conduct meetings to recommend statewide standards for setbacks, noise mitigation, site security, and proximity to sensitive areas.  

• Grid Reliability: Facilities will operate under a structured demand-response model, utilizing on-site backup generation or curtailing power during peak stress periods. 

• National Defense & Economic Security: Hyperscale facilities serve as foundational infrastructure in the global competition for leadership in artificial intelligence and advanced computing. Expanding domestic computational capacity within West Virginia secures critical digital infrastructure against strategic foreign adversaries like the People’s Republic of China, directly strengthening national security while catalyzing high-tech economic ecosystems at home. 

Emmett Pepper, policy director for Energy Efficient WV, was skeptical of the plan. 

“If ‘data center developers must build, bring, or procure their own energy resources,’ then why is FirstEnergy asking for permission to start charging West Virginia ratepayers immediately to build a $2.5 billion power plant for data centers that may or may not ever come to fruition?” Pepper asked in an email statement.  

Such protections would be welcome, Pepper said, but were not included in HB2014. The legislature and governor need to go further than what is in that legislation to protect ratepayers, he added.  

“They need to require utilities to have large load tariffs that protect ratepayers. They need to utilize some of the tax revenue that the state is taking from counties and municipalities and use it for ratepayer relief -- things like helping avoid utility shutoffs, energy efficiency/weatherization of homes and small businesses, and helping people have more reliable service through battery backup,” Pepper said.  

Morrisey said the plan offers a blueprint to attract a lot of resources in a responsible manner.  

“And then West Virginia is going to wildly benefit in terms of high paying jobs that will be durable,” he added.