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Virginia Democrats seek local votes on data centers over 25 MW as JLARC estimates tax break returns 22 cents per dollar

Key points Virginia Democrats want local votes on every data center over 25 megawatts Virginia's plan would also ban data center NDAs with local officials JLARC estimated Virginia's data center tax break returned 22 cents per dollar Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger and the state's Democratic legislative leaders on Nov. 10 proposed requiring a local vote on every data center that uses more than 25 megawatts of power. The proposal is part of the 2027 legislative agenda they unveiled at the state Capitol in Richmond. Under the plan, those data centers could no longer be approved "by right," and local approval would be required regardless of prior project approvals. Democrats also want to bar data center companies from signing nondisclosure agreements with local officials. Bills for the agenda measures haven't been filed yet, the Virginia Mercury reported.