The U.S. Senate's year-long investigation into AI data centers found that developers have often misled communities about the benefits of large projects. Companies routinely highlight construction jobs during the approval process, but many refuse to disclose how many permanent positions will exist once a facility is operational. Among the few that did respond, the ratio was roughly one permanent job per megawatt of capacity, meaning a 100 MW data center—which consumes about as much electricity as 100,000 homes—would employ only about 100 people.
Tax incentives also came under scrutiny. While property-tax breaks attract attention during public hearings, the investigation found that sales-tax exemptions on computer equipment are often more valuable over time, since data centers continually replace and upgrade hardware. The report estimated that GPUs account for 39% of spending at a 1 GW facility, so if promised jobs and economic gains do not materialize, states lose substantial revenue.
The surveyed companies—Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, CoreWeave, Digital Realty, and Equinix—also resisted paying for the broader infrastructure their facilities require. They said they would cover direct costs, but not new power plants or transmission lines, even though those investments are driven largely by their power demands. Earlier attempts to legislate a ratepayer protection pledge failed because senators considered it "toothless." Senator Elizabeth Warren said Congress must hold Big Tech accountable, and Senator Chris Van Hollen said the report shows "working Americans and local communities are footing the bill" for the expansion.