Missouri has become ground zero for the rapid expansion of data centers and one of the nation's newest data center hubs. As billion-dollar compounds are proposed by private investors and the oligarchy across our beautiful state, our rural communities, residents and farmers are being asked to pay the price by providing the land, water, and energy, and bearing the brunt of all of the various pollutions these centers bring, while receiving no long-term benefits in return. The fight against data centers cuts across party lines because it is ultimately a fight to protect our communities, our democracy, and our collective humanity.

Data centers cost jobs in the long run. But more than that, they cost entire communities peace and security. They are temples to mass surveillance.

And they only benefit the wealthy.

If data centers are the flashpoint to bring Americans together, let’s lean into it.

Our campaign supports the Bernie Sanders Senate Bill 4214, the AI Data Center Moratorium Act. This legislation is correctly and importantly positioned, with the rapid advent of data centers and AI technology, as giving democracy a chance to “catch up” and establish vital safeguards to protect the public. 

The bill will do a number of valuable things:

• Establishes a moratorium on further construction of certain size and intended AI use data centers until public safety frameworks can be established. 

• Bans utility rate increases for the general public that are attributable to data center proximity.

• Demands prevailing wage for labor.

• Requires the Dept of Energy to collect and analyze all aspects of the impact of data centers on the environment, from energy and water use to environmental degradation impacts. Additionally demands transparency of data center ownership and investors, collected by the DoE.

This legislation is strongly opposed by the Trump Administration, and voters should watch very closely how Democrats vote on this legislation, should it make it out of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. Given the makeup of the committee, which includes ranking minority members Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and John Fetterman (D-PA), passage of this bill out of committee seems unlikely. 

However the bill provides an opportunity for the public to see clearly what the owners of data centers don’t want, which is oversight and any impacts to their profit margins. The public has spoken loudly about data centers all over the country, and in a way that cuts across party lines. The public wants a moratorium and strong regulations. They do not want these data centers in their neighborhoods, they do not want data centers consuming valuable resources, and they do not want AI use to impact labor or even our direct freedoms and constitutional rights. 

Therefore, this campaign supports a specific further measure to protect the public, and that is simply that data centers present a far too dangerous overreach by the profit-driven private sector and should be 100% publicly owned. The billionaire owners have already stated openly that they intend for AI to invade every aspect of our lives. The evidence already exists that giant corporations generally feel they have no responsibility to the public, only to their shareholders. It’s time to nationalize data centers so their use is highly regulated, transparent and with strict oversight. 

I support the fair market value purchase of existing data centers by the federal government. This doesn’t mean they will be shut down (though some may be), it simply puts the power to fully regulate data centers and consequentially AI use in public hands. The public understands the potential danger, because they are living it daily. Let’s take a stand and ensure full protections before things go further.