COLUMBUS, OH — Today, more than 200 data centers and counting are located in Ohio – the fifth most in the nation. A little known loophole in Ohio law means they could also include on site air polluting powerplants, without any local input or oversight. 

As the centers’ demand more energy, some tech giants are looking to build their own power sources on site. A new report from Innovation Ohio, “The Powerplant Next Door” exposes a “trap door” in Ohio law that cuts local officials and communities out of the process, putting it in the hands of the Ohio Power Siting Board (OPSB), which is largely accountable to the governor. House Bill 15, passed in 2025, ramped up the process so if the OPSB fails to issue a permit within 60 days of the application, the project is automatically approved. 

The full report is available here.

“The Republican politicians who have run our state for years are bought and paid for by Big Tech Companies, who they have allowed to rake in even more profits on the backs of our communities,” said Innovation Ohio CEO Michael McGovern. “The reason so many data centers are being built here is because our lawmakers have not only given them untold millions in tax breaks, they've also rolled out the red carpet for tech corporations to profit by polluting our air and water, and sucking up our resources.”

A new data center in Hilliard provides a cautionary tale to the rest of the state. Amazon Web Services approached the city to build a third data center there in 2022. As the campus expanded, AEP Ohio and Bloom Energy proposed a solution for its growing energy needs: a 228-unit natural gas fuel cell array next to Beacon Elementary School as well as backup diesel generators. When the community expressed opposition, Amazon and AEP routed the fuel cell facility through the OPSB. Hilliard is not an isolated case. 

The next governor can reset data center regulations in Ohio to project residents and ensure local oversight.  Innovation Ohio’s report makes the following recommendations: 

1. Ensure OPSB members will put communities over the profits of tech corporations and utilities. 

2. Push state lawmakers to close the Senate Bill 52 double standard for clean energy production

3. Require community benefit agreements, early notification, and transparency

4. Improve public comment and oversight about wastewater discharge  

“The people running our state have been selling us out to the highest bidder,” McGovern said. “It was utilities with the HB 6 scandal, today it’s big tech and data centers. Until we have someone in the governor’s mansion who puts people over corporate profits, we can expect more power plants being built on top of elementary schools and more communities having their voices silenced.”