Vivek Ramaswamy Proposes an ‘Ohioans-First’ Data Center Policy
August 6, 2026 - Erie County Republican Party
Vivek Ramaswamy has announced an “Ohioans-First” pledge that would set three conditions for new data centers in Ohio: nearby residents must receive free electricity, homeowners must receive property-tax relief, and projects must comply fully with environmental protections while preserving productive farmland.
Under the proposal, Ramaswamy would sign a day-one executive order pausing approval of newly announced data center projects until the General Assembly adopts a broader legislative framework. He says the framework would balance the construction jobs and investment created by data centers with concerns about higher utility bills, local tax incentives, water use, pollution, noise, and development on farmland.
The plan would establish “benefit zones” around data centers. Excess electricity from power generation serving a facility would be credited to residential customers in that zone, or the data center would reimburse their electric bills directly. Ramaswamy argues that, depending on a project’s size and location, the benefit could cover residents throughout a host county.
His proposal would also bar future data centers from receiving property-tax abatements. The facilities would pay their full property taxes, with revenue used to provide direct rebates to homeowners in the surrounding benefit zone without reducing support for schools, police, or firefighters.
For environmental protection, data centers would receive no special exceptions from air or water standards. Facilities would be expected to recycle and reuse water with the best available technology, return discharged water at the same level of cleanliness, and prioritize vacant or former industrial sites instead of fertile farmland.