Albemarle expected to pause data center regulation measures, await decisions from Richmond

The Board of Supervisors will vote to pause the effort amidst uncertainty over potential future statewide legislation and pushback from local environmental groups.

CHALOTTESVILLE (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) — Albemarle County’s Board of Supervisors are expected to pause consideration of a second phase of regulations for data centers as it awaits potential statewide guidelines coming down from Richmond.

The General Assembly considered a number of bills on the topic last session and is likely to reconsider some of them this winter, Sen. Creigh Deeds told Cville Right Now.

“Data Centers are a huge part of the capital investment going on in Virginia right now,” Deeds said. “They are great sources of tax revenue to the localities where they are situated, but they create unprecedented demand for energy. There has to be a way to get data centers the energy they need, without raising costs and jeopardizing electric service to other consumers.”

The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, of which Deeds is a member, sent a report to the General Assembly and the Governor on Dec. 9, 2024, stating that the construction projects associated with new data centers provide positive economic benefits, and that they can generate substantial local tax revenue.

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