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Gov. DeWine freezes controversial data center tax break, for now

Google's data center campus in New Albany, one of three the tech giant sited in central Ohio.
Karen Kasler
/
Statehouse News Bureau
Google's data center campus in New Albany, one of three the tech giant sited in central Ohio.

After Monday, Ohio will not give any new data centers its major tax break for the foreseeable future.

The exemption from sales taxes on the materials contractors use to construct data centers has existed in Ohio’s Revised Code for years, although it’s drawn recent scrutiny over what it’s costing the state.

Still, Gov. Mike DeWine had rebuffed the legislative efforts to end the tax break until now. DeWine said Wednesday he ordered the Ohio Tax Credit Authority to freeze new requests as Ohio’s Joint Data Center Committee studies the electric intensive facilities.

But the move comes after data, first revealed by Signal Ohio, showed Ohio underestimated the cost of the tax break by more than a billion dollars.

This is breaking news.

Sarah Donaldson covers government, policy, politics and elections for the Ohio Public Radio and Television Statehouse News Bureau. Contact her at sdonaldson@statehousenews.org.