(The Center Square) - A new poll shows Arizonans want to stop the development of large data centers in the state.
Noble Predictive Insights released a poll finding 57% of Arizona registered voters oppose new big centers.
The poll showed 35% of voters strongly opposed more large data centers in the state, while 22% somewhat opposed it.
Only 30% of voters supported adding large data centers. According to the poll, 21% of voters strongly supported more development, while another 9% somewhat supported it.
The poll found 13% of voters were undecided.
Large data centers have a "brand problem," said Mike Noble, founder and CEO of Noble Predictive Insights.
The centers are “running into resistance from people," Noble told The Center Square.
At least six Arizona local governments have enacted data center regulations: Chandler, Marana, Phoenix, Mesa, Mohave County and Tucson.
The poll found that a majority of Republicans, Democrats and independents all favored Arizona limiting large data center development because of concerns about water use, electricity demand and infrastructure costs.
Voters living in rural areas were more likely than urban residents to approve of Arizona stopping the development of large data centers, 64% to 59%, the poll showed.
Noble said he is surprised by the bipartisan support on this issue because “not many issues” are bipartisan anymore.
“Voters are leery about data centers, and I don’t think [proponents of data centers] have done a good job of explaining the benefits or the why [of the centers],” Noble told The Center Square.
Whatever the economic benefits of large data centers are, they “pale in comparison to the concerns” about data centers, Noble said.
People are asking themselves if the economic trade-offs are worth it, and they are saying no, he added.
Among Republican voters, Arizonans who support President Donald Trump were more likely to support the construction of large data centers than were Republican Party supporters overall: 49% to 37%.
Noble said this is occurring because large data centers are a political issue. He noted Trump has made them a big part of his agenda, causing a rift in the GOP.
On Monday, the president posted on Truth Social that the “only reason that communities throughout the U.S.A. should not want data centers is if they want to end up being backwards and poor.”
“If they want to be successful and rich, with far lower taxes and jobs all over the place, let data reign,” he added.
Trump also said China “could not be happier” with the “anti-data center movement” taking place in America.
In the last six months, Noble said the resistance to large data centers has increased nationwide.
“It’s a political landmine right now,” Noble said, adding that politicians need to be “smart” about how they navigate the data center issue.
Arizona shouldn't allow fear to dictate its policies on data centers and instead should follow its usual instincts on development, said Jen Springman, the coalitions manager at the Phoenix-based Goldwater Institute.
The state has been a “national leader in attracting jobs, investment and new residents” because the “state is open to innovation," Springman said.
“We don’t hold back entrepreneurs with overregulation," Springman told The Center Square in an email. "That’s been Arizona’s recipe for success. Arizona cannot and should not turn away from that. That’s exactly what will happen if we allow fear of data centers to scare us into shutting down development."
Springman noted much of the backlash against large data centers has been driven by misinformation.
“The truth is, data centers are already in Arizona, and they’re functioning responsibly. They’re creating jobs, and they’re an important part of our modern economy and infrastructure,” she explained.
According to Springman, Arizonans’ concerns about “electricity, water, and land use shouldn’t be dismissed.” However, she said these fears “should not slow down innovation.”
She noted rising electricity costs are due to “years of policy choices that have made power less abundant and more expensive.” The coalitions manager added that water concerns “tend to be overblown.”
“Market forces are already driving a massive shift toward water conservation through closed-loop recycling systems and dry-air cooling,” she said.
Springman said Arizonans “shouldn’t lose sight of the many benefits of data centers,” highlighting their ability to provide high-paying jobs and tax revenue generation.
“Every major technological shift in American history has brought warnings that the future is arriving too fast. Like it or not, the digital economy is here to stay and the infrastructure to power it will be built somewhere,” she explained.
“Arizona should embrace the data center future, not run away from it,” Springman added.
