An Act to renumber and amend 238.40 (1) (b) 1.; to amend 238.40 (1) (b) (intro.); to create 238.40 (1) (b) 1. b. and 238.40 (1) (bm) of the statutes; Relating to: modifying the sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers. (FE)
Summary
AB245 would revise Wisconsin’s sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers. Under current law, a data center must be certified by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) and meet specified ownership, building, and investment requirements to qualify for the exemption on property and items used to construct, operate, or renovate the facility. The bill keeps the existing certification framework but broadens the definition of a qualified data center in several ways.
First, the bill expands the types of server facilities that may qualify by allowing buildings to house a group of individual server computers, not just networked server computers. It also adds a new qualifying category for facilities that provide space, utilities, cooling capacity, enhanced security, and access to infrastructure, platforms, software, and other managed services for an owner, operator, or tenant. At the same time, the bill excludes facilities used for cryptocurrency creation, transaction verification, and blockchain security from eligibility for the exemption.
Impact
AB245 would amend s. 238.40 of the Wisconsin Statutes, which governs the sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers certified by WEDC. The bill would broaden eligibility for the exemption to cover a wider range of data center configurations and colocation-style facilities, while expressly barring cryptocurrency mining and blockchain validation facilities from being certified as qualified data centers. If enacted, it would affect businesses developing or operating data centers, WEDC’s certification decisions, and the scope of state and local tax exemptions tied to data center investment.
Sentiment
The available record suggests the bill was generally framed as a business and technology development measure, with no recorded committee transcript or vote data showing formal opposition or support. Its introduction by multiple Republican legislators and referral to the Ways and Means Committee indicate it was treated as a tax and economic development proposal. However, the bill ultimately failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1, so it did not become law.
Contention
The main policy tension appears to be between expanding tax incentives for data center investment and limiting those incentives to traditional data center uses. Supporters likely viewed the bill as modernizing the exemption to reflect colocation and managed-services facilities and to attract broader technology investment. The explicit exclusion of cryptocurrency and blockchain-related facilities suggests concern about subsidizing crypto mining operations, which may have been a point of contention for stakeholders interested in digital asset infrastructure or, conversely, a safeguard welcomed by those wary of crypto-related energy use and tax benefits.
Crossfiled
An Act to renumber and amend 238.40 (1) (b) 1.; to amend 238.40 (1) (b) (intro.); to create 238.40 (1) (b) 1. b. and 238.40 (1) (bm) of the statutes; Relating to: modifying the sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers. (FE)
A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 58.1-3 and 58.1-609.3 of the Code of Virginia, relating to retail sales and use tax; commercial and industrial exemptions; disclosure of data center operator exemption.
A BILL to amend and reenact § 58.1-609.3 of the Code of Virginia, relating to retail sales and use tax; commercial and industrial exemptions; data centers.
Sales tax: exemptions; sales tax holiday for back-to-school clothing and school supplies; provide for. Amends sec. 25 of 1933 PA 167 (MCL 205.75) & adds secs. 12a & 25a.