Welcome back to the TechNet Wire. In this issue:
- How responsible data center development benefits communities;
- The tech industry’s concerns with a proposed six-figure fee on high-skilled worker visas; and
- “Bits and bytes” — announcements and other news from TechNet members.
Thought Cloud
As we approach the 2026 midterm elections, voters’ concerns with data center projects and candidates’ positions on them continues to be a focus in races across the country. But what is often lost is how developers are addressing these concerns head on and the ways in which responsible data center development can strengthen communities.
So let’s dig into that.
TechNet’s members are demonstrating a commitment to responsible data center development. Not only have they committed to paying their own way for their electricity to ensure consumers do not foot the bill, they are bringing additional energy capacity online, strengthening local transmission networks, investing in water sustainability, stimulating local economies, and more.
How?
- Building energy infrastructure and making commitments that are actually lowering consumer energy costs. See Amazon’s effort that will save Northern Indiana ratepayers $1 billion over 15 years, Meta’s construction of a solar energy plant in Texas, and Google’s creation of a $20 billion fund to help reduce Missouri ratepayers’ utility bills.
- Innovating to conserve water. While the water usage of data centers has been vastly overstated — consuming less than residential lawn irrigation, golf courses, and the agriculture industry — innovative “closed-loop” systems that recirculate a fixed volume of water have become the cooling method of choice for new data center projects because they require a fraction of the water that a traditional “evaporative” system uses.
- Spurring transformative community investment. Data center construction is driving record demand for skilled trades workers, while tax revenue that localities collect from data center operators is revitalizing towns. The money is going toward new public facilities, teacher bonuses, and residential property tax relief, to name a few examples.
- Taking community input seriously. OpenAI is actively seeking feedback from a Georgia community on how they should direct $80 million to advance local priorities as the company develops a data center in the Southeastern part of the state.
The bottom line: Any major economic development project should prompt communities to ask how it will impact quality of life, and what’s in it for them. As these responsible development practices show, there is real upside: better infrastructure, new jobs, and more tax revenue to improve local public services.
Policy Download
In case you missed it: last week, we weighed in on the Trump Administration’s proposed $103,000 high-skilled worker visa fee.
TechNet is committed to working with the Administration to improve our immigration system so that it is secure, adequately resourced, and responsive to the nation’s workforce needs.
Our concerns with this extreme fee stem from the fact that the U.S. tech sector is contending with a serious shortage of qualified workers, roles that must be filled to drive continued technological progress and economic growth — key goals that we share with the Administration.
Our members have created a wide range of initiatives designed to equip American workers with the tech skills for the thousands of open roles in high-demand fields, but there is still an immediate need to fill those vacancies now while both young students and adult learners undergo training.
To be clear, the H-1B program should be modernized to better meet the needs of American businesses and protect American workers. But an exorbitant fee is the wrong approach. All this does is make it all but impossible for companies — especially small- and medium sized tech firms — to access the talent they need to grow and compete.
While cultivating the U.S. workforce, we should be encouraging the world’s top scientific talent to come to the U.S. and contribute to our economy alongside American workers, not driving them to our competitors like China.
TechNet Member Bits and Bytes
Amazon published a new report detailing how Prime makes everyday life more affordable for American families.
Aurora CEO Chris Urmson offered a live demonstration of its autonomous freight truck on a route from Houston to Dallas, Texas.
Meta launched Muse for Small Business, an AI tool to help entrepreneurs get more done.
OpenAI launched Dots, an always-ready AI assistant that works alongside users seamlessly across connected apps and devices.