1. United States
2. Mont.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to oppose the proposed 5,000 acre Quantica data center development in Montana. Hyperscale facilities such as these pose serious threats to our state's energy infrastructure, water resources, and electricity affordability that far outweigh any promised economic benefits. The scale of energy demand from these projects is alarming. NorthWestern Energy announced plans in December 2024 to supply 400 megawatts to two data centers beginning in 2026 and 2027, representing more than a 50% increase in annual demand when their current load is only about 750 average megawatts. The Quantica AI data center proposed for Broadview wants up to 1,000 MW of power, while all NorthWestern Energy customers currently need only about 75 average MW. This massive demand threatens grid stability and will inevitably drive up electricity costs for residential customers. Water consumption is equally concerning. A single data center can consume as much as 5 million gallons of water per day between on-site cooling and off-site energy generation, with the majority being drinking water grade. In a state where water is already a precious and contested resource, this level of consumption is unsustainable. Montana taxpayers will not see fair compensation for these impacts. Data centers pay an incredibly low property tax rate of 0.9% in Montana, which is unlikely to cover the true costs to our communities. HB 424 recently extended this preferential rate to new generating facilities connected to data centers, further disadvantaging Montana residents. In Ohio, two Amazon data centers pay zero in property taxes despite calling the fire department 84 times in one year. Montana currently has no state regulations limiting energy or water use of data centers. I urge you to support legislation that protects Montana ratepayers, establishes large load tariffs similar to Wyoming and the Dakotas, and requires transparent public review of utility contracts with data centers. Our communities deserve better than becoming sacrifice zones for corporate computing infrastructure.