Corporate Lobbying Shields Profits While Ratepayers PayTech monopolies are spending millions in Washington to shield their profit margins, while corporate lobbyists work to keep the costs of massive grid upgrades on the backs of local ratepayers. In New Jersey, working families are already seeing electricity bills surge as data centers drive unprecedented demand.Federal lobbying disclosures show the scale: Seven of the largest tech companies spent a combined $50 million on lobbying in the first nine months of 2025—averaging nearly $400,000 for every day Congress was in session.The utility sector is equally aggressive. The Edison Electric Institute spent $2.33 million in a recent quarter lobbying on general data center issues. Exelon Business Services directed $460,000 toward energy policy matters, including data center load growth.These efforts focus on blocking federal rules that would force data center operators to cover their own infrastructure costs. Instead, the burden stays with the PJM Interconnection region’s residential customers. State lawmakers are now demanding an end to this corporate cost-shifting.Senate Environment and Energy Committee Chair Bob Smith warned: “The explosion in energy demand due to data centers is already causing electricity costs to spike, and if forecasts for anticipated demand come to fruition those costs will only continue to rise. PJM has a duty to put the average ratepayer first and make these data centers pay for their impacts on the grid.”Senator Angela McKnight added: “The large corporations that are driving the data center boom should not have their impacts on electricity demand passed down to regular families.”
New Jersey Hands Out Generous Subsidies to Attract Data CentersWhile lobbyists protect corporate interests in D.C., New Jersey hands out major subsidies to attract the facilities. The Next New Jersey Program – AI offers up to $250 million in transferable tax credits for large AI data centers.CoreWeave claimed the program’s first award: a five-year, $250 million tax credit to build a $1.8 billion, 250-megawatt data center on the former Merck campus in Kenilworth.At the local level, developers secure Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreements. These replace standard property taxes with lower annual service charges—mostly flowing to municipalities, with counties receiving about 5% and school districts getting nothing. The result: local public education funding suffers, and working families bear higher tax burdens to fill the gap.
Community Pushback Grows in VinelandResidents are pushing back. In Vineland, more than 100 people packed the Landis Theater in January 2026 to protest DataONE’s proposed 300-megawatt data center complex.DataONE CEO Charles-Antoine Beyney pledged amid the backlash that the company would not accept a $6.2 million equipment loan from the city and would avoid public funds. Weeks later, however, the Vineland City Council advanced a PILOT agreement for the project.Community organizers estimate the abatement will strip $800,000 from local schools and over $1 million from the county. Zac Landicini of Sustain New Jersey criticized the lack of transparency and the direct financial harm to residents.
Trenton Takes Steps to Address Local HarmTrenton is beginning to act. This month, the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee advanced bill S-1807, sponsored by Senator Troy Singleton. The measure requires municipalities to share future PILOT revenue with school districts or fund equivalent school improvements.
A Shell Game at the Expense of Working FamiliesTech monopolies extract water and power while dodging the taxes needed to support communities. This is a deliberate shell game to maximize corporate profits at the expense of the working class. Until New Jersey closes tax loopholes and requires data centers to pay their full infrastructure costs, families will continue subsidizing the tech boom.
Sources
- Federal lobbying disclosures analyzed by Issue One (2025 data)
- Edison Electric Institute and Exelon lobbying reports (recent quarters)
- PJM capacity auction results and independent analyses (Monitoring Analytics, IEEFA)
- Statements from Senators Bob Smith, Angela McKnight, and Troy Singleton (NJ Senate Democrats)
- New Jersey Economic Development Authority announcements on Next New Jersey Program and CoreWeave award
- Local reporting on Vineland developments (Courier-Post, Press of Atlantic City, The Vineland Voice)
- New Jersey Legislature bill text for S-1807
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