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Sortwell & Others Consider Elimination of Sales Tax Exemption
Republicans at the Wisconsin Capitol want to have data centers in the state pay more of their own way.
A number of Republican lawmakers on Tuesday introduced legislation that would eliminate the state’s data center sales tax exemption. The bill is not yet publicly available.
“I have openly opposed this exemption since it was signed into law back in 2023. Wisconsin’s tax code should not be giving special treatment to large corporations,” state Rep. Shae Sortwell, R-Two Rivers, said. “Data center developers are free to pursue these projects and invest in Wisconsin, but the state’s taxpayers should not be expected to subsidize their construction and operation. This bill is a straightforward step toward greater accountability and fairness in our tax code.”
Gov. Tony Evers signed Wisconsin’s data center sales tax exemption into law in 2023.
Qualifying data centers do not pay sales taxes on a laundry list of things including computer server equipment, networking hardware, and even things like water cooling or recycling systems (list on p. 2).
Sortwell said "taxpayers should not be subsidizing large-scale data center development through the state tax code."
"Recent estimates from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau indicate that developers could realize more than $1.5 billion in tax savings during construction of current data center projects, along with an estimated $369 million annually once those projects are completed,” Sortwell added.
The proposal will have to wait, though.
Lawmakers wrapped-up their business in Madison very early in the spring. They are not scheduled to be back at the Capitol until after the November election. And a new legislature is due to be sworn-in early next year.
Sortwell is joined by state Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, Rep. Lindee Brill, R-Sheboygan Falls, and Sen. André Jacque. R-New Franken as sponsors of the tax exemption repeal.
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