(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump’s AI action plan is getting support at the Wisconsin Capitol from State Rep. Nate Gustafson, R-Fox Crossing, who said it will open new opportunities for Wisconsin’s burgeoning data center industry.
“This plan cuts red tape, boosts real investment, and puts power back in the hands of states, workers, and the private sector, not federal bureaucrats,” Gustafson said.
Trump’s AI Action Plan promises to “create streamlined permitting for semiconductor manufacturing facilities, and energy infrastructure while guaranteeing security,” according to the White House.
Gustafson said that means not just investments in new data centers, but investments in rural broadband across Wisconsin.
Gustafson is also excited about tax credits and incentives for “investments in apprenticeships, tech colleges, and STEM programs.”
“This plan is about more freedom, more innovation, and more jobs. That’s what we need right now in Wisconsin and across the country,” Gustafson said. “President Trump is doing what he does best, getting government out of the way so America can win. Wisconsin stands ready to lead with this kind of smart, America-first approach to AI.”
The public, however, doesn’t agree with Trump or Gustafson when it comes to data centers, which have been linked to higher consumer energy costs and very little jobs when completed.
In a poll released earlier this month by Libertas Network with a specific question from The Center Square regarding data centers, most U.S. voters oppose having data centers built in their community and even more oppose the data centers if tax incentives are awarded to have them built.
The poll asked voters specifically if they supported or opposed building new data centers for artificial intelligence in their community with 46% of respondents strongly or somewhat opposing the prospect, 36% strongly or somewhat supporting and 18% uncertain.
Wisconsin is moving forward with a couple of large data center investments, with public incentives.
Microsoft is in the first steps of building a $3.3 billion data center at the old Foxconn site in Racine County. That project is expected to begin in full by the end of next year.
There’s also a planned data center in its early stages in Port Washington. Developers there have recently closed on $50 million in home and land buys.
“President Trump understands that AI is the next frontier in global competition, and he’s making sure America leads from the front,” Gustafson added.
