Trump tries to calm data center fears by expanding utility bill pledge as he warns ‘you can’t fight it’

President Donald Trump secured a voluntary pledge from governors and electricity companies on Thursday aimed at shielding U.S. consumers from higher utility bills stemming from data centers.

The initiative serves as a clear indication of how the burgeoning artificial intelligence sector has emerged as a significant point of contention ahead of the midterm elections.Trump first introduced the pledge with prominent AI and technology firms in March. But that initial promise has offered little reassurance to voters already contending with affordability concerns, who fear competing for vital resources such as electricity, water and land with corporations led by billionaires.

With electricity demand already growing, it's unclear whether consumers would see genuine savings.Trump is doubling down on the pledge as artificial intelligence rapidly redefines the broader social contract, its capabilities evolving at a pace that leaves governments grappling with effective oversight.open image in galleryThe increased electricity demand could cause monthly utility bills to rise by 15% to 40% by 2030, according to a recent analysis (Getty Images)The president, in remarks about the pledge at the Environmental Protection Agency, called on the gathered executives and governors to sell the public on data centers, stressing that the cities and towns that do have them will be “rich.”

“You have to convince your community,” Trump said. “You can’t fight it. You have to go with it.”

The president added: “If you don’t take all that money, somebody else is going to take it. You might as well do it yourselves.”Concerns about data centers cross party linesThe president promised that electricity prices would drop because of the nonbinding pledge, saying there would be a surplus of power.

It's not clear that data centers generating their own electricity will be sufficient to overcome the rising demand for electricity, but that did not deter Trump from saying that utility bills — a major concern for voters — will be lower.“Electricity bills for American families will actually come down," Trump said. “They’re going to have a lot of electricity left over, and they’ll put that into the grid.”

The White House said that nearly 200 additional stakeholders, including utilities, data center developers and governors, have committed to the pledge. The pledge would cover 80% of all power delivered to U.S.

households and businesses.A slowdown in data center construction could derail what has been one of the dominant drivers of U.S.

economic growth, in addition to possibly ceding the U.S. edge in cultivating the technology to China and create national security risks.

But AI's increasing ability to perform basic tasks — such as driving, analyzing spreadsheets and writing software — also potentially threatens millions of jobs. That has created mounting public resistance as tech companies concentrate historic levels of wealth in the hands of a select group of tycoons.The increased electricity demand could cause monthly utility bills to rise by 15% to 40% by 2030, according to a recent analysis by ICF, a consulting and technology services company.

Opposition to data centers has spiraled into a bipartisan issue. Voters are worried about the environmental impact, use of AI in schools and the prospect of data centers making their communities more expensive and less livable. Data center companies say their facilities help to generate tax revenues for school districts and reduce property tax burdens for homeowners.

The opposition has spread into the Republican stronghold of rural Texas and led to frustration with Gov. Greg Abbott, who is now among the 23 Republican governors who signed Trump’s nonbinding pledge.Gina Hinojosa, the Democratic nominee for Texas governor, has been using the issue to challenge Abbott before the November election.

open image in galleryThe White House said that nearly 200 additional stakeholders, including utilities, data center developers and governors, have committed to the pledge (AP Photo/Justin Rex)“They are owned by the richest men in the world,” she said of data centers. “We’re all footing the bill. There are no rules.

It is the Wild West of data centers.”New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, signed an order to ban construction of large server warehouses in her state for a year.

In May, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, signed a law that he said would prevent utilities from passing along energy costs from data centers to residential and small-business customers.Already, dozens of state legislatures or utility commissions have moved to put in place requirements that data centers pay the cost of their electricity, including new power plants or transmission system upgrades.

Tech companies are pushing growth of data centersIn California, however, the industry opposes legislation designed to protect consumers from electricity price increases attributable to data centers, said Matthew Freedman, a staff attorney for the Utility Reform