Lobbyists Fuel Data Center Development in New Jersey.

Contributed by Jersey Conservative

Politics runs on money. And the direction government, the economy, or a community takes depends on where the flow of money takes it.

Because of money, America can no longer call itself a representative democracy. Because money shouts down people. Just how far we’ve travelled from “the consent of the governed” embodied 250 years ago in our Declaration of Independence is made plain in this examination of a groundbreaking Princeton University study:

“For the last few years, I’ve had this sense that everything I learned as a kid about how America’s government works is completely wrong. But I had no idea how bad things actually were until I saw this one graph… so, if you ever felt like your opinion doesn’t matter and that the government doesn’t really care what you think – well, you’re right.”

Corruption is Legal in America – YouTube

The Princeton study analyzed data collected from a large, diverse set of policy cases going back twenty years, in which national surveys of the public asked questions about proposed policy. A total of 1,923 policies in all. The study concluded:

“The preferences of the average American appear to have only a miniscule, near zero, statistically non-significant impact upon public policy.”

It’s hard for our political class to hear when they have so much money stuffed in their ears.

Lobbyists are the nexus between money and politicians, between money and government. They make the deals and, in many cases, they even write the laws that our elected representatives propose, and the regulations imposed by government.

For example, this firm of lobbyists recently bragged about their role in expanding data centers in New Jersey:

The story, which is posted on the lobbyists’ website, goes on to explain how they “played a critical role in facilitating the partnership and navigating the legislative and regulatory landscape as well as site selection for the data center.”

And more data centers could be on the way. The Porzio lobby firm recently reported taking $72,000 from another data center developer, Dewberry Engineering. Below is from the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (NJELEC) which is responsible for regulating lobbying in New Jersey:

Former Senate Republican Leader Steve Oroho is the Director of Legislative Strategy for the lobbyist firm Porzio Governmental Affairs. Yes, the “father of the gas tax” has reinvented himself as a Trenton lobbyist.

Tucked away in the northwest part of the state, Sussex County is notorious for providing Republican support for Democrat tax increases. As an Assemblyman, Bob Littell provided the crucial vote to pass Governor Brendan Byrne’s state income tax. Senator Oroho pushed through the Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) bailout that increased the gas tax – taking New Jersey from one of the lowest state gas taxes in the nation to one of the highest.

Data center development is a controversial issue in New Jersey. It has produced strong reactions from local voters/taxpayers.

Yesterday, Governor Mikie Sherrill addressed the issue and suggested “guardrails” to constrain data center development. Zach Blackburn of the New Jersey Globe wrote: “Sherrill wants legislation requiring water, energy usage reports; wants data centers to build their own electricity sources.”

The proliferation of data centers has become a major political issue across the country, with many voters believing the centers are to blame for an increase in energy prices.

“For years, smaller data centers have been scattered in office parks across our state, each needing maybe a megawatt of energy to operate, and they connect to the grid to get it,” Sherrill said. “But today’s data centers sometimes use 300 megawatts, enough to power entire towns. That skyrocketing demand is outpacing supply and jacking up all of our electric bills. Not on my watch, not on your backs.”

Polls of New Jersey voters have found skepticism of the facilities. One poll found a majority don’t want data centers in their towns, and another found a majority want a moratorium on the construction of new data centers.

Governor Sherrill might be too late. Lobbyists paid by data center developers have been extending their reach throughout New Jersey well in advance of her efforts. If voters/taxpayers want to protect the value of the homes for which they pay the highest property taxes in America, they are going to need to organize and outshout the lobbyists and the developers’ money.

They are going to need to become citizen lobbyists for their own interests.