Pete Ricketts is all in on data centers. He personally recruited Facebook to build a data center in Nebraska while he was Governor. He even implemented tax incentives for data centers, costing the state over half a billion in revenue before the incentives were axed by his successor. Despite broad opposition in Nebraska to data centers raising energy prices and eating up farmland, Ricketts is gung ho on Nebraska becoming the “Silicon Prairie.”
2017: As Governor, Ricketts Traveled To Facebook’s California Headquarters To Secure A Nebraska Data Center Project. According to a press release from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, “Today, Governor Pete Ricketts announced that Facebook selected Papillion as the site of its newest data center. […] ‘Growing Silicon Prairie through the state’s tech industry has been a priority for my administration. Having Facebook select Nebraska for its newest data center campus shows our efforts and those of our partners are paying dividends,’ said Governor Ricketts. ‘In the past year, I had the chance to visit Facebook Headquarters in Menlo Park, California and meet with executives who are instrumental in building the company’s data center ecosystem. We were able to demonstrate that Nebraska can meet or exceed their expectations on every front. We are excited to welcome Facebook to the Good Life!’” [Press Release – Nebraska Department of Economic Development, 4/4/17]
Ricketts Appeared Alongside Facebook Executives Announcing The Data Center Project. According to Data Center Dynamics, “At a press conference at Papillion City Hall attended by Governor Pete Ricketts, State Senator John Murante, Papillion Mayor David Black and Tom Furlong, VP of infrastructure for Facebook, the company officially revealed it was behind the project all along. Facebook’s Furlong said that the data center campus has been in the works for years, while Governor Ricketts added that it will create hundreds of (temporary) jobs.” [Data Center Dynamics, 4/4/17]
2020: As Governor, Ricketts Signed Tax Incentives For Data Centers Into Nebraska Law. According to Lutz Accounting, “On August 17, 2020, Governor Pete Ricketts signed into law Legislative Bill 1107, which includes a new business tax incentive program called the ImagiNE Nebraska Act. […] The ImagiNE Nebraska Act is similar to the Nebraska Advantage Act but updated to encourage high-wage jobs, promote investment in distressed and rural areas, simplify administrative requirements, and allow for more transparency and accountability. […] Refunds and use of credits will be capped each year, with only $25 million available in each of 2021 and 2022, increasing to $100 million in 2023 and 2024. In addition, applications may not be approved if future refunds and credit utilization are expected to exceed the calendar year limits.” [Lutz Accounting, Viewed 9/4/26]
2024: As Senator, Ricketts Celebrated Google’s $930 Million Investment In Three Nebraska Data Centers, Calling Nebraska The “Silicon Prairie.” According to KNLV, “Google officials visited Nebraska on Monday to celebrate a $930 million investment in the state this year, which includes funding for three data centers: operational facilities in Omaha and Papillion, and a new center under construction in Lincoln. This year’s investment brings Google’s total capital investment in Nebraska to $4.4 billion, according to Karen Dahut, CEO of Google Public Sector. […] U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts praised Google’s investments, calling Nebraska a fitting location in the heart of the ‘Silicon Prairie.’ He commended the synergy between Nebraska’s hardworking residents, its role in supporting national security through Offutt Air Force Base, and Google’s vision for economic and technological growth. ‘This investment will continue to strengthen the great relationship between Nebraska and Google,’ Ricketts said.” [KNLV, 11/26/24]
[VIDEO] Ricketts Claimed Osborn Wanted To “Shut Down Data Centers Statewide” And Suggested That Would “Hamper” The US Position In The AI Race Against China. “This is a national security issue. This is how China plans to be with AI. Democrat Dan and the Democrats in New York and Pennsylvania are trying to shut down data centers statewide, which hamper local communities choice and hamper our ability to fight AI in China.” [Nebraska State Fair Debate, 9/1/26]
Nebraska Data Centers Received Property Tax Exemptions To The Tune Of $519 Million From The Law Ricketts Signed. According to 1011 Now, “Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen signed an executive order Monday morning blocking large-scale data centers from receiving state business tax incentives and establishing a task force to review data center policy. Numbers obtained by 10/11 from the governor’s office late Monday afternoon show that millions of dollars have been funneled through the program from Jan. 1, 2021, to June 30, 2026. That includes $519 million in estimated property tax exemptions, which are capped at 2%. The value of personal property exempted is $15 billion.” [1011 Now, 7/20/26]
Governor Pillen Rescinded Ricketts’ Data Center Tax Incentives. According to the Nebraska Examiner, “New data center projects coming to Nebraska will no longer benefit from tax incentives provided under the ImagiNE Act, according to a new executive order. Gov. Jim Pillen signed the executive order Monday alongside State Sens. Mike Jacobson, Rob Clements, Tony Sorrentino and Eliot Bostar, Department of Economic Development Director Maureen Larsen and Department of Water, Energy and Environment Director Jesse Bradley. The order prohibits any new data center applications from being approved for tax credits under the ImagiNE Nebraska Act.” [Nebraska Examiner, 7/20/26]
Data Centers Accounted For 21 Percent Of Electricity Sold By the Omaha Public Power District in 2024, Up From One Percent In 2018. According to Nebraska Public Media, “Increased demand from data centers shows up dramatically in sales figures from the Omaha Public Power District. Nebraskans, like many Americans, are dealing with rising demand and prices for electricity. In 2018, data centers used 1% of the electricity sold by the utility. In 2024, they used 21% And by 2035, data centers are projected to account for 41% of OPPD’s electricity sales.” [Nebraska Public Media, 12/26/25]
2026: Nebraska Ranked Second In The Nation For Percentage Of Electricity Spent On Data Centers. According to the Nebraska Examiner, “Pillen said Nebraska ranks second in the U.S. for the percentage of electricity spent on data centers, at 11.5%. He said this has prevented other businesses from expanding in Nebraska when they would have otherwise.” [Nebraska Examiner, 7/20/26]
Nebraska Utility Providers Raised Consumer Rates Thanks In Part To Data Center Demand. According to The Wire, “OPPD’s board of directors on Thursday approved a new budget proposal to help keep pace with surging demand for electricity, rising costs and new regulations that will require even more generation. […] On average, residential customers will see a 6% increase, or about $7 on a $115 bill. Commercial customers will see an average increase of 3.7%, while industrial customers will see an average increase of 8.9%. Each customer class has several rates available to them, so customers may see more or less of these amounts depending on their specific customer class rate. […] OPPD is seeing unprecedented demand as Nebraska’s economy grows and relies more than ever on electricity. The utility has added 23,000 new meters over the past five years. That’s roughly the same number that serves the city of Grand Island. New manufacturing, biotech companies, data centers, and food and agricultural processing all play a role, as does demand from residential customers. The more the system grows, the larger the reserve margin required by SPP.” [Wire, 12/18/25]
At Least A Dozen Nebraska Counties Approved Data Center Moratoriums. According to Nebraska Public Media, “Pillen’s announcement comes on the heels of at least a dozen counties across Nebraska approving moratoriums on data center development. Residents in those county hearings have raised concerns about how much water and electricity data centers will consume in their communities.” [Nebraska Public Media, 7/20/26]
Otoe County Temporarily Suspended Data Center Permits. According to Nebraska Public Media, “Standing before the Otoe County Board and a room of neighbors, Wynee Benedict ticked through a long list of concerns. Do we have enough water for them? Who pays for their power? What if they create a heat island? The source of Benedict’s worries: data centers. Since learning their county could become home to a new data center, Otoe County has been abuzz with questions and concerns like Benedict’s, leading some residents to call for a temporary ban on the industry. That’s effectively what the board did Tuesday, voting to suspend the permits needed for a new data center for up to a year, according to commissioner Chuck Cole.” [Nebraska Public Media, 5/24/26]
Seward County Approved A Moratorium Against Data Centers. According to Nebraska Public Media, “Seward County commissioners voted Tuesday morning to approve a moratorium against data center construction. The moratorium will last for one year, barring a vote to extend it, or until the county can draft and finalize regulations around data centers. Seward County is now one of at least 10 Nebraska counties with a moratorium in place, according to preliminary reporting by Nebraska Public Media News. Five more counties are considering data center moratoriums.” [Nebraska Public Media, 6/30/26]
Gage County Officials Voted To Implement An 18-Month Ban On Data Center Construction. According to Nebraska Public Media, “It was 10 o’clock Tuesday night, and the district courtroom in Beatrice was still filled with expectant Gage County residents. After four hours of hearings, their patience paid off. The Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously voted in favor of an 18-month moratorium on data centers, and the courtroom erupted into applause and cheers. The moratorium fends off conditional and special use building permits for data centers while Gage County officials consider regulations around their construction. The board’s decision will be sent to the County Board of Supervisors for approval.” [Nebraska Public Media, 6/17/26]
Local Consumers Complained About Paying Higher Energy Bills Due To Data Centers: “Google Can Pay.” According to 3 News Now, “Several consumers questioned why residential customers should bear the cost of powering data centers for major tech companies. ‘I don't mind paying for the hospitals, but the data centers, I mean, Google can pay,’ John Hassett said. ‘I don't think I want to pay for that.’ ‘I'm not contributing to that. I'm not using more power. I've been the same as always, and at these big companies, they have a lot of money, so they should be the ones that are funding it,’ Charlie Wood said.” [3 News Now, 11/19/25]
Google And Meta Were Spending Tens Of Millions To Acquire Hundreds Of Acres Of Farmland. According to the Flatwater Free Press, “In Douglas County, Google dropped another $21 million to accumulate more than 400 acres northwest of Omaha, 90% once farmland. And in Lincoln, Google owns some-500 acres, close to 500 of which used to be farmland, according to Lancaster County Assessor’s records. Google isn’t the only tech giant gobbling up land once used for crops. Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has poured more than $50 million into nearly 900 acres of agricultural land in Sarpy County since 2017, according to records compiled by the Flatwater Free Press from the Sarpy County Assessor’s Office.” [Flatwater Free Press, 12/14/23]
Farmers Felt Pressured To Give Up Their Land. According to the Flatwater Free Press, “Deborah Bowman’s family farmed 77 acres of the land now under Meta’s data center for more than a century. Bowman, in her 70s, grew up two miles south of there. She felt backed into a corner to give up the land, she said, noting her lawyer encouraged her to sell her property. ‘I did not want to sell it or have Facebook take it,’ she said. ‘That was absolutely the last thing I wanted done. … I grew up where that land (is).’ After two years of negotiation, she eventually swapped her land for a similarly-sized plot owned by her neighbor, who got paid by Raven Northbrook, she said. The neighbor sold three other parcels separately to Meta for $23 million, sales records show. ‘My heart was in their original land. I felt I had no other alternative. So I crossed the road and went to the other land,’ she said.” [Flatwater Free Press, 12/14/23]
Data Centers Harmed Local Air And Water Quality. According to the Sierra Club, “Beyond dirty power plants, Data centers intensify air pollution in the communities that house them. All data centers in Virginia come with large concentrations of shipping container sized diesel generators on-site. Why is this a problem? These machines leak a multitude of toxic chemicals like Benzene and Arsenic that cause chronic respiratory illnesses like asthma and life threatening conditions like cancer. There are virtually no restrictions on the locations of data centers. This poses an enormous health threat to communities like schools, neighborhoods, and population centers that reside within a few miles away. […] There are virtually no restrictions on how much water one data center can consume. Some of the largest data center campuses consume as much as 1-5 million gallons of water per day.” [Sierra Club, 8/13/26]