By Matthew Holloway |
Democratic congressional nominee Amish Shah is criticizing Republican opponent Jay Feely’s support for data centers, despite having voted as a state legislator to extend Arizona’s data-center tax incentive program and clarify its tax refund process.
Shah supported House Bill 2649 in 2021, which extended the deadline for new applications to the incentive program by 10 years. He also voted for Senate Bill 1274 in 2023, which clarified the refund process for taxes covered by the program.
In a post on X, Shah criticized Feely’s position on the facilities, citing Arizona’s water supply.
“Arizona is 30 years into a drought and bracing for deeper Colorado River cuts. Jay Feely’s plan? More data centers in the desert. It’s disqualifying,” Shah wrote.
His campaign has separately specified that he opposes building data centers within Arizona’s First Congressional District, where he is running against Feely.
Campaign manager Eve Zhurbinskiy told the Copper Courier that Shah’s position reflects concerns about water shortages and utility costs. The outlet subsequently published a correction narrowing its description of his opposition from statewide to the First Congressional District.
During his legislative service, Shah voted for HB 2649 on Feb. 24, 2021, when it passed the House 41–17, and again on April 14, when the House approved the amended measure 46–13.
The enacted legislation moved the Arizona Commerce Authority’s application cutoff for certifying new computer data centers from Dec. 31, 2023, to Dec. 31, 2033. It became law April 20, 2021.
The measure also addressed tax treatment of work involving qualifying data center equipment. A Joint Legislative Budget Committee analysis explained that the House-engrossed bill would exempt installation, assembly, repair, and maintenance from the prime-contracting transaction privilege tax when the equipment could perform its function independently of real property.
Legislative analysts said the potential ongoing revenue loss could not be quantified because industry-specific installation-cost data were unavailable. They also noted uncertainty about how broadly the tax had previously been paid.
Two years later, Shah voted for SB 1274, which passed the House 47–10 on April 11, 2023. The measure became law April 18.
That legislation amended the refund provisions of the 2021 law. It preserved the earlier $10,000 statewide aggregate cap for specified older claims while clarifying that specified later claims follow the standard refund process without that cap.
The JLBC fiscal analysis of SB 1274 anticipated no additional General Fund impact. Analysts said the Department of Revenue viewed the measure as explicitly codifying an existing refund process, which generally required the vendor that remitted the tax to seek repayment within the applicable statute of limitations.
Shah’s campaign also told the Copper Courier that he supports technological development needed for global competitiveness. “We shouldn’t be building data centers in the middle of the desert,” campaign manager Eve Zhurbinskiy said.
Feely has defended data-center development as important to American competitiveness in artificial intelligence. He has also said developers should invest in surrounding communities, use recirculated water, and operate off the electrical grid to address resource concerns.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
