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More than 80% expressed concern about the facilities’ effects on utility prices and outages.
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Texas voters are nearly unanimous on one condition for building data centers.
A University of Houston survey found that 99% of likely voters supported a requirement for data centers to pay for their own grid expansions.
The university’s Hobby School surveyed 2,000 likely Texas voters from Oct. 10 to Oct. 14, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.19 percentage points.
The poll also found that 79% of respondents supported a cap on data center construction in the state. More than 80% expressed concern about the facilities’ effects on utility prices and outages.
AI relies on electricity-powered data centers, making its expansion dependent on the grid’s ability to keep up with demand.
While the technology has promise for beneficial applications like optimizing energy use, the power-hungry data centers it needs to run can strain the public grid and water supply.
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Some 76% of respondents believed a new data center would increase electricity costs in their community, and 61% expected nearby home values to decline. 
The promised economic benefits also drew skepticism. 
Forty percent said data centers would not create jobs. Similarly, 38% anticipated no beneficial impact on tax revenues. In both situations, only 33% of respondents expected benefits.
Still, voters saw potential in some areas. 
Forty-five percent anticipated extremely or very beneficial effects on local technological advancement, and 40% expected similarly strong benefits for electrical infrastructure.
Views of AI’s general societal impact were less optimistic. Some 65% believed it would do more harm than good. 
Many political candidates have cooled on attracting data centers, the university reported. That shift from their earlier enthusiasm comes as the facilities have become an issue in the Nov. 3 election.
Concern about electricity prices also crosses party lines. Ninety-three percent of Democrats, 70% of independents, and 51% of Republicans reported being very or extremely concerned.
Renée Cross, whom the university identifies as the Hobby School’s senior executive director and a professor of practice, emphasized the gap between officials’ promises and voters’ expectations.
“Public officials who supported the buildout of data centers have touted the benefits for jobs, tax revenues and the overall economy, but the majority of Texas voters clearly disagree,” Cross said.
Debates over how to and who will power data centers stretch beyond Texas.
• Pennsylvania and Texas are telling AI data centers to bring their own power.
• Across the U.S., AI data centers could push electric bills higher as demand grows.
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