A new Republican bill introduced this week bars data center developers from entering into agreements intended to conceal information about a project from the public.
A story appeared in the Jan. 25, 2026 issue of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about the bill. According to the story:
Introduction of the bill followed the Jan. 20 passage of a bill that proponents say would balance economic benefits of Wisconsin’s booming data center industry with environmental and cost concerns.
“You can’t make informed decisions with information hidden from view,” said Republican Rep. Clint Moses of Menomonie, who authored the bill. “Communities and property owners deserve transparency, and taxpayers should not be left bearing the risks of decisions made without full disclosure.”
Both Moses and Sen. Andre Jacque of New Franken sent a proposal Jan. 22 looking for co-sponsors for their bill, which prohibits data centers or their agents from entering into nondisclosure agreements or similar arrangements with the purpose of concealing details of the data center development, or preventing the public review of a political subdivision or person selling property to the data center.
The bill would also prevent a local government from approving a data center development project if the operator entered into such an agreement. An October 2025 NBC News review of 30 data center proposals across the US found local officials signed non-disclosure agreements in a majority of cases.
Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu of Oostburg said he likes the bill’s intent but that Senate Republicans have not yet discussed the bill.
