Southey Blanton

I think the most important aspect of approaching data center build outs and development is to remember that these data centers are an industry that relies on speed and secrecy. With more and more hyperscalers pushing for quick land sales, requiring NDAs from local governments and officials, and attempting to limit public comment and feedback we need to take a moment to ask why those tactics are needed. I’m well aware that “data center” can actually mean a myriad of things, from small centers that act as support to local fiber networks or nodes in larger systems, all the way to multiple acre facilities that use large amounts of land, water, and cause both noise and air pollution. As a legislator a goal I would set would be to ensure that any data center not only pays for its own infrastructure, but the larger the center and the more power use, the more it will be required to pay back into the community where it will be built. That can be done by increasing energy rates for large energy users to then reduce energy rates for residential customers, or setting up data center specific zoning to increase property taxes to higher levels for data centers that once built will not actually employ many members of the community.

We do that by fully funding our public schools in every single county. We increase teacher pay to not only pay the teachers we have what they deserve, but to encourage new teachers to enter the profession whether from here in NC or from neighboring states. North Carolina has some of the greatest public, private, and community colleges in the entire country and partnerships between those institutions and our K-12 schools is the way we prepare for the future and ensure that every single kid in North Carolina is given the opportunity to learn about any number of subjects, find what they love, and then excel at it and follow it into their dream job.

I believe the government should be the first line of defense when it comes to public health. Government has the power and the resources to set guidelines regarding water quality, building codes, vaccine schedules and emergency response and if elected officials actually care about the constituents they represent then they will take all of those tasks seriously. The best government is one that ensures that it’s citizens are able to easily learn about requirements or other regulations to keep them safe but otherwise can feel confident that they are going about their day in a city, county, or state that is enforcing those requirements equally and with resources, allowing citizens to not have to worry if they may be making an unsafe choice whether at a park or in a restaurant. Clear communication can also go a long way to explaining why something has been done and the benefits of that choice to ensure everyone is on the same page.

I think you have to be upfront and honest about how science is not only a discipline, but it’s a process, it takes time, and it takes resources. Just this past week there are stories about recent MRNA vaccine trials that have found there may be a treatment for skin cancer. That type of breakthrough came not only through amazing scientists doing years and years of work, but it comes from the government providing the resources, support, and funding to allow that research to happen. I believe in science and the amazing things it can accomplish and as a legislator I would be working every day to help build trust in the public in science. There is an information environment that rewards headlines and ragebait articles, but if leaders speak up and set an example and communicate to the public how advances in science and technology can truly affect their lives I think we can turn the tide.