FACT BRIEFDid Aaron Ford give data centers millions of dollars that were meant for Nevada schools?
No.
Nevada gave more than $240 million in sales and use tax breaks for data centers under Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) and his predecessor, Gov. Steve Sisolak (D), in fiscal years 2023 and 2024.
The tax break program passed in 2015 with support from Democrats and Republicans, including Attorney General Aaron Ford (D), who co-sponsored the legislation when he was Senate majority leader.
Tax breaks refer to foregone tax revenue in the form of abatements, not direct cash handouts.
This means schools in Nevada could theoretically receive less tax revenue than they otherwise would have, but it did not literally take money already appropriated for schools and transfer it to data centers.
Ford said in a recent IndyTalks that "the data centers of 11 years ago are not the data centers of 2026. … The dynamics have changed."
He added that his position has shifted as everyone has learned more about data centers.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
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Sources
- The Nevada Independent IndyTalks: Ford defends record on data centers, touts success on opioid litigation
- State of Nevada Department of Taxation Nevada Tax Expenditure Reports
- Nevada Electronic Legislative Information System Senate Bill 170
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