Power Companies Use Eminent Domain to Seize Land for AI Data Centers as 70% of Americans Oppose

Power companies are invoking eminent domain to build transmission lines for private data centers, sparking legal battles over what qualifies as "public use" — as Gallup polling shows 7 in 10 Americans oppose data centers in their communities.

The artificial intelligence boom is driving an unprecedented data center building surge across the United States. There are now more than 3,000 data centers nationwide, with another 1,500 in development, according to Pew Research Center.

Where private citizens refuse to sell their land for the transmission lines needed to power these facilities, companies are increasingly turning to eminent domain — the government's power to seize private property without a landowner's consent. The central legal question: does a transmission line built to serve a single private data center qualify as "public use"?

Gallup polling shows 7 in 10 Americans oppose the construction of AI data centers in their communities, citing higher utility bills, pollution, noise, and the loss of green space. These facilities also consume enormous amounts of water and electricity.

Yet 45 states have already enacted eminent domain reform laws in response to previous Supreme Court rulings. The collision between those reforms, the AI infrastructure buildout, and growing grassroots opposition is creating a new front in the legal battle over who gets to decide what public use really means.

Sources: Fortune Gallup Pew Research