Being a 22-year-old, I am hoping for a long and prosperous future on this planet we all share. That means being proactive, renewable, and sustainable. With HB26-1030 being proposed to the Colorado General Assembly, the state of Colorado is at risk of disproportionately subsidizing the energy used by corporate artificial intelligence data centers. To me, this is a blaring infringement on the well-being of tax-paying citizens.

Residential utility consumers, like you and I, could see up to a 50 percent hike in rates by 2031. For data centers, a zero percent rate increase would result from the proposed legislation. These are statistics that go largely unnoticed by the average citizen. I think it is particularly important to apply direct pressure and accountability to our politicians when it comes to voting on such impactful legislation.

On top of all this, Colorado hardly has the resources to support its population and data centers use a dramatic amount of water and energy to operate. If the state passes this bill to attract investors to build in Colorado, what would this mean for our water supply? What would it mean for our efforts to transition from fossil fuels to renewables? I think it would be detrimental. 

Please call your representatives and denounce data centers. They should not be put above citizens like you and I.