Idaho murder case runs into problems but suspect set for August trial

Bryan Kohberger, the suspect accused of killing four young University of Idaho students in 2022, is set to go to trial in August in a case that could see him sentenced to death.
He is charged with the murders of Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin – who were together in the same house when someone broke in at night and stabbed them to death.
But the case is running into problems, not least a failure by prosecutors to ascribe a motive for the killings, which terrified a region and shocked the US amid a media frenzy around the crime.
Last week, Kohberger's attorneys requested a trial delay, citing in part intense publicity around the case generated in part by a recent NBC Dateline special they claim was prejudicial to their client because it contained apparent prosecution leaks in violation of a non-dissemination order.
The leaks included information that the phone belonging to Kohberger connected 23 times in four months to a cellphone tower near the rented home where the four students were killed. And also that he searched the internet for information about serial killer Ted Bundy as well as for pornography with the keywords 'drugged', 'sleeping' and 'passed out'. The defense is arguing it now requires more time to prepare for trial because of the publicity around that information.
Related: Judge bans use of 'psychopath' and 'sociopath' in Idaho student murder trial
Further problems may arise in July with the pre-trial publication of The Idaho Four, by the crime writer James Patterson and the journalist Vicky Ward, who ran afoul of a judge in South Carolina after obtaining crime-scene photos and documents in a civil claim related to that state's notorious Alex Murdaugh double murder case.
Kohberger's attorneys have said the blurb for the book 'suggests that the apparent Dateline leak was not the only violation of this court's non-dissemination order' and a delay might mitigate the 'prejudicial effects of such inflammatory pretrial publicity'.
Idaho judge Steven Hippler has said he is open to appointing a special prosecutor to question people under oath to determine the origin of the leaks. But whether or not a delay is granted, a number of recent court rulings have been going against Kohberger, who has pleaded not guilty.
His defense team has tried to keep considerable evidence, including a 911 call alerting police to the crime; the description of a man with 'bushy eyebrows' at the house around the time of the murders; and his Amazon shopping history, including the purchase of a knife similar to the one the alleged assailant was said to have used, out of the trial.
Amazon records show that an account under Kohberger's name and email address bought a Ka-Bar knife, sheath and sharpener in March 2022, eight months before the murders, and had them shipped to his parents' home in Pennsylvania, where he was later arrested. A brown leather Ka-Bar knife sheath was found, police said, next to one victim's body and DNA on the clasp matched to Kohberger.
Kohberger's defense team claims his Amazon purchase history was 'out of context, incomplete and unfairly prejudicial', but Hippler ruled it was 'highly relevant' and 'establishes significant connection between the defendant and Ka-Bar knife and sheath'.
In another ruling against the defence, Hippler turned down a request to exclude the criminology student's 12-page master's essay from being presented as evidence in the trial. In it, Kohberger assessed how to handle a crime scene where a woman has been found stabbed to death.
Other rulings going against the suspect involve evidence about his white Hyundai Elantra – a similar make and model of car that prosecutors say the killer drove and which was captured on security video near the home before the murders and leaving soon after.
Nor has the judge allowed defense requests that the death penalty option be dropped because their client was once diagnosed with autism. Hippler instead ruled that the defense can only introduce the diagnosis if Kohberger testifies in his own defense or as a mitigating factor is he is convicted.
But Hippler has also ruled that Kohberger's defense was permitted to keep a court filing 'in support of … alternate perpetrators' sealed from public view. It is not yet clear if defense claims of another perpetrator, or perpetrators, claimed to be in the documents will be permitted at trial.
Absent from the prosecutors' filings to date are any attempts to ascribe a motive for Kohberger's alleged actions.
Forensic psychiatrist Carole Lieberman has said she believes Kohberger's decision to study psychology and then criminology was because he was 'trying to calm the demons inside of him' and simultaneously 'trying to learn how to commit the perfect crime'.
To the Guardian last week she went further, arguing that the bloody crime scene and use of a knife was evidence that Kohberger harbored rage against young women.
Kohberger, she claimed, had held this rage since at least middle school, when he had a crush on a cheerleader – said to have looked like Kaylee Goncalves – only for her to reject him.
'I think that's why he stalked and killed them,' she said.
Related: Man accused of murdering four Idaho students fights against death penalty
According to some reports, Kohhberg followed Mogen and Goncalves on Instagram. The defence denies the claim and argues there is no motive to find because Kohberger did not commit the crime.
Louis Schlesinger, a professor of psychology at John Jay College, said it should be noted that Kohberger's alleged crime was a targeted mass killing, not a serial killing, because there were two others in the home at the time, including a surviving roommate, who reported seeing an intruder with 'bushy eyebrows', and were not attacked.
'This seems to be situationally based, so you can rule out psychosis or impulsivity,' Schlesinger said, 'and it doesn't appear to be sexually motivated. It could be jealousy or a feeling of rejection or humiliation. But we really don't know the motive was.'
But that doesn't mean a jury would not want prosecutors to at least imply a motive.
'Jurors want to hear a motive before they send someone to the execution chamber,' he said. 'They will want to know why he did it.'

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Politico

12 hours ago

• Politico

Cuomo the a--hole

POLITICAL ANAL-YSIS: The word 'asshole' has become so closely associated with mayoral primary front-runner Andrew Cuomo that one needs not even name him — the profane sobriquet is enough. 'I'd rather have an asshole than a progressive,' a retired lawyer named Robert told mayoral candidate Brad Lander at a farmer's market on the Upper West Side Sunday. 'Those are the choices we have: a socialist or an asshole.' Everyone in earshot knew who he was talking about. Zohran Mamdani is the socialist. Cuomo is the asshole. The former governor has a well-earned reputation for domineering and bullying. So does the president of the United States of America. And the semi-apologetic line from many Cuomo supporters has been 'we need an asshole to fight an asshole.' That argument has made it into print, emphasizing that it has become too widespread for squeamish editors to avoid the curse word. 'He'd stand up to Donald Trump. He's an asshole, but he's our asshole,' The Atlantic wrote last week, summarizing the case for Cuomo. Actor and activist Cynthia Nixon responded — speaking from the position of somebody who ran against Cuomo in the 2018 primary for governor, and who knows assholes from a four-decade career in Hollywood. 'I don't think that we need our own sphincter to challenge Trump,' she said at an anti-Cuomo rally ahead of the No Kings march in Manhattan Saturday. Cuomo 'is bought and bossed, not just by random billionaires or corporations, but in many cases, by the exact same billionaires and corporations that bought Donald Trump four more years,' she added. 'Andrew Cuomo is not our asshole. Say it with me!' The crowd, soaked in the rain, yelled back: 'Andrew Cuomo is not our asshole!' It's not just supporters who've dubbed him with the term. 'He's an abuser and an asshole,' state Sen. Gustavo Rivera said when asked if Cuomo was a tough guy. 'There's one thing about having that as an option available to you and play it as a card. It's another thing to operate like that on a day to day basis.' You can buy a 'Cuomo is an asshole' flag on Amazon for $9.00 — with the image of the Democratic donkey replacing the word. Cuomo has been associated with the word going back a decade, at least. 'You gotta fight asshole with asshole,' a democratic operative told POLITICO early in 2016, selling Cuomo as an anti-Trump campaign surrogate for Hillary Clinton. It came up again when Cuomo was earning national acclaim for his covid pandemic briefings. 'Stop trying to make Andrew Cuomo happen,' Current Affairs wrote in 2020. 'Andrew Cuomo is an asshole.' And Cuomo's alleged assholery came up again in 2021, after women came forward accusing him of sexual harassment. Comedian John Oliver devoted the opening monologue of his show to the 'colossal asshole.' The Daily Beast also published an essay: 'Cuomo Is Not Your Dad. He's Your Dad's Asshole Boss.' The expletive is coming up again, as Cuomo runs for mayor. But as he heads into primary day as the favorite in the race, Cuomo's campaign continues to emphasize his get-stuff-done ethos over any criticisms of his personality. 'New Yorkers know Andrew Cuomo fights for them and has produced a real record of results that improve their lives, that cut through the bureaucracy and cut through the mediocrity and got stuff done,' Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said. 'They know he is the only candidate with the experience and the record to fix what's broken. And after 12 long years, put city hall back on the right track,' he added. 'Since this word is apparently now fair game, nobody better blush when I start using it to talk to reporters.' — Jeff Coltin FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL ADAMS SAYS BALLOT NOT SO SECRET AFTER ALL: City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams went back on her word today and clarified who she wants her supporters to rank on their ballots after her. 'I encourage New Yorkers to rank the full slate of Working Families Party candidates,' Adams said in a statement. The candidates on the WFP slate include Mamdani, Brad Lander, Adams and Zellnor Myrie, in that order. Adams did not specify what in order her supporters should rank the slate. The announcement came after Adams declined to back those candidates — and repeatedly refused to answer if she voted for Mamdani and Cuomo amid an internal debate among her aides, POLITICO reported Thursday. 'I still believe in the secrecy of the ballot, and I voted for me and my community,' Adams told reporters after voting in Jamaica, Queens. In her statement today, Adams clarified that she does not think Cuomo should be on voters' ballots. 'His record is part of the same pattern of neglect that our communities, and so many New Yorkers, have faced,' she said of the former governor. — Jason Beeferman FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: A state-of-the-race memo released today by the Working Families Party reviews its strategy and lays out its progress with Primary Day just around the corner. Its mission for 2025? Combat the disillusion that led 900,000 Democratic voters in New York State to sit out the 2024 election. Its strategy? Present the choices as working families versus billionaires. 'Even small increases in turnout among our base could tip the balance in critical races across the state,' local party co-directors Jasmine Gripper and Ana María Archila wrote. In New York City, the third party endorsed Mamdani as its first choice in the Democratic primary for mayor, followed by Lander, Adams and Myrie. It lauded the Mamdani-Lander cross-endorsement, which came late in the cycle as Cuomo continues to lead almost every poll. The party's ranked endorsement was also relatively late in a cycle dominated by Cuomo. One of its choices broke with party leadership: state Sen. Jessica Ramos endorsed Cuomo and got dropped from the slate altogether. Myrie hasn't done any cross-endorsements, but said he'd rank the party's slate, as did Adrienne Adams today, as noted above. And it argued that Cuomo, 'the candidate favored by Trump's billionaires,' is hitting his ceiling in polling. A recent Marist poll found Cuomo leading Mamdani by 10 points in the final round of a ranked-choice voting simulation, and Mamdani's critics argue he too has hit his ceiling. The third party — whose line Cuomo was accused of seeking to nix in 2020 — is also backing Dorcey Applyrs for Albany mayor, Sharon Owens for Syracuse mayor and Sean Ryan for Buffalo mayor. — Emily Ngo SPEAKING OF MEMOS: Moderate national think tank Third Way released its own memo today urging New York City Democrats not to rank Mamdani, writing, 'Leaving aside Mamdani's positions that some believe border on antisemitism, it is his proud affiliation with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) that worries us most.' The memo excerpts parts of the DSA platform. And the group argued that Mamdani as mayor would help Trumpism and hurt Democrats nationwide in upcoming elections. 'Republican attack ads in swing districts attaching moderate Democratic candidates to Mamdani and the DSA practically write themselves,' Third Way said in its memo. Asked whether Cuomo as mayor would also hurt the Democratic brand nationally, given his sexual harassment allegations and having taxpayers foot his legal costs, Third Way co-founder Matt Bennett told reporters, 'I don't want to get into Cuomo and whether he is or isn't a good candidate for New York. ... I will point out the things that you noted are personal to him and very hard to connect to other Democrats.' — Emily Ngo FROM THE CAMPAIGN COFFERS THE CAP STAYS: The city's Campaign Finance Board threw cold water on a request from Mamdani to raise the spending cap for mayoral candidates. In a statement today, the board said there is no legal mechanism allowing it to relax the roughly $8 million expenditure limit for primary candidates. 'We understand the challenge posed by independent spenders to the goals of the matching funds program,' spokesperson Timothy Hunter said in a statement. 'The Campaign Finance Board closely monitors spending by all campaigns as well as independent spenders and provides expenditure relief when permitted by law.' The democratic socialist sent a letter to the board seeking more leeway to counteract two super PACs supporting Cuomo. Together, they have flooded the race with a record $19 million to boost the former governor and attack Mamdani. 'Andrew Cuomo is trying to buy this election,' Mamdani said at a press conference outside the Campaign Finance Board's headquarters. 'He has a super PAC, that is now the best funded super PAC in New York City's history … that is ensuring that every New Yorker, when they turn on their television, they open their mailbox, and they watch a video on YouTube will be met with yet another attack ad that is lying about myself and this campaign.' The board said it can only raise the cap in response to excess spending from other campaigns operating outside the public matching system — such as Ray McGuire's mayoral bid in 2021 — and not super PACs. — Amira McKee and Joe Anuta LANDER'S LAST STAND: Brad Lander's campaign is throwing $320,000 into an attack ad against Cuomo, in a final effort to curb the former governor's lead in the final days of the race. Titled 'Cost,' the ad tears into Cuomo's record as govenor, citing the numerous sexual harassment allegations that precipitated his resignation in 2021. Cuomo denies the allegations, but his contentious record has been picked apart by his competitors. Lander, the candidate who has been the most consistently tough on Cuomo, zeroed in on the claims during the final mayoral debate last week. The ad also claims the former governor is funded by 'Trump's billionaire donors,' echoing a Mamdani ad last week. Playbook reported that Cuomo received nearly $400,000 from GOP or Conservative Party donors, and his super PAC received funds from high-profile Trump donor and billionaire Bill Ackman. Cuomo has said some of those donors, and specifically Ackman, gave to him before ever donating to Trump and insists he is unmoved by campaign contributions to him or his super PAC. The ad could be a boost for Mamdani, who cross-endorsed Lander last week. Lander's polling a distant third in the race. The ad features a clip of Ocasio-Cortez, who endorsed Mamdani as her first pick, telling voters, 'do not rank Andrew Cuomo on your ballot.' One of the last major expenditures of Lander's run, the ad leaves it all on the table as the bookish city comptroller delivers an energetic finale to a slow-to-build campaign. — Amira McKee IN OTHER NEWS — ADVICE FOR THE NYT: Twelve veteran political observers weighed in to give their opinion on The New York Times' 'vexing' editorial on the mayor's race. (Vital City) — ERIC ADAMS SAYS NEVERMIND ON HEALTH PLAN: Mayor Eric Adams pulled the plug on a Medicare Advantage move for New York City retirees. (POLITICO Pro) — 'FUCK THE DECORUM': Justin Brannan explains why 'people want fighters' to represent them in the Democratic party. (Interview Magazine) And WELCOME TO THE WORLD: Victor Botnick, born on 6/13 to Jeanette and Mark Botnick, a Bloomberg alum. pic. Missed this morning's New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here.

Fox News

13 hours ago

• Fox News

Fox News True Crime Newsletter: Karen Read's verdict, Travis Decker's search, Bryan Kohberger's warning

FLIPPING THE SCRIPT: Cleared of murder charges, Karen Read could eye legal payback against investigators who cost her ON THE RUN: Military-trained dad accused of killing daughters believed to be alive, evading capture: police BENCH PRESS: Idaho judge tells Bryan Kohberger to prepare for summer courtroom showdown after last-minute effort 'A REAL VICTORY:' Buster Murdaugh scores legal win in defamation fight over documentary's murder implications: former state AG LOOSE ENDS: Second Karen Read juror faults 'sloppy police investigation' in John O'Keefe murder case 'RIDICULOUS:' Michael Proctor laughs at Karen Read corruption allegations as he fights to get job back 'SNAPPED:' California nudist accused of killing neighbors and drowning their dog over hot dog 'jab' JUDGMENT DAY: Karen Read murder case verdict reached after deadlocked first trial SIGN UP TO GET TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTER EVADING CAPTURE: New flyer shows suspected killer dad may have changed appearance in wilderness manhunt: police 'RIGHT NEXT TO HIM:' Surprise witness in Idaho student murders says she 'saw Bryan there' on deadly night DEJA VU: Karen Read jury questions suggest same legal dilemma as last year's mistrial MISSED WARNING: Fugitive dad Travis Decker heard in new audio before allegedly murdering 3 daughters VERDICT WATCH: Karen Read's defense wants verdict slip simplified as jurors deliberate murder charge JUSTICE ON THE LINE: Experts weigh in on key moments that could decide Karen Read's fate in murder trial

Yahoo

14 hours ago

• Yahoo

Big Tech promised jobs. Cities gave millions. Where are the workers?

Columbus, Ohio, escaped the Rust Belt rut years ago. Regional economic development officials offered incentives that attracted warehouses, manufacturing plants, and healthcare startups, reviving the economy and generating jobs. By 2018, hundreds of these deals over the previous eight years had created some 150,000 jobs. Central Ohio now hopes to repeat that success. It's betting big on "Silicon Heartland," a high-tech innovation hub that proponents hope will be flush with high-paying jobs. Economic officials have dangled multimillion-dollar tax subsidy packages before some of the world's biggest technology companies. The resulting investment, Gov. Mike DeWine promised, "further cements Ohio as the heart of our nation's technology and innovation." Mostly, they're getting data centers. Central Ohio has become one of America's hottest hubs for these computing warehouses, with companies including Amazon, Google, Meta, and QTS flocking there, lured largely by generous incentives. The problem: Data centers, which operate largely autonomously, don't produce many lasting full-time jobs. A Business Insider analysis of construction permits, economic development deals, and company disclosures found that even the largest data centers generally employ fewer than 150 permanent workers, and some have as few as 25. Building those data centers also creates significant numbers of construction jobs, but those are short term, sometimes lasting less than a year — far shorter than the duration of the tax breaks the companies get, which often last a decade or longer. That means the tax breaks given to developers can amount over time to more than $2 million for every permanent, full-time job at an operational data center, Business Insider's analysis found. That's roughly eight times higher than the $262,000 average per job that watchdog group Good Jobs First found in 18 economic development deals worth at least $50 million awarded in 2023. The number of jobs doesn't balance the cost, multiple economists and researchers who study tax subsidies told Business Insider — even factoring in the construction and other supporting roles that the tech industry uses to calculate its economic impact. Records show that the workforce on data center projects quickly tapers off, meaning industry estimates often significantly overstate long-term employment benefits. The costs to the public don't end with tax subsidies. Data centers drive up electricity costs for other ratepayers as utility operators invest billions of dollars in new grid infrastructure to support escalating power demands. That has drawn opposition from other companies including retail giant Walmart, which has said that surging electricity bills are imperiling its expansion in states such as Ohio and Virginia. Industry advocates argue the deals are worth it. "Each new data center built in Ohio spurs a significant boost in investment, revenue, and wages that flow to Ohio businesses and workers, stimulating the state's economy," Josh Levi, the president of the Data Center Coalition, an industry advocacy group, wrote in an August 2024 op-ed article published by In recent US congressional testimony, he cited an estimate that data centers in Central Ohio supported more than "10,000 construction jobs, 2,000 data center jobs, and hundreds of maintenance and retrofitting jobs last year." Drilling into the terms of specific economic development deals suggests a more complicated picture. In 2021, for example, Google entered into a much-celebrated deal with Columbus to construct a data center campus. The city offered a 100% property tax abatement worth an estimated $54 million in tax savings over 15 years. In exchange, the Google facility promised 20 full-time jobs at the data center, rising to about 40 jobs by 2047. Artificial intelligence is accelerating data center construction that already was growing quickly to power digital services from social media to medical care. In 2025 alone, Meta plans to spend at least $64 billion on facilities and equipment. Google's parent company, Alphabet, plans to spend $75 billion, and Microsoft said it would invest $80 billion. Tech companies say their investments will supercharge local tax revenues and high-paying jobs will drive economic growth. Even with tax breaks, data centers contributed $162.7 billion in federal, state, and local tax revenue in 2023, according to a February 2025 PwC report prepared for the Data Center Coalition. The industry, the report said, supported 4.7 million jobs directly at data centers or indirectly through their supply chain. Amazon, the biggest data center operator, calculates that its data centers each year have supported thousands of jobs, including 4,760 in Ohio and 19,110 in Virginia. Matt Hurst, a spokesperson for Amazon Web Services, Amazon's cloud-computing arm, told Business Insider the company was "proud of the good jobs we create, for the trust local communities invest in us, and for the opportunity we have to invest in those communities." Meta says that its data center operations support 16,000 jobs and $1.2 billion in labor income annually, and that it has backed 440,000 construction jobs over the past decade. Google says its data centers supported 119,000 jobs and contributed $12.6 billion to US gross domestic product in 2023 across its supply chain, including construction. Microsoft's website says its data centers generate "public infrastructure improvements and tax revenue that serve as a catalyst for enhancing the quality of life." "Our developments generate millions of dollars in tax revenue to support local priorities related to schools, roads, housing, and other critical needs, while also reducing the tax burden on residents," a spokesperson for QTS, which is owned by the investment firm Blackstone, said in a statement. A Blackstone spokesperson also highlighted the benefits of data center development and said the company was "proud that our investment in QTS provides the digital infrastructure critical to the future of our country and economy." Competition to score these promised benefits can be a race to the bottom, as developers pit state against state and city against city. New projects cluster in areas that offer the most competitive deals. To investigate how these incentive deals play out, Business Insider identified areas of data center development and filed requests with all 50 states and Washington, DC, for the air permits that regulate backup generators at every data center. Business Insider compiled records for 1,240 data centers nationwide, the most definitive accounting to date, and requested records of data-center-related economic incentives from municipalities and states. The largest data centers in Business Insider's analysis — the 322 massive facilities that we estimate consume 40 megawatts of electricity or more each — are heavily concentrated in a few places. Northern Virginia has 214, followed by Arizona's Maricopa County with 16, and Ohio's Columbus region with 9. Thirty-seven states have tax incentive programs for data center investments. Most exempt developers from sales and use taxes on building materials, machinery, or equipment — resulting in big hits to state coffers. In Virginia, 56 data center projects cost $928 million in abated state sales tax in the 2023 fiscal year alone. Disclosures in Ohio estimate it forfeited nearly $360 million in data-center-related state tax revenue from the 2022 through 2024 fiscal years. Mason Waldvogel, a spokesperson for the Ohio Department of Development, called the tax incentive program "a strategic tool used to create long-term economic growth by attracting high-value, capital-intensive projects." A spokesperson for the Data Center Coalition said state tax exemptions for data centers were consistent with programs for other capital-intensive industries. Cities also offer incentives, including breaks on property taxes and reimbursements for building fees. Arizona cities largely don't give property tax abatements but allow the use of precious water resources. Virginia grants access to enormous amounts of electricity and critical infrastructure but requires data centers to pay local property taxes. Indeed, Northern Virginia cities generate up to 31% of their total tax revenue from data centers, funding fire departments, affordable housing, and other services. In the Columbus region, Business Insider located 19 data center-related deals that, together with state-level abatements, amounted to at least $750 million in forfeited tax revenue for 770 full-time jobs employed at data centers as of December 2023. The jobs generally pay well, averaging $100,000 a year in Central Ohio, according to company disclosures. At the Google data center in Columbus, salaries range from $74,000 for a data center technician to $162,000 for an operations manager. Amazon tops the list with seven deals. In one, the northwest Columbus suburb of Dublin agreed to sell Amazon 66 acres, which the city valued at $100,000 an acre, for $1 in total. Amazon agreed to pay the farmers previously leasing the land up to $40,000 total to abandon their soybeans and corn crops and terminate the lease. It told Dublin it expected to hire 25 full-time workers by the end of 2018, a nonbinding projection. In contrast, Amazon projected that it would hire 1,000 Ohioans at a new fulfillment center in Canton several years later — without taking any local property tax abatements or state incentives. Amazon's Hurst said the company works hard to create every job it projects. The deals keep coming, from Batavia, New York, to Meridian, Mississippi. Nathan M. Jensen, a professor at the University of Texas at Austin who studies regional tax incentive programs, said cities are better off sitting these deals out. Communities throw everything they can at tech companies, yet when the costs of lost tax revenue and escalating electricity prices are factored against what the communities get back in jobs, revenue, and prestige, "there's just no evidence that you're going to benefit from that data center," he said. If data center developers threaten to walk from cities that refuse to compete for these deals, Jensen's advice is blunt: "Let 'em walk." Jensen said data centers were shaping up like professional sports stadiums, where cities give millions in tax revenue savings in exchange for temporary construction jobs and minimal economic impact. Construction of data centers generally lasts one to two years, or sometimes longer, and many construction jobs run for only part of that period. In Virginia, one analysis found that about 80% of jobs from data centers created over a recent two-year period were in construction. And the numbers of such data-center-supported jobs cited in this year's Data Center Coalition report may be misleading, multiple economists and researchers who study incentives told Business Insider. Timothy Bartik, a senior economist at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, a not-for-profit organization focused on reducing unemployment, said his own study suggests job numbers in the high-tech sector, like data centers, could be less than half of industry estimates. Microsoft estimated last year that a campus with six data centers that it is building outside Cheyenne, Wyoming, would have 1,005 jobs at peak construction, falling to 335 full-time employees and contractors by the end of next year. At a construction project in Columbus for the data center operator Cologix, one contractor, Baker Concrete Construction, had 63 people on payroll. Those jobs lasted an average of 6 ½ weeks. Cologix said that overall the site had an average of 146 workers during the project's construction. Incentive packages often spell out how many jobs a company commits to creating in exchange for its tax breaks. Data center companies generally commit to deliver only the jobs inside their facilities in exchange for their tax breaks — not the construction and other ancillary jobs they say their projects create. Based on what is actually promised in such deals, those jobs can be expensive for local governments. Business Insider identified five deals in Ohio where, as of December 2023, each long-term job in the data centers cost over $1 million in abated taxes over the life of the deal. An Amazon data center in Hilliard had saved at least $195 million in state and local taxes as of December 2023, according to annual disclosures, driving the price of each job to over $1 million in abated taxes. New Albany, Ohio, garnered 98 jobs at a Meta data center, but forfeited $189.6 million in state and local taxes as of the end of 2023 — making each job worth about $1.9 million in foregone tax revenue. "We disagree with this way of thinking about the benefits we bring to communities," Amazon's Hurst said, adding that it benefits communities in ways beyond direct job creation, such as spending with local businesses and funding job-training efforts. A Meta spokesperson said it helps communities where it operates through grants and partnerships. The Data Center Coalition spokesperson said that focusing on jobs inside data centers understates the impact on service providers and suppliers, such as electricians, HVAC manufacturers, and portable sanitation companies. Companies are still required to make yearly payments to the cities in lieu of property taxes to help ensure minimum contributions to the communities, which Business Insider incorporated into our cost-per-job calculations. Meta, for example, paid $21.8 million in total to New Albany as of December 2022. A spokesperson for New Albany said the payments ensure "data centers contribute meaningfully to the community, even with tax abatements in place." And tech companies often sweeten the deals by promising to invest in education programs to upskill local workers. Amazon, for example, donated $25,000 and some equipment two years ago to the Tolles Career & Technical Center in Plain City, Ohio, to support the school's IT and cybersecurity training programs, which include a four-week training program for entry-level data center workers. At the nearby Columbus State Community College, the company pledged $50,000 in scholarships for a new data center technician certificate program. The ultrapowerful computer chips crammed into data centers consume enormous amounts of power. A 2024 Department of Energy report estimates their electricity use, driven by the AI boom, could soon command as much as 12% of total US electricity use, from just over 4% in 2023. Data centers are getting breaks on that, too — which residents and other businesses are helping pay for. From 2020 through last year, Ohio data centers' load on the grid rose sixfold. By 2030, American Electric Power Ohio, the state's largest electricity provider, expects to grow by another 700% to reach 5,000 megawatts, enough to power at least 2 million homes. If all hookup requests across more than 90 planned data center sites in Ohio are approved, AEP Ohio told regulators, demand could skyrocket to over 30,000 megawatts. Since 2017, Ohio regulators have authorized multiple 10-year electricity rate subsidies for data center developers, reducing power costs for tech companies in exchange for their promises of new jobs. Other AEP customers have to pay for the shortfall. Matt Schilling, a spokesperson for the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, said in an email to Business Insider that while the commission had approved some discounted rates for data centers, it had denied other applications for such arrangements. At the same time, AEP has proposed spending at least $850 million in new or upgraded grid infrastructure and power plants to serve data centers, and another $350 million in other upgrades to support Central Ohio's extreme demand growth, according to filings. Ratepayers across Ohio foot the bill for this too, as AEP spreads the costs across all customers. Walmart, one of Ohio's largest employers, said last June that an increasingly expensive electricity bill — owing partly to data centers' demand — imperiled its continued expansion in the state. That warning came in a filing supporting the utility's recent proposition to increase tariffs and regulations on data center customers. A Data Center Coalition representative warned regulators in 2024 that those proposed tariffs and restrictions in Ohio could "depress the growth of an important emerging industry." The rate case remains ongoing. Regulators across the US have offered similar deals to subsidize data centers' electricity use, shifting billions of dollars of costs to all ratepayers, including residential customers. Regulators last year OK'd Georgia Power to construct an estimated $300 million 35-mile high-voltage transmission line and a new substation for a QTS data center near Atlanta. And this year, South Carolina regulators authorized Duke Energy to invest $66.5 million to upgrade a transmission line to serve a new QTS data center. The utilities will recoup their investments by increasing electricity bills for all their customers. Duke Energy said it follows federal rules in allocating upgrade costs. South Carolina's regulator declined to comment and Georgia Power and that state's regulator didn't respond. A QTS spokesperson said it pays for all utility infrastructure dedicated to its data centers "to ensure no impact to residential rates." "Utilities can fund discounts to Big Tech by socializing their costs through electricity prices charged to the public," a 2025 Harvard Law study of regulatory proceedings about utility rates for data centers found. Utilities profit, the study said, by "forcing the public to pay for infrastructure designed to supply a handful of exceedingly wealthy corporations." Amazon, Microsoft, and Google told Business Insider they were committed to paying their full share for infrastructure serving their power needs. Tech companies and industry advocates say that other factors, such as electric vehicles, also are driving electricity growth and that the transition to renewable power drives up electricity costs. To estimate the amount of power data centers demand nationwide, Business Insider used data from the air permits issued to data center backup generators. (See here for more on Business Insider's methodology.) If every data center that's been issued a permit comes online, Business Insider estimates data centers' total electricity use across the country could reach between 149.6 terawatt-hours and 239.3 terawatt-hours a year. Business Insider's low-end estimate is roughly equivalent to the state of Ohio's electricity needs in 2023, and on the high end, is nearly as much power as the entire state of Florida used that same year. A 2024 federal report estimated US data centers' electricity use could reach the high end of Business Insider's estimate by 2026. A 2024 report to Virginia's legislature found that data centers had historically paid their fair share of transmission upgrade costs but warned their sharply escalating electricity needs "will likely increase system costs for all customers, including non-data center customers." Last July, Dominion Energy, Virginia's largest utility provider, asked regulators to approve a $23 million grid infrastructure investment billed across ratepayers, a request that is still pending. Regulatory staff said the investment was likely needed just for a single data center customer. Months later, Dominion disclosed that it would need to roughly double its electricity generation by 2039 primarily to meet meteoric data center demand and new planned renewable energy capacity. Dominion estimates the planned expansion could cost up to $103 billion, increasing residential electricity bills by as much as 50%. Aaron Ruby, a Dominion spokesperson, told Business Insider that the company had asked regulators to approve additional consumer protections to shield ratepayers from shouldering costs incurred by large customers like data centers. The planned increase in power bills is primarily driven by the utility's transition to carbon-free power generation, as is required by state law, Ruby wrote. In Virginia, too, Walmart objected. "Electricity is a significant operating cost for retailers such as Walmart," Lisa Perry, Walmart's director of utility partnerships, told regulators in February 2025, warning that increasing electricity rates would harm Walmart's investment in Virginia. Andy Farmer, a spokesperson for the Virginia State Corporation Commission, said that data centers affected all the state's utilities, not just Dominion. Data centers' ballooning power consumption leaves other businesses, residents, and utility regulators in a bind: Either pay to expand capacity for the tech companies, or risk going without enough power to attract other new business. In Indiana, the River Ridge Property Owners' Association in Clark County told state regulators in 2024 that a single Meta data center project had bled nearly all remaining power from the grid. Meta promised at least 50 high-paying permanent jobs at the site and hundreds of construction jobs, but the community would have no available electricity to attract other prospective companies investing in the area for at least four years. "It is possible these data centers ultimately restrict, rather than foster, additional economic development," a representative of the Citizens Action Coalition of Indiana, a consumer and environmental advocacy organization, told state regulators. By 2030, the representative said, "just a few" data centers used for applications like AI will use "more electricity than all 6.8 million Hoosiers use at their homes." Walmart representatives told Ohio regulators last year that data centers' massive electricity use threatened the company's planned rollout of electric vehicle charging locations at its retail locations. "Growth in data center development is an economic boon for Ohioans," Google representatives told regulators this year, adding that the facilities were "pivotal in establishing the state as a leading technology hub." Walmart argues that it brings more jobs and other benefits to the local economy — a claim supported by research from AEP Ohio. The utility calculated that each megawatt allocated to traditional commercial and industrial customers like Walmart supported at least 25 jobs. Every megawatt used by a data center, the utility said, supports less than one job. About the data: Business Insider used air permits issued to data center backup generators to identify facility location and ownership, and estimate facility power use. We received permits from all but four states, plus Washington, DC. Read more about how we investigated the impact of data center growth here. Reporting: Hannah Beckler, Dakin Campbell, Daniel Geiger, Rosemarie Ho, Narimes Parakul, Adam Rogers, Ellen Thomas Editing: Jeffrey Cane, Rosalie Chan, Jason Dean, Esther Kaplan, Jake Swearingen Research: Darren Ankrom, Schuyler Mitchell, Trey Strange, Yuheng Zhan Design and visuals: Dan DeLorenzo, Isabel Fernandez-Pujol, Jinpeng Li, Kim Nguyen, Randy Yeip, Rebecca Zisser Photography: Kendrick Brinson, John David-Richardson, Greg Kahn, Brian Palmer, Jesse Rieser Video: Robert Leslie, Gary Moon, Marco Secci Copy editing: Mark Abadi, Kevin Kaplan Read the original article on Business Insider