Bill advancing in Indiana to provide tax breaks for data centers

This week a bill has progressed to make life easier for data centers in Indiana and promote a digital economy.

Digital Crossroads revealed that the Indiana House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee voted unanimously to advance HB 1405 to the House floor.

The bill has been designed to attract data centers and other large technology companies to Indiana by offering financial and tax incentives for the development of new data center projects and ensure companies like Digital Crossroads of America Data Center in Hammond, Indiana, grow to their full potential.

By alluring data centers and tech companies into the state, the Committee hopes to bolster the economy. The bill is co-sponsored by state Rep. Ed Soliday R-Valparaiso.

"Peter Feldman and I brought this mission critical data center to Indiana due in part to the strong leadership at both the state and local levels," said Tom Dakich of Digital Crossroads.

"We've worked closely with Governor Holcomb and Hammond Mayor McDermott throughout the process to bring a potential $200 million investment to Hammond and today's vote is another example of Hoosier leadership shown today by state Rep. Todd Huston R-Fisher and the entire Indiana House Ways and Means committee.

Under HB 1405, servers, routers, wiring, software and other like components would be exempt from business personal property tax and the state's sales tax. Additionally, electricity purchases by customers of these data centers will be exempt from state sales tax.

"Today, our lawmakers take the first important step in making Indiana the most competitive state for data center advancements," said Peter Feldman, Chief Executive Officer of Digital Crossroads.

"This bill creates tax incentives that uniquely position Indiana as a top-tier destination for data center developers and large technology companies.

Moving forward, HB 1405 will proceed to the House floor where it will be heard, analysed, and finally voted on.