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U.S. Sen. Mark Warner on Thursday called on the data center and artificial intelligence industry to cover its own costs and contribute more to help workers displaced by AI — remarks that land with particular weight in Northern Virginia, where Alexandria's own state lawmakers spent last week wrestling with the same question in a different arena.
Speaking during a remote media availability from the U.S. Capitol, Warner said data centers should not be allowed to drive up electric rates for consumers and must secure their own energy generation. He also said the industry must address water overuse and pollution from backup generators.
The comments echo a debate that played out March 19 at the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce's annual General Assembly Breakfast, where Majority Leader Del. Charniele Herring framed Virginia's stake in plain terms. "70% of Internet traffic in this world comes through Northern Virginia," Herring said, explaining why the General Assembly has been reluctant to roll back a sales and use tax exemption for data centers worth roughly $1.54 billion in uncollected revenue annually.
Del. Kirk McPike, who took office in February, added context for why the stakes have grown: data centers have shifted from cloud storage to AI-driven infrastructure requiring expensive Nvidia chips, making the tax gap far larger than originally projected when the exemption was first put in place.
Ryan Belmore
Warner, a Democrat and vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he believes the AI industry will trigger the most significant job losses for entry-level workers, particularly recent college graduates, of any technological shift in modern history — and that his concern has deepened in recent months.
"I feel so much stronger on this than I did even in December," Warner said. "What will be the most dramatic job dislocation for entry level jobs, particularly of people coming out of college that we've ever seen."
Warner also walked back sharp language he used Wednesday directed at a proposal from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders to impose a one-year moratorium on new data centers. While he disagreed with the moratorium — noting that enough projects are already permitted and in the pipeline to significantly expand supply regardless — he acknowledged his criticism went too far.
"I did use over the top language," he said. "I get why they suggested it."
Warner cautioned that shuttering data centers in Virginia would simply push development to other states, and argued that the industry's potential — particularly in medicine and productivity — is real. But he said the short-term transition for workers will be difficult and the industry must step up.
He noted that AI has grown deeply unpopular, saying a recent poll found public opinion of AI ranked lower than that of ICE, the federal immigration enforcement agency.
Warner also addressed several other issues during the availability, including U.S. military actions in Iran, the ongoing partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security — including the Transportation Security Administration — and the launch of power generation from the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project.
