Good Jobs First
US non-profit policy centre tracking corporate subsidies, tax abatements and regulatory violations.
On 22 April, Good Jobs First counted 12 US states with active data-centre moratorium bills, as Maine’s legislature passed a statewide freeze.
Last refreshed: 24 September 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Why does Good Jobs First say Virginia's data-centre tax break costs $1.94 billion a year?
Timeline for Good Jobs First
Mentioned in: Loudoun drafts a pause on data centres
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashMentioned in: Indiana counties turn pauses into bans
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashMentioned in: Virginia signs first per-kWh power tax
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashMentioned in: Virginia floats a fee on backup gas
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashMentioned in: Cape Town objection hits Equinix sites
Data Centres: Boom and BacklashBackground
Founded in 1998, Good Jobs First tracks corporate subsidies from Washington DC through its Subsidy Tracker database. Its research focuses on the public cost of state and local incentives, including tax breaks offered to large companies.
The organisation examines whether subsidy programmes deliver public value commensurate with their cost. Its work is useful to legislators, local officials, journalists and residents assessing claims about jobs, investment and public revenue.
Data-centre expansion has made that research newly relevant. Good Jobs First’s figures on tax abatements appeared in the Loudoun County debate on 12 February, while its 12-state moratorium tally was cited as Maine considered a statewide freeze on 22 April.
Subsidy data shapes local resistance
On 12 February, Good Jobs First reported that Georgia, Virginia and Texas each forgo more than $1bn a year through data-centre tax abatements. Loudoun County nevertheless recommended a 268,700-square-foot rezoning that day.
The organisation’s figures give local debates a fiscal measure alongside concerns about power, water and planning. On 22 April, its count of 12 states with active moratorium bills placed Maine’s proposed statewide freeze within a wider state-level challenge to data-centre expansion.