President Donald Trump is urging companies that build large data centers to pay a “dividend” to the communities around their sites if they want local support.
Trump made the call in a Truth Social post shortly after midnight Central time Wednesday. The Daily Caller reported on the post Thursday.
What the president said
“If companies want to make their Data Centers popular, pay the community, and/or individuals within the community, a ‘dividend,'” Trump wrote. He said data centers that were unpopular in some areas became popular “when a financial deal is struck.”
Trump also wrote that new large data centers “are mandated by me to make their own electricity, and give or sell any excess back to the local community, or grid.” He said electricity prices “could” fall as a result. The post did not say how much a dividend should be or who would set it.
The pledge behind the post
The power requirement Trump described rests on the Ratepayer Protection Pledge. Seven tech companies signed it at the White House on March 4: Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle and xAI. The White House describes the commitments as voluntary. Trump issued a proclamation the same day declaring the pledge national policy.
- Power supply: Signers agree to build, bring or buy the new electricity their data centers need.
- Grid upgrades: They agree to pay for new power lines and other delivery upgrades so the cost does not land on household bills.
- Set rates: They agree to negotiate separate rates with utilities and states and pay them whether they use the power or not.
- Local jobs: They agree to hire and train workers from the communities where they build.
The Environmental Protection Agency said a later expansion added governors, state lawmakers, developers and power providers. The pledge does not include a community dividend.
Industry response
The Daily Caller reported that Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and the Data Center Coalition trade group did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The White House and Meta did not comment on the record, the outlet reported.
Why it matters in Arkansas
Arkansas communities are weighing data center proposals and their demand for power and water. Pulaski County passed data center rules this fall, and a judge denied Entergy’s bid to block release of records about a data center deal.
Sources: President Donald Trump on Truth Social; The White House; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; The Daily Caller.
