My Promise: No State Bank Dollars for Data Centers

If elected as Nevada’s next State Treasurer, one of my greatest responsibilities will be the careful administration of the State Infrastructure Bank. That’s why earlier this year I committed to seeking a historic $300 million investment in the Bank to create affordable housing, finance critical infrastructure, support small businesses, and put thousands of union jobs into our communities. It’s also why today I’m committing one step further: under my administration we will not use any of those public dollars to subsidize the wealthiest corporations on Earth.

I will not allow Nevada’s State Infrastructure Bank to become a piggy bank for Big Tech data centers.

Responsible financial stewardship is not a vague slogan. It is not a talking point you dust off during campaign season. In practice, it means making hard commitments about how you are going to safeguard public resources before powerful interests come knocking, and then following through.

Nevada taxpayers deserve to know where candidates stand. 

So let me make my position clear: I believe public financing tools should be used to solve public problems, not to pad profit margins in Silicon Valley.

Nevada families are struggling with housing costs. Small businesses are fighting to survive against rising expenses and national consolidation. Communities across our state still need basic infrastructure improvements that support long-term economic growth. These are the areas where public investment can produce transformational returns for ordinary people.

The truth is that these projects are not appropriate for public investment. Data centers can consume enormous amounts of electricity and water while creating relatively limited permanent employment compared to the scale of public incentives often demanded. In too many cases where public dollars are used, the public assumes substantial financial and infrastructure burdens while the overwhelming share of the profits flows elsewhere. At a time when families are struggling to get by, every public dollar needs to be used with the utmost care to promote the public good.

Infrastructure Bank funds cannot be used to subsidize the profits of trillion-dollar companies instead of assisting working families. It is not a smart deal for Nevada taxpayers. 

I say this as someone that believes deeply in innovation and the need for economic development. As a member of the State Assembly, I've been a champion for new jobs, new industries, and new investments, helping to bring the largest venture capital firm in the nation to Nevada at no cost to taxpayers through my sponsored legislation (AB239 and AJR8). Before that I built a career in the tech industry as a founder, chief financial officer, and attorney. I have supported entrepreneurs and investors trying to build the future, and I believe Nevada should absolutely position itself to compete in the industries of tomorrow. And I believe this office and the Infrastructure Bank have a critical role to play in helping Nevada forge a new economic path.

But being pro-growth does not mean saying yes to every corporate request. It does not mean socializing risk while privatizing reward. And it certainly does not mean turning public financing tools into a subsidy pipeline for trillion-dollar companies that can already access virtually unlimited private investment.

The State Infrastructure Bank must remain focused on projects that create broad-based public value.

That means affordable housing developments that working families and seniors can actually afford. It means infrastructure projects that promote long-term economic opportunity. It means financing tools that help entrepreneurs and small businesses expand and create jobs. It means investments that strengthen communities instead of concentrating wealth.

One of the biggest problems in government today is that too many officials talk endlessly about accountability and stewardship while refusing to draw any actual lines or articulate any actual plans. Everything sounds responsible in the abstract until influential interests begin applying pressure behind closed doors. 

Nevadans deserve clearer answers than that, and they deserve them before they cast their votes. 

The purpose of public financing is to expand opportunity for the public. Every dollar committed through the State Infrastructure Bank carries an opportunity cost. Every dollar directed toward a massive corporate project is a dollar that cannot be used to help build attainable housing, support local businesses, modernize critical infrastructure, or invest in communities that have too often been left behind.

As Treasurer, I will never lose sight of who these public resources are supposed to serve.

Not Wall Street.

Not Silicon Valley.

Nevada families.