2023 Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Chapter 238 - Wisconsin economic development corporation.
238.40 - Data centers.
238.40 Data centers.
(1) Definitions. In this section:
(a) “Eligible data center costs” means expenditures made after October 1, 2023, for the development, acquisition, construction, renovation, expansion, replacement, or repair and the operation of a qualified data center in this state, including costs of tangible personal property and property under s. 77.52 (1) (c), as specified in s. 77.54 (70), land, buildings, site improvements, modular data centers, computer data center equipment acquisition and permitting, lease payments, site characterization and assessment, engineering, and design used at a qualified data center in this state.
(b) “Qualified data center” means one or more buildings or an array of connected buildings owned, leased, or operated by the same business entity, as defined in s. 13.62 (5), or its affiliate and for which all of the following apply:
1. The buildings are rehabilitated or constructed to house a group of networked server computers in one physical location or multiple locations in order to centralize the processing, storage, management, retrieval, communication, or dissemination of data and information.
2. The buildings create a minimum qualified investment in this state of any of the following amounts within 5 years from the date on which the corporation certifies the data center as eligible to claim the exemption under s. 77.54 (70):
a. For buildings located in a county having a population greater than 100,000, $150,000,000.
b. For buildings located in a county having a population greater than 50,000 and not more than 100,000, $100,000,000.
c. For buildings in a county having a population of not more than 50,000, $50,000,000.
d. For buildings located in more than one county, the amount provided under subd. 2. a., b., or c. for the most populous county in which the buildings are located.
(c) “Qualified investment” means the aggregate, non-duplicative eligible data center costs expended at a qualified data center by an owner, operator, or tenant, or an affiliate of an owner, operator, or tenant, of the qualified data center.
(2) Certification.
(a) The corporation shall certify a qualified data center for purposes of the sales and use tax exemption under s. 77.54 (70). The certification shall include a description of the geographic location or locations and buildings of the qualified data center and an identification of the business entity specified in sub. (1) (b). The corporation shall contract with that business entity and shall, upon request, amend the certification and contract to include one or more additional locations and buildings of the qualified data center.
(b) If the corporation certifies a qualified data center for purposes of the sales and use tax exemption under s. 77.54 (70) and the data center fails to satisfy sub. (1) (b) 2., the corporation shall revoke the certification. The contract between the corporation and the business entity shall include recapture provisions. The corporation may grant an extension of time within which the qualified data center may avoid revocation by satisfying the applicable qualified investment requirement under sub. (1) (b) 2.
History: 2023 a. 19.
