Linville Touts Data Center Bill to CEO

A former West Virginia lawmaker promoted House Bill 2002 in a December 2025 letter to a company weighing a large data center campus in Boone County.

Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Data Centers

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In December 2025, former West Virginia House Environment, Infrastructure and Technology Subcommittee Chair Daniel Linville wrote to the CEO of a company contemplating a data center campus, touting House Bill 2002. The proposed campus would have up to 10 gigawatts of capacity across 8,000 acres in Boone County.

Why it matters

House Bill 2002 was a sibling to House Bill 2014, which strips local zoning and regulatory control over data center projects and shields developers from publicly sharing critical project information. The letter raises questions about how legislation was promoted to a prospective developer in the state.

The proposed campus would draw up to 10 gigawatts of capacity across 8,000 acres in Boone County. The extraction does not specify the campus's final power or cooling design.

The players

Daniel Linville

Former chair of the West Virginia House of Delegates Environment, Infrastructure and Technology Subcommittee who promoted House Bill 2002 to a data center executive.

The details

Linville, who chaired the House subcommittee overseeing environment, infrastructure and technology, wrote the letter to promote House Bill 2002 as a companion to House Bill 2014. House Bill 2014 removes zoning and other regulatory authority over data center projects from local governments and limits public disclosure of critical project information.

2025 legislative session: House Bills 2002 and 2014 introduced in West Virginia
December 2025: Linville wrote to the data center company CEO touting HB 2002

Industry Dynamics

The letter follows the 2025 push by West Virginia lawmakers to fast-track data center development through House Bill 2014. It shows legislative backing being promoted to a developer weighing a large campus.

Residents near proposed campuses could lose local zoning input under House Bill 2014. Public access to critical project details would be limited if the bill is enacted as written.

The takeaway

Legislative proposals that remove local oversight and public disclosure warrant close scrutiny from residents and watchdogs. Tracking who promotes such bills to developers can reveal how projects are being steered.