Some of the biggest names in tech — Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft — are quietly telling Illinois lawmakers that the state’s tough biometric privacy law is already shaping where new AI data centers land. Industry representatives say the Biometric Information Privacy Act’s private right of action and the risk of statutory damages add too much legal uncertainty, so developers are increasingly eyeing Indiana and Wisconsin for large projects instead. The fight now stretches from quiet cul-de-sacs to the statehouse, as mayors, utilities, and environmental groups juggle noise, water use, and grid strain against the lure of fresh tax revenue.
Industry: BIPA Is Driving Projects Out
Lobbyists for the data center and AI industry warn Illinois is on the verge of losing multi-billion-dollar builds to neighboring states, arguing that the state’s liability rules make it an outlier in the Midwest. As reported by The Real Deal, coalition leaders say investors are steering away from sites where lawsuits and permitting delays look hardest to predict.
What BIPA Does And Why Companies Fear It
Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act, on the books since 2008, gives residents a private right of action and sets notice, consent, and retention rules for biometric identifiers, according to the statute filed with the Illinois General Assembly. High-profile BIPA cases have already produced eye-popping payouts: a roughly $650 million settlement tied to Facebook/Meta and a $100 million settlement involving Google Photos are two of the widely reported examples that highlight how big the tab can get. Those cases sit at the center of developers’ argument that today’s liability environment changes the math on where to place hyperscale AI infrastructure.
Suburban Pushback And Grid Concerns
The tension is showing up first in the suburbs. Aurora put a temporary halt on new data center and warehouse approvals in September so officials could study noise, emissions, and utility impacts, according to the city’s moratorium notice. In Naperville, the city council turned down a roughly 145,000-square-foot data center plan after months of resident pushback. At the same time, scientists and clean-energy advocates have warned that surging data center demand could drive much of Illinois’ near-term electricity load growth, with potentially big cost impacts for other ratepayers, as reported in local coverage.
Bills On The Table
State lawmakers are now juggling grid constraints and siting fights with a stack of new bills. One proposal, the Powering Up Illinois Act, would direct utilities to plan and phase in distribution upgrades so that large new users can be energized without waiting years in the queue; the bill text and summaries are available from the Illinois General Assembly. Supporters say that measures and related proposals are meant to speed interconnection and shield nearby residents, while developers counter that tougher rules or extra surcharges could leave Illinois on the losing end of regional competition.
Neighboring States Are Winning The Bids
Developers point to the action just over the border as their Exhibit A. Amazon’s New Carlisle campus in northern Indiana was announced as an $11 billion investment and is scheduled to be built out over the coming decade, a marquee example industry groups cite when they talk about projects shifting away from Illinois. The state still hosts major hubs, including Meta’s DeKalb campus, but industry trackers count more large planned hyperscale projects in nearby states than in Illinois, and local approvals plus utility constraints are increasingly baked into developers’ site selection calculus.
For now, the showdown in Springfield is about threading a narrow needle: keeping a strong privacy law that civil-rights lawyers and advocacy groups defend, while carving out a permitting and energy policy path that does not send high-capacity AI infrastructure and its tax base sprinting to the state line.
