In contrast to the opposition to new data centres being built across America, a school district in Louisiana is highlighting a different outcome. Teachers in Richland Parish are reportedly set to receive bonuses of up to $50,935 this year, funded by a surge in tax revenue linked to a major data centre project being built by Facebook-parent Meta Platforms.According to a Wall Street Journal report, local officials have claimed that increased economic activity generated by the company’s $10 billion Hyperion data centre project has significantly boosted sales tax collections in the parish. The Richland Parish School Board said teacher bonuses will rise sharply, from a maximum of $10,200 last year to $50,935 this year. In some cases, the bonus could exceed a teacher’s annual salary.The additional funding comes through a 1968 ordinance that allows the school board to collect a 1% sales tax specifically for teacher bonuses. Data from the Northwest Louisiana Finance Authority shows the parish collected $42.9 million in sales and use taxes during the first nine months of the current fiscal year, more than double the amount recorded during the previous year. Meta also made a separate tax payment of $22.4 million to the parish in May, with more than half of that amount allocated to the local school district.
How Meta’s data centre project is boosting local tax revenues
Local business leaders say the construction project has brought a significant influx of workers and spending into the region.“As you can see, things like this are huge benefits to our people here,” said Scott Franklin, a director of the parish’s chamber of commerce. A former rice farmer, Franklin sold land to Meta for the data centre. “Anybody that complains about teachers getting a $50,000 check, they just instantly lose all credibility with me,” he said.When Louisiana first announced plans for Meta’s 4 million-square-foot Hyperion data centre, state officials said the project would directly create 500 local jobs, support another 1,000 indirect jobs and employ around 5,000 construction workers.The company is also participating in a state tax incentive programme for data centre equipment purchases and leases. Under the arrangement, Meta makes an annual payment to Richland Parish equivalent to 1% of its purchases. The company’s first payment under the programme totalled $22.4 million.The teacher bonuses come as data centres face increasing resistance in several US communities. Concerns over energy consumption, infrastructure demands and affordability have become common points of opposition.A recent Reuters/Ipsos survey found that more than half of respondents opposed the construction of new data centres in their communities.While the construction phase of Meta’s project has generated substantial tax revenue, some local officials acknowledge that not all economic benefits may remain at the same level once construction ends. Data centres typically require fewer employees to operate than they do to build.“Sales tax at that level may be somewhat temporary,” Franklin, the chamber of commerce director, said, but property taxes “will live forever.”Under its agreement with local authorities, Meta will receive an 80% property tax abatement for a specified period after the facility is completed, while continuing to pay the remaining 20%. The company is also required to maintain a minimum workforce of 500 employees at the site.According to Monroe Mayor Friday Ellis, the data centre project has already brought an estimated 8,000 workers to the surrounding area, contributing to increased local spending and tax collections that are now funding the teacher bonus programme.