Wisconsin 2025-2026 Regular Session

Wisconsin Senate Bill SB244 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	2025 - 2026 LEGISLATURE
2	2	LRB-2933/1
3	3	KRP&KP:cdc
4	4	2025 SENATE BILL 244
5	5	May 9, 2025 - Introduced by Senators QUINN and BRADLEY, cosponsored by
6	6	Representatives ZIMMERMAN, GUSTAFSON, ARMSTRONG, KREIBICH, O'CONNOR,
7	7	PIWOWARCZYK, SNYDER, WITTKE and KNODL. Referred to Committee on
8	8	Agriculture and Revenue.
9	9
10	10	*AUTHORS SUBJECT TO CHANGE*
11	11	AN ACT to renumber and amend 238.40 (1) (b) 1.; to amend 238.40 (1) (b)
12	12	(intro.); to create 238.40 (1) (b) 1. b. and 238.40 (1) (bm) of the statutes;
13	13	relating to: modifying the sales and use tax exemption for qualified data
14	14	centers.
15	15	Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
16	16	This bill makes various changes to the sales and use tax exemption for
17	17	qualified data centers.
18	18	Under current law, there is a sales and use tax exemption for certain property
19	19	and items used to construct, operate, or renovate a qualified data center, as
20	20	certified by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. Under current law,
21	21	WEDC may certify a qualified data center if it meets all of the following criteria:
22	22	1. The qualified data center is one or more buildings or an array of connected
23	23	buildings owned, leased, or operated by the same business entity or its affiliate.
24	24	2. The buildings are rehabilitated or constructed to house a group of
25	25	networked server computers in one physical location or multiple locations in order
26	26	to centralize the processing, storage, management, retrieval, communication, or
27	27	dissemination of data and information.
28	28	3. The buildings create a minimum qualified investment in this state within
29	29	five years from the certification date in the amount of $50 million, $100 million, or
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31	31	2
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33	33	4 2025 - 2026 Legislature
34	34	SENATE BILL 244
35	35	- 2 - LRB-2933/1
36	36	KRP&KP:cdc
37	37	SECTION 1
38	38	$150 million, depending on the population of the county in which the buildings are
39	39	located.
40	40	The bill modifies the definition of qualified data center to provide that the
41	41	buildings may house a group of individual, as well as a group of networked, server
42	42	computers. In addition, the bill provides that WEDC also may certify a qualified
43	43	data center if, in addition to the criteria described in items 1 and 3, it meets the
44	44	following criterion, rather than the criterion described under item 2: the buildings
45	45	are rehabilitated or constructed to house a group of individual or networked server
46	46	computers in one physical location or multiple locations in order to provide an
47	47	owner, operator, or tenant the opportunity to rent or own space, utilities and other
48	48	vital resources such as cooling capacity, enhanced security features, or the ability to
49	49	procure infrastructure, platforms, software, and other managed services.
50	50	The bill also provides that WEDC may not certify buildings that are used for
51	51	or to facilitate the creation of cryptocurrencies and the process used to verify and
52	52	secure cryptocurrency transactions and blockchains as qualified data centers
53	53	eligible for the sales and use tax exemption.
54	54	Because this bill relates to an exemption from state or local taxes, it may be
55	55	referred to the Joint Survey Committee on Tax Exemptions for a report to be
56	56	printed as an appendix to the bill.
57	57	For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be
58	58	printed as an appendix to this bill.
59	59	The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
60	60	enact as follows:
61	61	SECTION 1. 238.40 (1) (b) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
62	62	238.40 (1) (b) (intro.) XQualified Except as provided in par. (bm), Xqualified
63	63	data centerY means one or more buildings or an array of connected buildings owned,
64	64	leased, or operated by the same business entity, as defined in s. 13.62 (5), or its
65	65	affiliate and for which all of the following apply:
66	66	SECTION 2. 238.40 (1) (b) 1. of the statutes is renumbered 238.40 (1) (b) 1.
67	67	(intro.) and amended to read:
68	68	238.40 (1) (b) 1. (intro.) The buildings are rehabilitated or constructed to
69	69	house a group of individual or networked server computers in one physical location
70	70	or multiple locations in order to do any of the following:
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80	80	10 2025 - 2026 Legislature
81	81	SENATE BILL 244
82	82	- 3 - LRB-2933/1
83	83	KRP&KP:cdc
84	84	SECTION 2
85	85	a. Allow an owner, operator, or tenant to centralize the processing, storage,
86	86	management, retrieval, communication, or dissemination of data and information.
87	87	SECTION 3. 238.40 (1) (b) 1. b. of the statutes is created to read:
88	88	238.40 (1) (b) 1. b. Provide an owner, operator, or tenant the opportunity to
89	89	rent or own space, utilities, and other vital resources such as cooling capacity,
90	90	enhanced security features, or the ability to procure infrastructure, platforms,
91	91	software, and other managed services.
92	92	SECTION 4. 238.40 (1) (bm) of the statutes is created to read:
93	93	238.40 (1) (bm) XQualified data centerY does not include buildings used for or
94	94	to facilitate the creation of cryptocurrencies and the process used to verify and
95	95	secure cryptocurrency transactions and blockchains.
96	96	SECTION 5. Effective date.
97	97	(1) This act takes effect on the first day of the 3rd month beginning after
98	98	publication.
99	99	(END)
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