Indiana has promoted data centers as a major economic win by promising billions of dollars in investment, new jobs and a place in the future of artificial intelligence.
But 13 Investigates found Hoosiers are only now getting a clearer look at the other side of those deals: more than $655 million in reported state sales and use tax exemptions for data centers.
Those are taxes data centers did not have to pay on eligible purchases, including equipment such as computer chips, servers and other technology used to operate the facilities.
It's important to note that not all data centers in Indiana receive tax breaks. For example, Microsoft announced in March 2026 that it would no longer be seeking local property tax abatements or breaks for their data center facility in La Porte.
The big dollar figure comes after questions from Good Jobs First, a nonpartisan watchdog group that tracks economic development subsidies, and 13News.
Good Jobs First said it could not find a clear public price tag showing how much tax revenue Indiana was giving up through its data center tax exemption program. The group published a report saying some states, including Indiana, failed to disclose data center tax abatement losses.
The Indiana Comptroller’s Office initially pushed back on the watchdog report, saying Indiana’s annual financial reporting complied with government accounting standards. But after further review, the Comptroller’s Office told 13News the data center exemption information had been reported to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, or IEDC, but had not been routed to the Comptroller’s Office for the state’s annual financial report.
