‘Toxic Tom’ Tiffany accepted campaign contribution from data center lobbyist, voted for more AI infrastructure

Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor Tom Tiffany has attempted to paint Democratic candidate David Crowley as a friend of AI data centers, but the legislative record reflects who actually supports this advancement in technology. 

Tiffany referred to data centers as an “exciting new technology” in February and earlier this week said data centers are necessary to stop them from being outsourced to China. 

Crowley distanced himself from his primary opponent, Francesca Hong, by not backing a full moratorium on building data centers, but instead supported guardrails on already existing centers.

Crowley narrowly defeated Hong by less than 0.5% and much of the Democratic base in Wisconsin remains split.  

Tiffany took advantage of the split by posting clips of Crowley speaking about data centers to social media. In one clip, Crowley said he wanted Wisconsin to “become an AI and a data hub, not only for the entire country, but for the entire globe.”

In another clip, Crowley said he differs from Hong on “data centers” more so than any other issue. Hong, a democratic socialist, took the most strict stance against the facilities. 

But the Crowley campaign said Tiffany’s campaign took the videos out of context, by cutting off Crowley’s remarks before he finishes a thought. 

Public polling from July suggests there is strong opposition to data centers in Wisconsin with 76% of respondents saying the costs outweigh the benefits, an increase from 55% last October.

Tiffany’s attacks on Crowley and consistent outrage from Hong voters online led to the Milwaukee County Executive addressing the matter at a campaign stop and in a statement. 

“Communities should be able to make a decision whether or not they want a data center. It shouldn’t be steamrolled; it should be brought to the table,” Crowley said. “If they don’t want a data center, they shouldn’t be forced to have one. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about that.”

Crowley said the decision to place a data center in a community should be left up to local governments and added seven objectives a developer must adhere to:

• Commit to full transparency by banning (non-disclosure agreements)
• Provide 100% renewable energy, which will combat the amount of coal we burn 
• Cover 100% of the costs of infrastructure and grid upgrades 
• Require contributions to the state’s Focus on Energy fund, which could be used to bring down utility rates for Wisconsinites statewide
• Build the data centers with union labor, project labor agreements, and community benefit agreements
• Create good-paying, family-supporting jobs
• Protect local water and our environment as a whole

“The contrast with Tom Tiffany is stark: he has never introduced legislation regulating data centers in Congress, has never backed a moratorium, and is pushing to keep aging coal plants online to help power the very data centers he claims to be tough on,” Crowley’s campaign said in a statement. “Instead, he has voted for trillions of dollars in permanent corporate tax breaks through the One Big Beautiful Bill and a 10-year ban on state and local governments enforcing any AI regulation.”

Tom Tiffany has pro-data center record as candidates spar over political contributions 

Crowley argues the contrast is stark as Tiffany has already supported the technology while a legislator and has accepted a political donation from a data center lobbyist. 

But Tiffany’s campaign said Crowley doesn’t have a strong leg to stand on as he as accepted more than $350,000 from “groups building data centers in Wisconsin and has earned their endorsements.”

Crowley’s campaign said Tiffany is referring to labor unions.

Crowley addresses data centers on his campaign website, but Tiffany does not. 

“Make Big Tech Pay for the Grid, Not Wisconsin Families. Require large data center developers to invest in Virtual Power Plants (VPPs), coordinating home batteries, smart appliances, and distributed storage, as a first-resort strategy before seeking approval to build new fossil fuel generation,” Crowley’s website states. “This approach will bring hundreds of megawatts online in months at a fraction of the cost of new gas plants and benefit consumers.  Require mega-users like data centers to pay the full cost of grid upgrades they drive.  Establish clear environmental guardrails on water usage, energy sourcing, stringent energy-efficiency building codes, and emissions so data center growth doesn’t come at the expense of Wisconsin communities or natural resources.”

On June 3, Tiffany for Wisconsin received $5,000 from Robert Marchant, according to campaign finance reports. Marchant is the only lobbyist for the Wisconsin Data Center Coalition, according to the group’s registration form. 

The coalition’s website states it looks to “champion Wisconsin’s role in the data center economy by helping to educate the public on the economic benefits of hyperscale data center development and advocating for smart growth that benefits our communities, companies, and workforce.”

In February, the coalition shared a study showing data centers don’t increase electricity rates. 

Tiffany has said he wants to ban NDAs and sales tax exemptions for data centers, but the coalition has lobbied for both at the State Legislature. 

In February, the coalition was against SB 969, which would prohibit NDAs intended to conceal information about a data center from the public. And in November, the coalition supported AB 245 and SB 244, relating to “modifying the sales and use tax exemption for qualified data centers.” 

In June, Tiffany said: “I would end all subsidies for data centers in Wisconsin.”

While in the U.S. House, Tiffany voted for The Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development Act (SPEED) Act, which was designed to speed up the build-out of infrastructure key to artificial intelligence. The bill was backed by tech giants, like OpenAI, Micron and Microsoft. 

Tiffany was also the deciding vote on President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, which included a 10-year regulation moratorium on AI models. The Senate voted 99-1 to strike down the moratorium before it became law. 

On top of that, Tiffany’s time as a state legislator was marked by an anti-DNR, pro-mining record, even admitting at one point the legislation he authored was harmful to the environment. His stance earned him the nickname “Toxic Tom.” 

The Bad River Chippewa Tribe spoke out against Tiffany’s legislation as its reservation and rice beds are just a few miles downstream from the proposed mine.  

In addition to his political donations for governor, Tiffany has accepted $135,765 from the energy and natural resources sector during his congressional career, according to Open Secrets.

Tiffany’s campaign said in a statement: “Tom does not share Crowley’s vision of turning Wisconsin into a data center hub for the ‘entire globe’ or ‘singing from the mountaintops’ to attract them here. Tom has made clear that no new data centers should move forward without standards that protect Wisconsin’s land, water, and environment. He also supports ending taxpayer subsidies for data centers, while Crowley supports keeping them.”