Evidence Intelligence

Understand the policy. Then follow the evidence.

Read the status, operative signals, formal actors, comparable approaches, and evidence gaps before opening the relationship map.

Clear

Policy intelligence brief

VA-HB961 — Retail Sales and Use Tax; commercial and industrial exemptions, data centers.

Retail sales and use tax; commercial and industrial exemptions; data centers. Limits, beginning July 1, 2026, the retail sales and use tax exemption for computer equipment or enabling software to (i) the purchase or lease of equipment or enabling software for use in a data center, provided that such purchase or lease takes place prior to the start of operations for such data center, or (ii) the purchase or lease of equipment or enabling software as part of a refresh cycle of an existing data center. The bill defin…

Investigate with the Policy Desk →Compare policy approaches →
Legal stateIntroduced / in committeeA bill is not law unless the source record shows enactment.
JurisdictionVirginiaState-source record
Latest recorded action2026-02-11Incorporated by Finance (HB897-Sullivan) (Voice Vote)
Primary sourceStateOriginal public record linked

What the evidence says

Key findings

01
How it operates

Tax incentive / clawback

Lowers the public cost of building a data center, and can attach conditions or clawbacks that recover the benefit if commitments are not met.

02
Issues named in the record

Energy · Tax Incentives

These themes are supported by explicit words in the title or stored summary, not graph proximity.

Comparable precedents

Related approaches worth comparing

Selected by shared tracked mechanisms or themes, with cross jurisdiction examples prioritized. Similarity is not legal equivalence.

NJ-A5482New Jersey · Introduced / in committeeEstablishes six month moratorium on approvals, construction, expansion, subsidies, and tax incentives for certain artificial intelligence data centers; creates Artificial Intelligence Data Center Impact Commission.Tax incentive / clawbackIF13306United States · Research or guidanceCongressional Authority to Regulate Data CentersTax incentive / clawback · EnergyPA-SB1384Pennsylvania · Introduced / in committeeAn Act amending the act of March 4, 1971 (P.L.6, No.2), known as the Tax Reform Code of 1971, in tax credit and tax benefit administration, further providing for definitions; in computer data center equipment incentive program, providing for certification prohibition; providing for Governor's Responsible Infrastructure Development certification and standards; and imposing duties.Tax incentive / clawback · Tax IncentivesFL-H1517Florida · Failed, withdrawn, revoked or supersededApproval of Data Center FacilitiesTax incentive / clawback
Refine the relationship evidence
Relationship depth
Show node types

Relationship map

VA-HB961 evidence graph

Retail Sales and Use Tax; commercial and industrial exemptions, data centers.

9 nodes · 8 evidenced edges
Policy record 1Policy theme 3Policy mechanism 1Documented actor 1Policy family 1Jurisdiction 1Original source 1
explicitly concerns: Theme named in the title or stored summaryexplicitly concerns: Theme named in the title or stored summaryclassified under: Fixed-vocabulary topic classificationsignals mechanism: Mechanism signal derived from the tracked record textapplies in: Jurisdiction recorded for this source typedocumented by: Original source URL stored with the policy recordsponsored: Named sponsor in the tracked public recordmember of family: exact title companionPolicy recordVA-HB961Retail Sales and Use Tax; c…VA-HB961: Retail Sales and Use Tax; commercial and industrial exemptions, data centers.Policy themeEnergyExplicit record textEnergy: Explicit record textPolicy themeTax IncentivesExplicit record textTax Incentives: Explicit record textPolicy themeCertification & Standa…AI-assisted policy themeCertification & Standards: AI-assisted policy themePolicy mechanismTax incentive / clawba…Text-derived policy signalTax incentive / clawback: Text-derived policy signalJurisdictionVirginiaState policy jurisdictionVirginia: State policy jurisdictionOriginal sourceStateOriginal public sourceState: Original public sourceDocumented actorVivian WattspersonVivian Watts: personPolicy familyRetail Sales and Use T…VARetail Sales and Use Tax; commercial and industrial exemptions, data centers.: VA

The visual map is hidden on small screens; the complete relationship receipts remain available below.

Inspectable edges

Relationship receipts

Each edge states what was observed and why it appears. An edge never implies private influence, support, opposition, or causation.