Ahead of the 2026 Regular Louisiana Legislative Session, which gets underway on Monday, March 9, 2026, Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, is speaking with citizens on some of the pending legislation and issues at hand.
Among the issues topping the agenda for Henry is energy. Specifically, Henry told members of the Baton Rouge Press Club on Monday, March 2, that a legislative task force on energy that he created last year [Senate Resolution No. 195] found that utility customers often end-up ‘footing part of the bill’ when power companies upgrade their plants for data centers.
As the Louisiana Radio Network reports, Henry informed the group it is the utility companies, not the consumers, who usually reap the financial benefits. “When a power company makes an upgrade to something, to the grid, whatever it might be, even to META, they’re allowed to pass those expenses on to the consumers. They’re also allowed to tack up to a 10% return on that investment.”
Henry also said while data centers may create jobs and economic impact, they may also drain resources. Yet Henry was careful to explain that he does not want to appear in any way to attack the power companies or the nascent data center industry in Louisiana.
Instead, Henry said he is only working to inform the public about the decision-making processes, in general. The argument goes that consumers, armed with such knowledge, are more likely to know what initial steps to take to resolve any questions or concerns they may have at that time.
For example, in the data center industry it is the Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC) which provides the government oversight which citizens can contact for answers to the issues they want addressed. Ultimately, Henry explained that any process to resolve problems is not about turning to government entities, as such, but to the real people who operate those agencies. “When you get everyone in a room together and you discuss what’s possible, what can pass, and what the governor can sign, you come up with something that works.”
This topic hits especially close to home in Shreveport. On Monday, February 23, Amazon announced plans to invest $12 billion to building multiple AI and cloud computing data centers across Caddo and Bossier Parishes. The project is expected to create 540 direct new jobs. Louisiana Economic Development (LED) estimates the project will result in 1,700 additional indirect new job opportunities in the Northwest Region. Amazon officials announced construction would begin “imminently.”
Then there is the 3,650-acre megasite Hyperion already under construction in Northeast Louisiana, in Richland Parish by Facebook parent company META. Originally set to cost $10 billion, that estimate has now skyrocketed to $27 billion after the purchase of another 1,400 acres.
