One of Utah's most closely watched development proposals took center stage Monday during a debate involving Republican candidates for Utah's 3rd Congressional District — a discussion that repeatedly returned to the future of data centers and artificial intelligence in the state.
When asked about the proposed Stratos data center project in Box Elder County, incumbent Rep. Celeste Maloy —who has been endorsed by President Donald Trump — said Utah has an opportunity to become a leader in artificial intelligence. But she argued data centers must fit the state's resources and have local support.
“On paper, Utah is a perfect place to build data centers," she said. "Unfortunately, data centers aren't built on paper … I support building data centers in Utah when the people of Utah support them, and right now I don't know that we have that in Box Elder County.”
Her opponent, former state representative and gubernatorial candidate Phil Lyman, criticized the proposed project as well, saying he is against the current version of the plan. He argued that Utah is not a good place to build data centers and voiced concerns about straining resources like water and energy.
“Those things can all be measured if we have transparency on the front end of it," he said. "If we don't have transparency, then it's a no-go for me.”
Lyman also expressed skepticism about the project's purpose.
“There's something about the way this data center was rolled out that gives me the feeling it is about surveillance, and that's a disconcerting feeling," he said. "I mean, it's next to the military base, there's a lot of issues — the way it's been pushed through so quickly, kind of behind closed doors.”
But Maloy framed the project differently, arguing domestic data storage is important for national security.
“We have to be able to store data here," she said. "If we're storing our data overseas, then we don't really have control over it. So I want to see us get to a place where the people of Utah welcome data centers.”
Aside from AI, the candidates found common ground on many major issues, including immigration and federal spending. Their differences often centered on the role government should play in addressing those challenges.
Republican voters will choose between Maloy and Lyman in the June 23 primary. Ballots will begin arriving in mailboxes this week.
