The data also reveals that 60% of the public would be uncomfortable with a new data center operating in their local community.
The growing skepticism centers on concrete concerns regarding infrastructure and cost of living.
Half of those surveyed now view data centers as detrimental to home energy costs, while 49% believe they negatively affect the quality of life for nearby residents.
This shift in opinion arrives as local protests against construction increase and several state governors reconsider their positions, with some implementing moratoriums or suspending tax breaks to allow for greater oversight of how these facilities impact utility grids and local resources.
While awareness of data centers is growing—with 88% of adults having now heard at least a little about them—the public remains divided on their economic benefits.
Only about 22% of Americans view the facilities as mostly good for local jobs or tax revenue, while a similar share views these impacts as mostly bad.
As development increasingly moves into rural areas, opposition in those regions has spiked, with the percentage of rural residents viewing data centers as environmentally harmful rising from 32% to 50% since the start of the year.