Data centers in Minnesota received more than $1 billion in tax breaks

Minnesota has quietly provided more than $1 billion in tax breaks to data centers over the past decade, subsidizing everything from computer equipment and software to electricity and cooling systems.

The tax incentive, originally created to attract and grow the data center industry in Minnesota, has been used by 42 facilities across the state.

Right now, the data centers receiving the exemptions are smaller facilities on corporate campuses scattered around the Twin Cities metro or are run by third parties that rent space to businesses.

RELATED: Minnesota has dozens of data centers. Here’s where they are.

But as...