Google, Amazon data center tax breaks in Missouri blindside residents

• Amazon and Google are building data centers in Montgomery County, Missouri, following a $5 million federal grant to prepare the site.
• Local officials plan to offer Google a 70% personal property tax abatement, with similar incentives offered to Amazon.
• Some residents have expressed concerns about a lack of public input and transparency regarding the development and tax deals.

HIGH HILL, Missouri — A $5 million federal pandemic recovery grant helped Montgomery County prepare a rural industrial site along Interstate 70 for major development. Two years later, Amazon and Google are building data centers on nearly 2,000 acres near New Florence — and local officials are preparing to offer Google a 70% personal property tax abatement.

Google announced Wednesday, May 20, that it will invest $15 billion in a data center south of the highway, joining an Amazon Data Services project already underway north of I-70. Supporters say the projects will bring construction…