ATLANTA — The Georgia House will form a special committee this year to try to get a handle on the growing demand for energy among power-dependent industries moving into the state, House Speaker Jon Burns said Wednesday.

While the effort will not specifically target data centers, it will be comprehensive, Burns, R-Newington, told reporters outside the House chamber during a briefing ahead of the start of the 2025 General Assembly session next week.

“We’ll leave no stone unturned,” he said.

An influx of data centers setting up operations in Georgia in recent years has prompted concerns that the state’s utilities might not be able to handle the increasing demand for electricity.

Just this week, Amazon Web Services announced plans to invest an estimated $11 billion to expand its infrastructure in Georgia to support cloud computing and AI technologies. Two data-center projects in Douglas and Butts counties are expected to create at least 550 new high-skilled jobs.

The drain data centers are putting on the state’s electric supply was documented early last year when executives from Georgia Power testified before the state Public Service Commission that 80% of the additional demand for electricity behind the utility’s request for a huge increase in electrical generating capacity was due to data centers.

Lawmakers also have questioned the economic value of data centers. During last year’s legislative session, state Sen. Chuck Hufstetler, R-Rome, cited a 2022 state audit that found the tax exemption for data centers was only returning 24 cents on the dollar.

The General Assembly responded by passing legislation last year that would have temporarily suspended a state sales tax exemption aimed at attracting data centers to Georgia. However, Gov. Brian Kemp vetoed the measure at the urging of business groups including the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.

Burns said he will ask state Rep. Brad Thomas, R-Holly Springs, to chair the special committee. Thomas chaired a House subcommittee on artificial intelligence last year.