WV House Speaker Hired to Represent Data Center Developer
Ethics watchdog calls it “an obvious conflict of interest.” Plus, three U.S. senators seek information from Fundamental Data.
The Speaker of the West Virginia House of Delegates, attorney Roger Hanshaw, has signed on to represent the developer of a controversial data center project in Tucker County.
Hanshaw works for Bowles Rice, a prominent Charleston law firm. Hanshaw and two other Bowles Rice attorneys informed the Intermediate Court of Appeals of West Virginia that they represent Fundamental Data, the company incorporated in Delaware that is seeking to build a large power plant in Tucker County that would provide electricity to a large number of data centers.
That notification to the court was dated March 16, just two days after the 2026 legislative session ended.
Hanshaw, a Republican, was key in steering to enactment a 2025 law deregulating data centers in the state. In this year’s session, the state legislature enacted a package of rules specifying how the data center law will be implemented.
Hanshaw and his law firm appear poised to generate significant income from Fundamental Data. Local groups have made it clear they intend to fight the proposed data center complex in Tucker County at every opportunity available. An appeal of regulatory approvals of the project is pending in the state court system.
Craig Holman, a government ethics expert with the watchdog group Public Citizen, called the arrangement between Hanshaw and Fundamental Data “an obvious conflict of interest.”
Holman said the arrangement appears to run afoul of the the state’s conflict of interest code, but rules pertaining specifically to members of the House of Delegates carve out an exemption for legislation that would or could directly affect five or more entities. Holman called the exemption a “huge loophole.”
“He’s pulling in a fortune just representing that one client. At the same time he’s going to be working on legislation to benefit that client.”
Although the Speaker’s arrangement with Fundamental Data appears to be legal, it shouldn’t be, Holman said. He added that the enormous amount of money being poured into data center development means a likely windfall for attorneys like Hanshaw who work on behalf of the industry.
“He’s pulling in a fortune just representing that one client,” Holman said. “At the same time he’s going to be working on legislation to benefit that client.”
Hanshaw has a history of doing legal work on behalf of clients with an interest in West Virginia lawmaking and regulation, including the natural gas industry.
Julie Archer, deputy director of West Virginia Citizen Action Group, a nonprofit that advocates for government transparency, expanded health care, and environmental protection, agreed that the financial arrangement between Hanshaw and Fundamental Data is deeply problematic. “It seems like a glaring conflict of interest, and this is not an isolated case as far as the Speaker is concerned,” Archer said. “Even if it’s not illegal, it should be, and it looks really bad.”
Country Roads News sought comment from Hanshaw by leaving phone messages at his law office and his legislative office. Ann Ali, Deputy Chief of Staff and Communications Director for the West Virginia House of Delegates, responded by saying that Hanshaw “does not intend to respond to media inquiries about the private clients of Bowles Rice through me or through this office.” His law office didn’t respond.
Hanshaw’s latest financial disclosure form filed with the state Ethics Commission says he is a lawyer for Bowles Rice, but it doesn’t list his clients.
Nikki Forrester, a spokeswoman for Tucker United, a local group opposed to the Fundamental Data project, called Hanshaw’s work on behalf of the company “unethical and a blatant conflict of interest. He was the architect of HB 2014, which took away local control in data center developments.”
She added, “Hanshaw’s counsel of Fundamental Data makes it crystal clear that he values out-of-state developers over his own constituents.”
It’s unclear whether Spilman Thomas and Battle, another Charleston law firm that has represented Fundamental Data, continues to work on Fundamental Data’s behalf.
Senators step into local data center debate
Meanwhile, three U.S. Senators sent a letter to Fundamental Data asking the company for a response to concerns about pollution from the power plant the company wants to build, known as the Ridgeline Facility.
The letter was signed by Democratic Senators Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.
The letter states, “you are undoubtedly aware that your local air pollutants — including nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and benzene — will pollute the air surrounding the project, creating health issues for your neighbors, including asthma, heart attacks, stroke, reproductive issues, and cancer, with possible lethal effects.”
Click the button below to see the full text of the letter.
West Virginia Senator Shelley Moore Capito, the chairwoman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, declined to comment on the letter.
A public relations firm working for Fundamental Data acknowledged receipt of a media request for comment, but did not otherwise respond.
Davis mayor Al Tomson, who opposes locating the data center in Tucker County, said he was “thrilled” by the letter. “It is surprising to see the federal government show more interest and inquiry regarding the Ridgeline power plant than the state of West Virginia,” Tomson said. “Their questions are extremely relevant and important. I applaud the three senators.”
The letter from the senators is part of a broader effort by the lawmakers to probe the environmental impact of a dozen proposed data center projects across the nation.
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Excellent reporting.
The Legislature sells out the people it represents.