A group of Independence residents is suing the city after it denied the group's petition to overturn massive tax breaks for an artificial intelligence data center.
The Independence city council last week approved $6.26 billion in tax breaks over 20 years for Nebius, the company planning to build what it calls an “AI factory” in the city. The tense meeting lasted more than five and a half hours, and a majority of the people who spoke publicly were opposed to the tax breaks.
Opponents of the tax incentives, who organized in a Facebook group called “Stop the AI Data Center in Independence,” expected the incentives to go through. So they gathered the next morning to start collecting signatures for a referendum petition, which could put the tax breaks up for a citywide vote.
But the city did not approve their petition, and said approving it would violate the city charter. Three residents are now suing to force the city to approve the referendum, and they hope to put the issue on the ballot.
Misty Vaughn is one of the leaders of the group opposing the data center and a plaintiff in the lawsuit. She said she and other opponents look forward to a judge weighing in after the city denied the petition three times.
“They're just causing this delay because they know we are on a time crunch, which is a little frustrating,” Vaughn said. “We put these individuals in power, and it's sad to see our city block our democratic process. It's our democratic right to petition a referendum, put a vote to the people, and it's disappointing to see city leaders trying to stonewall us and stall it.”
The city and opponents of the tax breaks disagree over the interpretation of Independence’s city charter. The charter allows for a public vote on issues passed by the council as long as petitioners gather enough signatures to start the referendum process. Then, they need to gather thousands more signatures to put an issue on the ballot.
A representative for Independence did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.
A city spokesperson previously said the charter prevents a referendum on issues that go into effect immediately upon passage by the city council, including the contracts for the tax incentives.
But plaintiffs argue in the lawsuit that the charter preserves the right for residents to seek a referendum, even for ordinances that go into effect immediately, as long as they get enough signatures within 10 days of the ordinance’s passage. If they do that, the charter says the ordinance should be held from going into effect until the referendum process plays out, the lawsuit argues.
Rachel Gonzalez, another plaintiff on the lawsuit and leader of the opposition group, said she’s hopeful the court will agree with them and give people the right to have a referendum on the tax breaks.
“If the court agrees, the measure would go before voters so the community can decide whether these incentives should move forward,” Gonzalez said. “This project would shape our city’s infrastructure, finances and environment for decades. Decisions of that scale deserve transparency and public input.”
Gonzalez and Vaughn, along with other opponents of the data center, aren’t waiting for a court ruling to take further action. They’re still gathering signatures in hopes that the judge rules in their favor and allows the referendum process to move forward.
Vaughn said people from different political backgrounds are working together to overturn the incentives. While gathering signatures, she’s met people who didn’t know about the data center and still signed on to the petition, and others who began to gather signatures in their neighborhood after signing it themselves.
“We're all collectively working side by side, pushing for more transparency, pushing for the city council to actually listen to us,” Vaughn said. “Independence, we've got people from all different sides: left, right, middle. Some people I might not agree with on some things, but we can agree on this one thing together. What is good for the city of Independence at the end of the day, that's our main goal.”
Volunteers for the group will gather signatures from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday at a drive-thru event at the Independence Athletic Commons. Members of the group are also going out individually to gather signatures.
