OpenAI has published a National Community Compact and a Compute Campus Policy Blueprint that outline what communities can expect from compute campuses the company will own and operate. The materials are intended to give residents a meaningful voice in planning, to prevent costs from shifting to local utilities and families, and to ensure local communities receive economic benefits from those developments.
Why this matters
OpenAI argues that expanding computing capacity in the United States can lower the cost of delivering AI, put tools in more people’s hands, and help the country remain at the forefront of the technology. At the same time, communities that host large compute campuses should have influence over how projects are developed, guarantees that developers will cover added infrastructure costs, and access to jobs and local investment created by the projects.
Core commitments in local compacts
The company says each future compute campus it owns and operates will have a local compact reflecting local priorities. Common commitments across compacts include:
- Pay our own way on energy and infrastructure: OpenAI will cover the full cost of electricity it uses and the infrastructure needed to serve its operations. Before major spending begins, the company will provide financial assurances so that other customers are protected if a project is delayed, reduced, or canceled.
- Protect local resources and report on impact: OpenAI will produce a water plan for each campus, prioritize closed-loop or low-water cooling, and publish site-level water and electricity use. Construction plans and independent noise studies will be released before operations start and updated annually. Non-disclosure agreements with public officials will be limited to narrow protections for legitimate security information, trade secrets, or competitively sensitive material.
- Create opportunities for local workers and businesses: The company will publish expected jobs, work with unions and training providers to prepare residents, and report annually on hiring and apprenticeship numbers. It will also make sustained investments in priorities selected by residents.
Local examples and financial figures
The materials note that priorities differ by location. In Effingham County, Georgia, residents helped shape a $4.8 million grant to provide free school meals for all 14,000 students in the county. In Pike County, Ohio, families identified childcare as a priority, leading to a joint $6 million commitment from OpenAI and SB Energy.
As an operational example, OpenAI’s agreement with Georgia Power for the planned Effingham County campus allows the utility to reduce the power it delivers to the company by up to 1,000 megawatts during periods of high demand.
Policy proposals for federal, state and local lawmakers
OpenAI describes voluntary company commitments as a starting point but urges policymakers to adopt clearer rules so communities, elected officials and developers can build trust. Key policy proposals in the blueprint include:
- Clarify who pays for power: State utility commissions should require large electricity customers to cover the costs they add to the grid and provide protections for other customers if a project falls through.
- Facilitate safe grid connections: Utilities should make it easier for campuses to connect when they can safely reduce demand during shortages.
- Accelerate transmission and support clean power: Congress can help meet growing demand by speeding up transmission upgrades and restoring or expanding tax incentives for clean electricity.
- Increase transparency and accountability: Public reporting should cover water, energy, noise, and hiring; NDAs with public officials should be narrowly limited; and when tax incentives are offered by governments, terms should be public with measurable commitments and clawback mechanisms if developers fall short.
- Keep work local: Developers should share purchasing plans early so local suppliers can compete for contracts, and employers, trades unions and community colleges should use hiring forecasts to train residents for jobs expected during construction and operations.
Conclusion
OpenAI frames these commitments and policy recommendations as a way to ensure that investments in national computing capacity also benefit local communities. The company says residents should have input while plans can still change and a mechanism to hold developers accountable for their promises — commitments OpenAI will apply to the campuses it owns and operates and that it recommends be adopted broadly wherever AI infrastructure is built in the United States.
