Nebraska just pulled the rug out from under one of the Midwest’s most common data center underwriting assumptions. On July 20, 2026, Governor Jim Pillen signed an executive order ending new data center projects’ access to tax incentives under the state’s ImagiNE Nebraska Act, a move that, according to Logan Freeman, managing broker at Midwest CRE Advisors, catches out-of-market developers off guard because they walk into the region assuming Iowa and Nebraska are interchangeable, low-cost, incentive-friendly wind states. They are not, and the gap between what developers assume and what is now true in each state can derail a deal’s underwriting before it starts.
Iowa: Wind Helps the Story, but It Isn’t the Story
Freeman is careful not to reduce Iowa’s appeal to renewables alone. The real draw, he says, is a combination of available land, an existing history of data center investment in the state, favorable tax treatment for qualifying projects, and the ability in the right locations to put together a credible power and logistics story at a lower basis than more crowded hubs. Iowa officially offers sales and use tax incentives for qualifying data center investments, according to the Iowa Department of Revenue – a meaningful factor once a project reaches the underwriting stage.
The miss Freeman sees most often in Iowa is developers assuming a strong regional power story automatically translates into a financeable site. It does not. A developer still needs a real utility path, a real local permitting process, and a project structure that actually qualifies under the state’s incentive framework on paper, not just in theory.
Nebraska: The Incentive Picture Has Changed, Not Just Tightened
Nebraska is where Freeman says the surprise lands hardest, and the timeline matters. Pillen’s executive order, signed alongside state senators and the directors of Nebraska’s Departments of Economic Development and Water, Energy and Environment, ends ImagiNE Act tax credit eligibility for new data center applications and requires those agencies to jointly review future proposals for their impact on land, water, and electricity. Previously approved projects are not affected, and Pillen has been explicit that the order is not a moratorium on data center development – but new projects can no longer assume the incentive treatment the state offered even a few months earlier.
For developers, Freeman’s takeaway is straightforward: Nebraska now requires broader scrutiny around water use, electricity demand, and whether a given project serves the state’s broader interest, not just a straightforward incentive calculation. Treat every state’s incentive landscape as something to verify directly and recently, not something to assume based on the region’s reputation or last year’s underwriting model.
The Bottom Line
Wind generation is a real advantage across both states, but it is not the differentiator it’s often marketed as. Iowa’s opportunity still runs through land cost, logistics, and a workable incentive framework. Nebraska’s opportunity now runs through a policy environment that changed on July 20, 2026, and developers who built their pro forma before that date need to revisit it. Midwest CRE Advisors tracks these shifts across the region as part of its work identifying viable data center sites for clients. Current market activity and case examples are available on the firm’s case studies page.
Midwest CRE Advisors is a commercial real estate brokerage and advisory firm specializing in data center site selection, industrial outdoor storage, and traditional commercial investment across Kansas, Missouri, and the broader Midwest. Founded by managing broker Logan Freeman, the firm has carved out a specific niche identifying brownfield industrial sites and stranded power capacity for AI infrastructure deployment – a space the large national brokers are not focused on. Active in secondary markets including Kansas City, Oklahoma City, Arkansas, Iowa, and Nebraska, the firm serves AI infrastructure companies, colocation operators, and regional developers evaluating Midwest sites, as well as local and regional investors pursuing industrial, flex, land, multifamily, senior housing, and single-tenant commercial acquisitions and dispositions.
Disclaimer: This article is based on information provided by the expert source cited above. It is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or real estate advice. Readers should conduct their own research and consult qualified professionals before making any real estate or financial decisions.
