Frontier Institute Statement in Support of the Right to Compute Act

SB 212 affirms fundamental rights in the digital age

HELENA – Today, the Frontier Institute offered support for SB 212, the Right to Compute Act, a bill that follows Frontier Institute’s recommendations to create a new state policy framework for regulating the private use of emerging computational technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cloud Computing, and Data Centers.

“The Right to Compute Act ensures that Montanans’ rights to free expression and property are protected regardless of whether they are exercised with traditional means or modern computational tools,” said Tanner Avery, Policy Director of the Frontier Institute. “This bill will help position Montana as a world-class destination for AI and Data Center investment.”

What the Right to Compute Act Does:

1. Establish the Right to Compute: The legislature makes it clear that privately owning or making use of computational technologies for lawful purposes is protected as an aspect of fundamental rights to free expression and use of property.
2. Create a New Policy Framework: Restrictions on the ability to privately own or use computational resources must be limited to those demonstrably necessary and narrowly tailored to fulfill a compelling state interest in public health or safety.
3. Balance Interests: Provides mechanisms for policymakers to address real harms to public health and safety posed by the application of new computational technologies, while also ensuring that regulations do not excessively burden the Right to Compute.

Frontier Institute has promoted extensive research outlining the benefits of attracting data centers and data-intensive businesses in booming industries like Artificial Intelligence to Montana, including:

1. Boosting Energy Demand. Data center investment will provide massive demand for reliable power that our existing plants like Colstrip can provide, helping protect energy dependent jobs and communities while also incentivizing additional energy production and grid expansion.
2. Home-Grown Supply Chain. Montana is uniquely positioned with abundant natural resources and local industries to support the entire supply chain needed for data center investment. Data center investment will help boost Montana mining, energy, photonics, semiconductor industries, and more.
3. Increased Economic Opportunity. Attracting high-growth industries like AI and Data Centers to MT will lead to increased economic growth and productivity, job opportunities, wages, tax revenues, standard of living, etc.