Amazon says it no longer uses nondisclosure agreements when discussing data centers with local governments. Microsoft made the same change earlier this year. Ending NDAs won’t automatically win over opponents, but it will shift the debate from “What are you hiding?” to specific terms: site selection, electricity use, taxes, water consumption, and property values.

NDAs previously kept these terms out of public view, leaving communities to oppose projects without knowing what was going to be built. Making the information public upfront may not reduce opposition, but at least people can discuss the issues one by one.