Washington can’t afford to wait on data center regulations

Washington can’t afford to wait on data center regulations

News ClipSequim Gazette·WA·3/13/2026

The article discusses the need for the Washington state legislature to pass legislation to regulate the growing data center industry, particularly around energy usage, water usage, and transparency. It highlights the behavior of tech giants like Google in Oregon, where they have fought against disclosing water usage and pushed for land transfers to expand their operations without environmental assessments.

electricitywatergovernmentannouncement
Google
Gov: U.S. Forest Service, Dalles City, Oregon Rep. Cliff Bentz
Big Tech’s artificial intelligence data centers are ballooning across the country, including along the Columbia River.