Data centers are black boxes, but California wants to change that

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of seven bills Monday, aiming to increase transparency and regulate data center operations within the state. The legislation, which includes new disclosure requirements for water and electricity usage, comes as communities nationwide express growing concerns over data centers' impact on power grids and water resources. The new laws are intended to provide better data to the public and scientists, helping to assess the true environmental and economic effects of these facilities.

Key components of the legislation include Senate Bill 886, Assembly Bill 2383, and Senate Bill 1168, which mandate the California Public Utilities Commission to establish separate power rates for data centers. This measure seeks to ensure that the costs of infrastructure upgrades needed to connect power-hungry data centers to the grid are not passed on to other consumers. AB 2383 further encourages data centers to adopt more renewable energy sources.

Other bills focus on closing information gaps regarding data centers' environmental footprint. AB 1577 requires monthly reporting of energy consumption, while AB 2619 and AB 2469 enforce water disclosures and make operators responsible for water infrastructure costs. Significantly, SB 887 removes categorical exemptions for data centers from the California Environmental Quality Act, subjecting them to more rigorous environmental reviews.

Researchers like Mark Specht from the Union of Concerned Scientists and Iris Stewart-Frey from Santa Clara University, who co-authored reports on data center impacts, welcomed the new laws. They highlighted the previous lack of available data on energy and water consumption, which made it difficult to assess their true impact. While acknowledging some remaining gaps in reporting, experts view the legislation as a crucial step towards greater accountability and regulation of the rapidly expanding data center industry in California.