DeSantis Signs Data Center Regulations Into Law

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 484 into law, a measure aimed at ensuring that large-scale data centers, particularly those powering artificial intelligence, cover the full cost of their electricity consumption. The new legislation prevents these costs from being shifted to general utility customers, a concern highlighted by DeSantis during the bill signing event at Florida Polytechnic University in Lakeland. DeSantis, who has described the measure as a "pretty strong first step," expressed skepticism about job creation figures often associated with such facilities and voiced concerns about the future impact of maturing AI technology on humanity. He emphasized that individual Floridians should not subsidize "hyper-scale data centers" operated by "the most wealthy companies in the history of the world. The law mandates the Florida Public Service Commission, which regulates electric utilities, to develop "tariffs" and service requirements. These are designed to ensure that each large load customer bears its complete service cost, including expenses related to connecting to electric systems and increased power transmission and generation. Additionally, the bill reinforces the authority of local governments to reject data center construction within their jurisdictions, while also allowing city and county governments to enter into non-disclosure agreements with tech companies for up to 12 months, effectively shielding data center proposals from public scrutiny during that period. The legislative debate surrounding the bill centered on the significant demands data centers place on electric grids and water resources. Senator Bryan Avila, R-Miami Springs, the bill's sponsor, cited issues in other states like Virginia, where ratepayers have experienced "dramatic increases" due to energy-intensive data centers. Florida Secretary of Commerce Alex Kelly also previously criticized a proposed 4.4 million-square-foot data center in Fort Meade, stressing the importance of protecting Florida's water resources from what he called a "fundamentally flawed" project.