Boulder City data center fight sparks push for tougher federal review
Rep. Dina Titus introduced a bill, the Public Lands Accountability Act, to mandate stricter environmental and public reviews for data centers on federal lands. This legislative push is a direct response to a controversial data center project in Boulder City, Nevada, which is currently on hold. The bill aims to prevent data centers from bypassing thorough environmental assessments.
Nevada Congresswoman Dina Titus introduced the Public Lands Accountability Act to impose tougher environmental and public review requirements for data center developments on federal public lands. The bill, introduced on Wednesday, is a direct response to the controversial approval of a data center project in Boulder City, Nevada, by the Trump administration, where an earlier environmental review for a solar project was deemed sufficient. That Boulder City data center project is currently on hold after an administrative judge granted a stay to city officials and environmentalists, indicating their appeal challenging the approval is likely to succeed.
Rep. Titus stated that the bill aims to ensure public input is heard and that potential impacts on the environment, water resources, and the electric grid are thoroughly assessed and made public. The legislation would prevent federal agencies from modifying existing right-of-way permits for data centers on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land without a separate environmental permitting process involving the public. It would also remove "categorical exclusions" that allow data centers to bypass more extensive environmental reviews. Additionally, the bill requires the BLM to consider regional water supply impacts and mandates developers submit workforce plans detailing local job creation and wages.
The bill has received mixed reactions. Patrick Donnelly, Great Basin director at the Center for Biological Diversity, who helped secure the stay for the Boulder City project, believes the bill doesn't go far enough, advocating for a complete prohibition of data centers on public lands. Conversely, Joe Luppino-Esposito, federal policy director at the Pacific Legal Foundation, argues that the bill would create significant new barriers and mire data center development on public lands in years of litigation, asserting that existing law already functioned as intended, evidenced by the Boulder City project's halt.