Advocates push for passage of Illinois POWER Act to fight data centers
Environmental advocates are urging Illinois lawmakers to pass the POWER Act to increase transparency and regulate data centers' water and energy use. The bill, which has stalled in the legislative session, seeks to address concerns over environmental impact and community input. Governor Pritzker has called for developers to pay for their own energy and proposed a pause on tax credits but has been silent on specific regulatory proposals.
Environmental advocates in Illinois are intensifying pressure on state lawmakers to pass the POWER Act, a comprehensive bill aimed at increasing transparency and regulating the water and energy consumption of data centers. With the legislative session nearing its end, the bill, introduced in February, has seen little action beyond subject matter hearings, causing concern among groups like the Illinois Clean Jobs Coalition. Kady McFadden, their lead lobbyist, expressed confusion over Governor JB Pritzker's lack of engagement on the issue, despite his earlier calls for data center developers to fund their own energy infrastructure and a proposed two-year pause on state tax credits for new facilities.
The urgency for regulation stems from a surge in data center development across Illinois, with Commonwealth Edison reporting nearly 100 large-load projects in its northern Illinois territory queue. Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council, emphasized that this is a statewide issue requiring a statewide solution, not piecemeal community-by-community efforts. Concerns from both Democrats and Republicans center on water usage, rising energy prices, and insufficient transparency, with residents in areas like Yorkville, Sangamon County, and Joliet reporting feeling "silenced" by quick project approvals and limited public input.
Republican Rep. Jed Davis introduced House Bill 5755, inspired by his Yorkville constituents, which would mandate public notice and hearings for data center projects and allow for referendum votes. The POWER Act itself seeks to ban nondisclosure agreements, require community benefits agreements, public water-use reports, environmental impact assessments, and mandate developers build their own renewable energy generation. Opponents of the bill, including the Data Center Coalition's Midwest policy director Brad Tietz, acknowledge impacts but seek to make some of the proposed requirements, like renewable energy provision and water use reports, voluntary rather than mandatory, indicating a willingness to negotiate. Climate Jobs Illinois supports the POWER Act's goals but seeks to ensure union labor standards and opposes a tax credit pause.
The debate highlights a critical juncture for Illinois as it grapples with balancing economic development incentives for data centers against growing environmental and community concerns, with the Mahomet Aquifer specifically cited as a major concern regarding water utilization.