Utah senator proposes bills on data center transparency
Utah Sen. John Curtis and Delaware Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester introduced bills that would provide communities with technical guidance and more information about the environmental and economic effects of large data centers. The proposals would require federal reporting on data center water use, energy consumption, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, and Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Delaware, introduced the Data Center Community Empowerment Act and the Data Center Transparency Act. The first bill would establish a U.S. Department of Energy program offering state, local and tribal officials technical expertise on data center impacts, while preserving local authority over project approvals.
The transparency bill would require the Environmental Protection Agency to report quarterly on nationwide data center water use, reuse, water impacts, pollutants and emissions, and the Energy Information Administration to provide semiannual information on energy consumption and household utility effects. The legislation comes amid growing concern about data center development, including backlash to a proposed project in Box Elder County, Utah. Utah already requires large data center operators to provide information on water use, and state officials are considering additional regulations related to temperature and noise impacts.