Governor Spanberger sends compromised Virginia budget proposal back with 14 amendments
Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger has returned the state's budget proposal to lawmakers with 14 amendments. Two of these amendments specifically address data centers. They propose requirements for new data centers to demonstrate water conservation efforts to the Department of Environmental Quality and make technical adjustments to the data center electricity consumption tax, including clarifying billings from certain electricity suppliers.
Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger has sent the state's compromised budget proposal back to lawmakers, introducing 14 amendments that require an additional $62 million from the state's $179 million surplus. The Virginia General Assembly is scheduled to convene a special session in Richmond on Monday to vote on these changes before the deadline.
Among the proposed amendments, two directly impact data center operations in the state. Amendment 5, focusing on water supply planning, mandates that new data centers demonstrate water conservation efforts to the Department of Environmental Quality. It also directs the DEQ to develop a plan for retrofitting existing data centers with alternative cooling technologies to reduce water usage.
Additionally, Amendment 11 addresses the Data Center Electricity Consumption Tax. This amendment proposes technical adjustments to the existing provisions, specifically clarifying the billing processes from certain electricity suppliers. Other amendments cover diverse topics such as Medicaid and CHIP participation, personal care rate increases, firefighter cancer screening programs, and adjustments to paid sick leave and firearm laws.