Spanberger presents slate of data center regulation proposals
Governor Abigail Spanberger of Virginia has introduced the "Data Center Accountability Framework," a package of legislative proposals aimed at regulating the data center industry in the state. The framework focuses on increasing transparency, strengthening environmental protections, lowering energy costs for consumers, and promoting clean energy. It includes an Executive Order banning nondisclosure agreements between state agencies and data center developers, while legislative proposals address zoning, energy efficiency, water use, and cost allocation.
Governor Abigail Spanberger has unveiled her "Data Center Accountability Framework," a comprehensive package of legislative proposals designed to regulate the burgeoning data center industry in Virginia. The framework, announced at the Virginia State Capitol, prioritizes transparency, environmental protections, reduced energy costs for families, clean energy promotion, and local worker focus.
A key immediate action is Executive Order 22, which bans nondisclosure agreements between state executive branch agencies and data center developers. Spanberger also plans to work with the General Assembly to extend this ban to the local government level. Additional proposals include eliminating by-right local approvals for data centers consuming over 25 megawatts of power, removing data centers from the state's fast-track permitting process, and establishing standards for energy efficiency, water use, and land impact. The framework also directs utilities to allocate more energy infrastructure costs to the data center industry; Dominion Energy has already begun this process with a new rate class (GS5) approved by the State Corporation Commission (SCC). Tech giant Microsoft has indicated it may appeal an SCC order related to these cost assignments.
The plan further proposes limiting on-site power generation by data centers using natural gas generators and aims to simplify clean energy investments for these facilities. While several state legislators and some environmental groups, including the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Sierra Club, supported the framework as a positive first step, other organizations like the Piedmont Environmental Council and Chesapeake Climate Action Network criticized it for not including an immediate moratorium on data center development.