[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 10321 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                               H. R. 10321

 To direct the Secretary of Energy to establish best practices for the 
                        siting of data centers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 8, 2026

 Mr. Subramanyam (for himself, Mr. Quigley, Mr. Carson, Ms. Scholten, 
Ms. Escobar, Mr. Stanton, and Mr. Levin) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To direct the Secretary of Energy to establish best practices for the 
                        siting of data centers.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Responsible Data Center Siting Act 
of 2026''.

SEC. 2. BEST PRACTICES FOR SITING DATA CENTERS.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Energy, in consultation with 
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Secretary of Defense, and 
other agencies the Secretary of Energy determines appropriate, shall 
establish best practices for the siting of data centers.
    (b) Considerations.--In establishing or revising best practices for 
the siting of data centers under this section, the Secretary of Energy 
shall take into consideration--
            (1) the impacts of a data center on the electric grid, 
        including transmission infrastructure, including--
                    (A) changes in electricity prices for consumers 
                that may be attributed to a data center;
                    (B) any additional transmission infrastructure 
                buildout needed to supply electricity to a data center; 
                and
                    (C) the availability and capacity of existing 
                transmission infrastructure to transmit electricity to 
                a data center and timelines for the connection of a 
                data center to the electric grid;
            (2) the impacts of the water use by the data center, 
        including impacts on water availability to local residents and 
        the surrounding environment;
            (3) the impacts of a data center on the surrounding 
        environment, including--
                    (A) impacts on water quality and air quality;
                    (B) impacts to surrounding ecosystems;
                    (C) impacts on emissions, including from on-site 
                electricity generation; and
                    (D) any other environmental impacts the Secretary 
                determines appropriate;
            (4) the impacts of a data center on local communities, 
        including impacts of--
                    (A) noise and light generated by a data center, 
                including from on-site electricity generation; and
                    (B) the appearance of a data center on the 
                character of the community;
            (5) the national security implications of the siting of a 
        data center at various types of locations, including 
        implications of siting multiple data centers in a particular 
        location;
            (6) the impacts of a data center on the local workforce, 
        including on long term and short term job opportunities; and
            (7) the impacts of a data center on the local economy, 
        including on tax revenue, with consideration of tax benefits 
        offered at the State level.
    (c) Inclusion.--The Secretary of Energy shall include in the best 
practices established or revised under this section--
            (1) the characteristics of a site for the siting of a data 
        center that would minimize any impacts described in subsection 
        (b) that are negative; and
            (2) a list of ideal locations that meet such 
        characteristics for a data center to be sited.
    (d) Initial Publication.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy shall make available on 
the public website of the Department of Energy the best practices for 
the siting of data centers established under subsection (a).
    (e) Revisions.--Not later than 2 years after making available on 
the public website of the Department of Energy best practices for the 
siting of data centers under subsection (d), and at least once every 2 
years thereafter, the Secretary of Energy shall--
            (1) review and revise the best practices as the Secretary 
        determines necessary; and
            (2) make available on the public website of the Department 
        of Energy any such revised best practices.
    (f) Definition.--In this Act, the term ``data center'' has the 
meaning given such term in section 453 of the Energy Independence and 
Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17112).
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