[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 51 (Friday, March 20, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1456-S1457]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 4741. Mr. DURBIN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 1383, to establish the Veterans Advisory Committee
on Equal Access, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on
the table; as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
SEC. __. DATA CENTER WATER AND ENERGY TRANSPARENCY.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
(2) Data center terms.--The terms ``data center'' and
``data center operator'' have the meanings given those terms
in section 453(a) of the Energy Independence and Security Act
of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17112(a)).
(3) Energy use.--The term ``energy use'', with respect to
data centers, means the total quantity of electricity and
other forms of energy consumed on site by that data center,
as measured in kilowatt-hours.
(4) Power usage effectiveness.--The term ``power usage
effectiveness'' has the meaning given the term in ISO/IEC
30134-2:2026 of the International Organization for
Standardization (or a successor standard).
(5) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means the
Secretary of Energy and the Secretary of Agriculture.
(6) State.--The term ``State'' means--
(A) each of the several States;
(B) a territory of the United States;
(C) the Federated States of Micronesia;
(D) the Republic of the Marshall Islands;
(E) the Republic of Palau;
(F) an Indian tribe included on the list most recently
published by the Secretary of the Interior under section 104
of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25
U.S.C. 5131); and
(G) the District of Columbia.
(7) Unit of local government.--The term ``unit of local
government'' means any county, parish, city, town, township,
village, or other general purpose political subdivision of a
State with the power to levy taxes, expend Federal, State,
and local funds, and exercise governmental powers.
(8) Water usage effectiveness.--The term ``water usage
effectiveness'' has the
[[Page S1457]]
meaning given the term in ISO/IEC 30134-9:2022 of the
International Organization for Standardization (or a
successor standard).
(9) Water use.--The term ``water use'', with respect to a
data center, means the total amount of water consumed on-site
by a data center, including water used for cooling, as
measured in gallons.
(b) Data Center Mandatory Reporting and Information
Requirement.--
(1) Data collection.--
(A) Report to state.--
(i) In general.--Beginning not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act but subject to subparagraph
(B), each data center operator with 1 or more data centers in
a State shall submit to that State an annual report that,
with respect to each data center in the State with a peak
demand of not less than 25 megawatts operated by that data
center operator, describes--
(I) on-site energy use and water use for the preceding
calendar year, including--
(aa) total energy use during each month of that calendar
year;
(bb) if the data center relies on behind-the-meter power
generation, the method to generate that power;
(cc) total water use and the source of that water during
each month of that calendar year; and
(dd) annual average power usage effectiveness and water
usage effectiveness;
(II) projected on-site energy use and water use for not
less than the following 5 calendar years, which shall include
proposals for reducing the energy use and water use of the
data center and the increases in efficiency that are
anticipated to result from those proposals; and
(III) such other information as the State may require.
(ii) Form.--A data center operator shall submit a report
under clause (i) in such form and in such manner as the
applicable State may require.
(iii) Fees authorized.--A State may, in requiring the
reports described in this subparagraph, assess fees on data
center operators to support data collection under this
subparagraph.
(B) Report to administrator and secretaries.--
(i) In general.--If a State does not have a program to
collect the information described in subclauses (I) and (II)
of subparagraph (A)(i)--
(I) the State shall inform the Administrator and the
Secretaries jointly; and
(II) a data center operator with data centers in such a
State shall submit to the Administrator and Secretaries
jointly a report that, with respect to each data center in
such a State with a peak demand of not less than 25 megawatts
operated by that data center operator, describes--
(aa) the information described in those subclauses; and
(bb) such other information as the Administrator and
Secretaries may jointly require.
(ii) Form.--A data center operator shall submit a report
under clause (i) in such form and in such manner as the
Administrator and Secretaries may jointly require.
(C) Reports to local governments.--A report to a State or
the Administrator and the Secretaries jointly under
subparagraph (A) or (B) shall be made available to an
affected unit of local government on request and, if
applicable, in compliance with any program established by the
State for the collection of those reports.
(2) Reports on prospective and expanded data centers.--
(A) Report to state.--
(i) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), each person
seeking to construct a data center with a projected energy
use of not less than 25 megawatts and each data center
operator seeking to expand a data center with a projected
energy use of not less than 25 megawatts shall submit to the
State in which the new or expanded data center would operate
a report that describes--
(I) as applicable--
(aa) the projected energy use and water use and the sources
of energy and water of the new data center during the first 5
calendar years after the data center begins operation; or
(bb) the projected increase in energy use and water use as
a result of the expansion of a data center during the first 5
calendar years after completion of the expansion; and
(II) proposals for reducing the energy use and water use of
the data center and the increases in efficiency that are
anticipated to result from those proposals.
(ii) Form.--A report submitted under clause (i) shall be
submitted in such form and in such manner as the applicable
State may require.
(B) Report to administrator and secretaries.--
(i) In general.--If a State does not have a program to
collect the information described in subparagraph (A)(i)--
(I) the State shall inform the Administrator and the
Secretaries jointly; and
(II) a person seeking to construct a data center and each
data center operator seeking to expand a data center in such
a State shall submit to the Administrator and the Secretaries
jointly a report that describes, with respect to the proposed
data center or the expansion of the data center, the
information described in that subparagraph.
(ii) Form.--A person or data center operator shall submit a
report under clause (i) in such form and in such manner as
the Administrator and Secretaries may jointly require.
(C) Reports to local governments.--A report to a State or
the Administrator and the Secretaries jointly under
subparagraph (A) or (B) shall be made available to an
affected unit of local government on request and, if
applicable, in compliance with any program established by the
State for the collection of those reports.
(3) Aggregated reports.--
(A) Reports from states.--
(i) In general.--Each State that receives a report under
paragraph (1)(A) or (2)(A) shall submit to the Administrator
and the Secretaries jointly an annual report that describes
the data collected pursuant to all such reports submitted to
the State under paragraph (1)(A) or (2)(A), as applicable,
during the previous year in such a manner as may be required
jointly by the Administrator and the Secretaries.
(ii) Anonymized data.--The reports submitted under clause
(i) shall only include anonymized and aggregated information.
(B) Public report.--The Administrator and the Secretaries
shall jointly make publicly available on an annual basis a
report that--
(i) describes--
(I) using information collected from the reports under
paragraphs (1)(B) and (2)(B) and subparagraph (A)(i), the
aggregated total energy use and water use of data centers in
the United States, by region, during the calendar year
covered by the report;
(II) regional impacts of data centers on water and
electricity rates for consumers and communities;
(III) the environmental impacts resulting from the
operation of data centers, including--
(aa) water and energy sources, supply, quality, and
reliability impacts on consumers and communities; and
(bb) other direct or indirect impacts; and
(IV) recommendations for best practices to limit the
impacts described in subclauses (II) and (III);
(ii) includes, based on the reports received by the
Administrator and the Secretaries jointly under paragraphs
(1)(B) and (2)(B) and subparagraph (A)(i) for the calendar
year covered by the report, the aggregated projection of
energy use and water use by data centers for the 5 years
following that calendar year; and
(iii) does not include any information that the
Administrator and the Secretaries jointly determine is
proprietary.
(4) Rulemaking.--
(A) Federal authority.--The Administrator and the
Secretaries may jointly promulgate such regulations as may be
necessary to carry out this subsection.
(B) State authority.--A State may promulgate such
regulations in accordance with the laws of the State as may
be necessary to carry out this subsection.
(5) Enforcement.--
(A) State enforcement.--If a State establishes a program
for collecting data pursuant to paragraphs (1)(A) and (2)(A),
the State may issue fines and otherwise engage in other
enforcement activities to comply with the requirements of
this section and applicable State laws.
(B) Federal enforcement.--
(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii), the Administrator
and the Secretaries shall jointly fine a data center operator
that negligently violates a requirement of paragraph (1)(B)
or (2)(B) $20,000 for each day that the data center operator
is in violation of that requirement.
(ii) Inflation adjustment.--On the date that is 3 years
after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 3 years
thereafter, the Administrator and the Secretaries shall
jointly adjust the amount described in clause (i) to reflect
changes for the 36-month period ending the preceding November
30 in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers
published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department
of Labor.
(c) Fees.--The Administrator and the Secretaries shall
jointly assess fees on data center operators that submit a
report under paragraph (1)(B) or (2)(B) of subsection (b) in
an amount necessary to carry out this section and may,
without further appropriation, use the amounts collected to
carry out those paragraphs.
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