Congress data center and energy bills

What it would do: Amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to require electric utilities to charge large-load customers (non-residential consumers with peak demand of 100+ megawatts) rates that recover the full incremental cost of generation, transmission, or distribution upgrades needed to serve them, and to require such customers provide financial assurances before upgrades are made.

What it would do: Requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to hold a technical conference within 90 days with utilities, regulators, and large loads including data centers to discuss protecting residential and small commercial ratepayers from increased costs, and submit recommendations to Congress within 180 days after the conference concludes.

What it would do: Directs the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop best practices for measuring data center energy and water use, study data availability for energy demand forecasting, and coordinate with stakeholders and international partners on standards. Authorizes $10,000,000 for fiscal years 2027 through 2029.

What it would do: Amends the Federal Power Act to require that electric utilities recover the full incremental cost of serving data centers and high-density computing facilities with 20+ megawatts of load from those facilities alone, prohibiting cost allocation to other ratepayers.

What it would do: Voids and makes unenforceable predispute nondisclosure clauses in data center contracts involving public officials or public funds, and prohibits conditioning public incentives on restricting disclosure of data center building information.

What it would do: Amends the Federal Power Act to require FERC to establish interconnection procedures for large load facilities (over 50 megawatts) seeking transmission system access, including requirements for demand flexibility, new generation resources, cost responsibility for studies and network upgrades, and labor standards for prioritized projects.

What it would do: Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude qualified data center property from bonus depreciation and from qualified opportunity zone business property treatment, effective for property placed in service after enactment.

What it would do: Requires the Bureau of Land Management to treat hyperscale data center permits on public lands as major Federal actions requiring full environmental impact statements with 45-day public comment periods and analysis of water consumption, cooling energy use, and regional water supply effects. Requires applicants to submit workforce plans detailing job creation and prevailing wage information.

What it would do: Amends the Clean Air Act to require the EPA to impose and collect a charge of $0.01 per kilowatt-hour on data centers and cryptocurrency mining facilities with over 50 megawatts of capacity, plus an additional $0.05 per kilogram of carbon dioxide equivalent for high-pollution facilities, beginning 2027.

What it would do: Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude data centers from the definition of qualified opportunity zone businesses, making them ineligible for opportunity zone tax benefits. The amendment applies to interests and property acquired after enactment.

What it would do: Directs the Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of Defense, and other agencies, to establish and publish best practices for data center siting that consider impacts on the electric grid, water use, environment, local communities, national security, workforce, and economy, with initial publication within one year and revisions at least every two years.

What it would do: Amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to require electric utilities to recover full incremental costs of generation, transmission, or distribution upgrades from large-load customers (100+ megawatts peak demand). Withholds 100 percent of highway apportionment funds from States that do not implement this standard.

What it would do: Prohibits Federal agencies from providing Federal financial assistance, tax credits, deductions, accelerated depreciation, or other Federal financial benefits for construction, expansion, or substantial rehabilitation of data centers on prime farmland or other certain farmland as defined in the Farmland Protection Policy Act.

What it would do: Requires data centers with peak electricity demand of at least 50 megawatts or water withdrawal of at least 100,000 gallons per day to publicly disclose resource use, infrastructure costs, rate impacts, and public financial assistance, and prohibits ratepayers from subsidizing project-driven costs.

What it would do: Prohibits Members of Congress from signing nondisclosure agreements with state, local, or private entities as a condition for accessing information about data center planning, development, investments, location, construction, or resource consumption. Bars use of federal funds to implement or enforce such agreements.

What it would do: Prohibits Federal agencies from overriding, bypassing, or displacing State or local land-use, zoning, siting, or permitting authority for data centers on non-Federal land, and prohibits conditioning Federal funds for such data centers on States or localities relinquishing or limiting such authority.

What it would do: Imposes a 1 cent per kilowatt-hour excise tax on data centers with maximum rated power capacity exceeding 1 megawatt. Allocates one-fifth of collected taxes each to the Land and Water Conservation Fund, Housing Trust Fund, Hazardous Substance Superfund, Highway Trust Fund, and a new Energy Technology Trust Fund.

What it would do: Directs the Secretary of Commerce to conduct a study on impacts of locating data centers within or near military installations, rail hubs, airports, air cargo facilities, air traffic control facilities, and industrial zones, and submit findings to Congress within 180 days.

What it would do: Requires the Administrator of the Office of Electronic Government to revise minimum requirements for new federal data centers within 180 days to include water resource protections and efficient cooling systems, and extends the sunset date from 2026 to 2031. Amends title 10 to require data centers identify and integrate water efficiency technologies.

What it would do: Directs the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information to conduct annual surveys requesting US data center operators to voluntarily report energy and water consumption, publish results on an interactive map, and submit recommendations to Congress on data center regulation.

What it would do: Amends the Federal Power Act to grant the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission jurisdiction over interconnection of large loads (150+ megawatts) to transmission systems and requires the Commission to establish standards and procedures for such interconnections within one year, including cost allocation and financial security requirements.

What it would do: Prohibits construction and operation of Artificial Intelligence Data Centers on Federal land and requires agencies to cease operations and remove any existing AI Data Centers and associated infrastructure within 30 days of enactment.