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119-hr-9825119th Congress

Data Center Water and Energy Transparency Act of 2026

Sponsored By: Representative Underwood, Lauren [D-IL-14]

Introduced

Summary

Requires large data centers to report energy and water use to state agencies or, where a state has no program, to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Secretaries of Energy and Agriculture. The filings must include monthly energy and water totals, efficiency metrics, and 5-year projections with plans to reduce use.

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  • Operators: Data centers with a peak on-site energy demand of at least 25 megawatts (MW) must file annual reports for each qualifying center that show monthly energy and water use, behind-the-meter generation methods, and annual averages of power usage effectiveness (PUE) and water usage effectiveness (WUE). Reports must include proposals and projections covering at least the next 5 years.
  • New builds and expansions: Prospective data centers or expansions projected to reach 25 MW must submit pre-construction reports with 5-year projected energy and water use and efficiency plans. If a State lacks a collection program, those reports go to the EPA and the Secretaries.
  • States, local governments, and the public: States collect reports, may charge fees to support collection, and must send anonymized, aggregated state-level data to federal agencies. The federal government must publish a public national report with regional aggregated use, environmental impacts, and best-practice recommendations while excluding proprietary information.
  • Enforcement and funding: Federal civil penalties for failing to report are $20,000 per day, adjusted for inflation every 3 years using the CPI-U. The Act authorizes fees on operators to fund administration and enforcement.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

3 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 1 mixed.

Annual federal report on data center impacts

If enacted, the EPA and the Secretaries would publish one public annual report using state and federal submissions. The report would show aggregated energy and water use by region for the covered year, five-year aggregated projections, and regional effects on water and electricity rates and environmental impacts. It would include best-practice recommendations to limit those impacts. The report must exclude information the agencies jointly identify as proprietary.

Federal reporting and fines for data centers

If enacted, data center operators in States without a collection program would file required annual and pre-construction reports with EPA and the Secretaries of Energy and Agriculture in the jointly required form. The agencies could charge fees on operators to cover federal collection and use the money without further appropriation. For negligent failures to file, the agencies could impose a civil penalty of $20,000 per day for each day of noncompliance. That dollar amount would be adjusted every three years for inflation using the CPI-U for the prior 36-month period ending November 30.

New state reporting for large data centers

If enacted, states that set collection programs would require any data center with a peak on-site demand of 25 megawatts or more to file an annual report starting within one year. Reports would show monthly on-site energy use (kWh), behind-the-meter generation methods, monthly water use and sources (gallons), and annual average PUE and WUE. Operators would give five-year projections and plans to reduce energy and water use. Companies building new centers or expanding by 25 MW would file pre-construction/expansion reports with projected first-five-year use. States could charge fees to run these programs and must send anonymized, aggregated state summaries to federal agencies. The bill would also define key terms and measurement standards (energy in kWh, PUE and WUE by ISO standards) and would treat territories, certain Pacific island states, listed Indian tribes, and D.C. as covered "States." Local governments could request access to reports provided to a State or to the federal agencies.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Underwood, Lauren [D-IL-14]

IL • D

Cosponsors

  • Rep. Vasquez, Gabe [D-NM-2]

    NM • D

    Sponsored 8/13/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

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