[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7858 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7858

To require the Secretary of Energy to conduct a study on the effect of 
 data centers on communities of color and low-income communities, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 5, 2026

  Mrs. Watson Coleman (for herself, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. Norton, Ms. Lee of 
Pennsylvania, Mrs. Foushee, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Thanedar, and 
Mrs. Grijalva) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Secretary of Energy to conduct a study on the effect of 
 data centers on communities of color and low-income communities, and 
                          for other purposes.

    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 ``Data Center Community Impact Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Data centers are a significant and growing source of 
        energy consumption in the United States, accounting for 
        approximately 4.4 percent of total United States electricity 
        use in 2023, with projections estimating growth to between 6.7 
        percent and 12 percent as demand for computing power and 
        artificial intelligence increases.
            (2) The energy usage of data centers has tripled over the 
        last decade and is projected to double or triple again by 2028. 
        Water-cooling infrastructure for data centers consumed 
        approximately 17 billion gallons of water in 2023, a figure 
        projected to increase substantially by 2028, while an estimated 
        211 billion additional gallons of water were used to generate 
        the electricity consumed by data centers.
            (3) Communities of color, low-income communities, Indian 
        Tribes, and other vulnerable populations, such as persons with 
        disabilities, children, and the elderly, are disproportionately 
        burdened by environmental hazards that include exposure to 
        polluted air, waterways, and landscapes.
            (4) Communities subject to environmental injustice have 
        been subjected to systemic racial, social, and economic 
        injustices and face a disproportionate burden of adverse human 
        health impacts, a higher risk of intentional, unconscious, and 
        structural discrimination, and disproportionate energy burdens.
            (5) The siting and operation of data centers have raised 
        environmental and public health concerns for nearby 
        communities, including in Memphis, Tennessee, where a large-
        scale facility was built near a predominantly Black 
        neighborhood already burdened by existing pollution issues.
            (6) The Federal Government has a responsibility to protect 
        public health and community safety pursuant to the Clean Air 
        Act and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly 
        referred to as the Clean Water Act), including through the 
        evaluation of emerging sources of environmental and energy-
        related impacts.

SEC. 3. STUDY AND REPORT ON THE EFFECT OF DATA CENTERS ON COMMUNITIES 
              OF COLOR AND LOW-INCOME COMMUNITIES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Energy, in coordination with the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Secretary of 
Commerce, the Chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and 
the Council on Environmental Quality, shall conduct a study on the 
effect of data centers on communities of color and low-income 
communities.
    (b) Included Information.--The study required by subsection (a) 
shall include the following information:
            (1) The amount of water consumed by data centers, including 
        how such consumption affects local water supplies and drought-
        prone regions.
            (2) The amount of energy consumed by data centers, 
        including the amount of such energy generated from fossil fuels 
        and the effect of such consumption on peak load on the electric 
        grid.
            (3) How such data centers affect air quality, including the 
        amount of emissions from backup diesel generators and 
        associated infrastructure operated by data centers.
            (4) The effect of data centers on soil and land-use 
        practices, including land-use practices relating to agriculture 
        and local food sources.
            (5) The effect of data centers on the electric grid, 
        including with respect to any increase in rates for 
        electricity.
            (6) How the cooling processes used by data centers affect 
        wastewater systems.
            (7) The effects of constructing and operating data centers 
        on the creation and displacement of jobs.
            (8) The effects of data centers on State and local tax 
        revenue, including with respect to tax incentives and whether 
        benefits flow to the community in which the data center is 
        located.
            (9) The effects of data centers on the value of property 
        located in nearby residential areas.
            (10) How data centers affect public health risks related to 
        pollution, stress on natural resources, summer heat, and heat 
        island effects.
    (c) Consultation.--In conducting the study required by subsection 
(a), the Secretary of Energy shall consult with relevant local 
government entities and Indian Tribes.
    (d) Report.--Not later than the date that is 18 months after the 
date of enactment of this section, the Secretary of Energy shall 
provide to Congress a report that includes--
            (1) an assessment of the information included in the study 
        required by subsection (a);
            (2) a map that identifies where data centers are located 
        relative to communities of color and low-income communities;
            (3) recommendations for Federal coordination on how to 
        mitigate potential harms of data centers; and
            (4) proposed guidelines or recommendations for best 
        practices that States and local government entities may adopt 
        to mitigate potential harms of data centers.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Community of color.--The term ``community of color'' 
        means a geographically distinct area in which the population of 
        any of the following categories of individuals is higher than 
        the average population of that category for the State in which 
        the community is located:
                    (A) Black.
                    (B) African American.
                    (C) Asian.
                    (D) Pacific Islander.
                    (E) Hispanic.
                    (F) Latino.
                    (G) Middle Eastern or North African.
            (2) Data center.--The term ``data center'' has the meaning 
        given such term in section 453(a) of the Energy Independence 
        and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17112(a)).
            (3) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the 
        meaning given the term ``Indian tribe'' in section 4 of the 
        Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
        U.S.C. 5304).
            (4) Local governmental entity.--The term ``local 
        governmental entity'' means any municipal government or county 
        government with jurisdiction over local land use decisions.
            (5) Low-income community.--The term ``low-income 
        community'' means any census block group in which 30 percent or 
        more of the population are individuals with an annual household 
        income equal to, or less than, the greater of--
                    (A) an amount equal to 80 percent of the median 
                income of the area in which the household is located, 
                as reported by the Department of Housing and Urban 
                Development; and
                    (B) 200 percent of the Federal poverty line.
            (6) State.--The term ``State'' includes the District of 
        Columbia and any territory of the United States.
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