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Bills to regulate data farms approved before legislative session ends

A Google data center in Dalles, Oregon.
Lambtron
/
Wikimedia Commons
A Google data center in Dalles, Oregon.

State lawmakers passed a series of bills during their final days of session aimed at regulating data center projects.

One bill would ensure data centers are subject to California’s environmental review laws and provide fast-tracked permits for projects that meet environmental standards.

Others aim to shift heightened electricity costs to data center operators rather than residential ratepayers and require developers to disclose information about water usage before a project can break ground.

The bills have cleared the legislature amid swelling public backlash against data centers across the country. Tech giants, like Amazon, have fought measures to increase data center regulation.

The bills now head to the governor’s desk.