Relating to water and energy use for data centers, including reporting and tariff requirements, and including effective date provisions

This bill relates to water and energy use for data centers, including reporting and tariff requirements. The bill requires owners or operators of data centers located in Iowa to submit periodic water usage reports to the department of natural resources (department). The bill requires data center owners or operators to submit an initial water usage report within six months after the effective date of the bill if the data center has been in operation for less than one year, within three months of the effective date of the bill if the data center has been in operation for at least one year, or within three months of starting operations for a new data center, and submit updated reports quarterly thereafter. The reports must include identifying information about the data center and certain information regarding water inputs, water sources, and water usage effectiveness. The bill requires the department to publish the reported information on its internet site within 30 days of receipt. The bill also requires a data center to notify the department at least 60 days before implementing any substantial change in operations or technologies that would require updating the reported information. The bill requires the Iowa utilities commission (commission) to establish a separate classification of electric service for data centers that is distinct from other commercial or industrial customers and that has its own tariff schedule. The bill specifies that tariffs for data centers must allocate or directly assign costs in proportion to the costs of serving data centers and must mitigate the risk of other customer classes paying unwarranted costs and the risk of shifting, in an unwarranted manner, the costs of serving a data center to other customer classes. The bill requires the commission, when deciding whether to approve a proposed tariff for a data center, to consider whether the proposal may result in or have the potential to result in increased costs or unwarranted risks to other retail consumers, whether the proposal provides for equitable contributions to grid efficiency, reliability, and resiliency benefits, and whether the proposal meets any other conditions the commission may require in the public interest. The bill prohibits the construction or expansion of a data center until the required data center tariff has been filed by the public utility responsible for the applicable service territory. The bill requires owners or operators of data centers located in Iowa to submit periodic energy usage reports to the commission. Data center owners or operators are required to submit energy usage reports to the utilities commission on the same timeline as the water usage reports. The reports must include identifying information about the data center and certain information regarding energy consumption, electric service agreements, and on-site power supplies. The report must also include certain performance metrics and sustainability indicators. The bill provides similar publication requirements for the commission and similar notification of substantial change requirements for data centers regarding energy usage reports as required for water usage reports. The bill strikes provisions relating to rate, charge, rule, and regulation filings made prior to July 4, 1963. The bill takes effect upon enactment.