S 3213

SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3213
     Senate, July 23, 2026 -- Text of amendment (193) (offered by Senator Howard) to the Ways and
     Means amendment (Senate, No. 3178) to the House Bill relative to economic development in the
     commonwealth.
  The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
  _______________
  In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
  (2025-2026)
  _______________
1by adding the following section:-
2SECTION XXXX: (a) (i) As used in this section, “data center” shall mean a facility
3 whose total highest electricity demand during the most recent 12 consecutive monthly billing
4 periods, or a forecast of its next 12 consecutive monthly billing periods was or is not less than 20
5 megawatts and whose primary purpose is the storage, management and processing of digital data
6 via the interconnection and operation of information technology and network
7 telecommunications equipment, including all related facilities and infrastructure for backup
8 electricity generation, power distribution, environmental control, cooling and security.
9(ii) As used in this section, “new clean energy resources” shall mean energy that is (i)
10 generated by non-carbon emitting renewable sources and meet the RPS Class I eligibility criteria
11 outlined in 225 CMR 14.05; (ii) tracked by the New England Power Pool Generation
12 Information System; (iii) generated in the compliance period in which it is used; and (iv)
13 generates renewable energy certificates that are retired within 6 months after the end of the
14 compliance period in which energy is used.
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15(b) Any new or expanded data center seeking any permit from any state or local
16 permitting authorities shall procure sufficient electricity supply to meet their operational needs
17 using not less than 100 per cent new clean energy resources that are located on the same site as
18 the data center or that are connected to the ISO New England Inc. system.
19(c) Any new or expanded data center seeking any permit from any state or local
20 permitting authorities for operation of fossil-fuel generation equipment as backup source of
21 power shall first demonstrate infeasibility of solar plus battery energy storage facilities on its site
22 and commit to replacing said infrastructure with backup generation from battery energy storage
23 facilities or other new clean energy resources to provide at least 25 per cent of backup energy
24 needs by January 1, 2030, 50 per cent by January 1, 2035, and 100 per cent by January 1, 2040.
25(d) Any new or expanded data center seeking any permit from state or municipal
26 permitting authorities for operation of on site fossil-fuel generation equipment shall be
27 responsible for all costs associated with any expansion of fossil-fuel delivery infrastructure such
28 as, but not limited to, distribution or transmission gas pipelines.
29(e) Before issuing any water management act permit or any local permits such as an
30 occupancy permit for construction or expansion of a data center, the department of
31 environmental protection shall certify that (i) water resources of the state are utilized in the
32 public interest and that public health, safety, and welfare are adequately protected; (ii) water
33 runoff or discharge does not impact local water quality; (iii) technologies that promote water
34 conservation and the efficient use of water are utilized where possible, including but not limited
35 to using water efficient fixtures and practices, recycling water before discharging, partnering
36 with local water utilities to use discharged water from the data center, using reclaimed water,
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37 installing closed-loop systems, and supporting water restoration and replenishment in local
38 watersheds; and (iv) water use conflicts are addressed with priorities given to residential users.
39(f) Any new or expanded data center shall submit a water resources management plan to
40 the department and the department of environmental protection for approval. Said plan shall
41 include provisions and mitigation as necessary to ensure that sensitive watersheds are not
42 adversely impacted by said data center’s water use, that water ratepayers will not see cost
43 increases associated with increased demand, and that said data center’s water use will not
44 adversely impact the development of housing in the service territory of the center’s water
45 supplier. The department of environmental protection may issue guidance for the development of
46 plans that comply with this subsection.
47(g) Any new or expanded data center shall conduct pre-filing engagement and a
48 cumulative impact analysis, as defined in sections 69G, 69H, 69J, 69J¼, 69T, 69U, and 69V and
49 the regulations implementing those provisions for all energy infrastructure it utilizes or
50 constructs. Any new or expanded data center shall also conduct a cumulative impact analysis of
51 the project’s air quality impacts, as defined in 310 CMR 7.02. The department of environmental
52 protection shall also certify that any new or expanded data center complies with noise
53 regulations, as defined in 310 CMR 7.10, during both construction and regular operation.
54Any new or expanded data center seeking any permit from any state or local
55 governmental authority for data center construction or expansion shall avoid environmental
56 impacts with a sequential mitigation hierarchy that first avoids impacts, impacts that cannot be
57 avoided are minimized, and impacts that cannot be minimized would require compensatory
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58 mitigation fees for the value of nature’s service and functions, as determined by the local
59 authorities.
60(h) Any new or expanded data center shall establish a community benefit plans and
61 agreement pursuant to the guidelines established by the office of environmental justice and
62 equity as required by section 29 of chapter 21A.
63(i) No later than December 1,2026 and every December 1 thereafter, all data centers must
64 report to the department of energy resources and department of public utilities information about
65 the data center, including information about the data center's annual electricity and water
66 consumption. No later than March 1, 2027 and every March 1 thereafter, the departments must
67 compile the information reported and publish a publicly available report on the department of
68 public utilities’ website. No state agency shall enter an agreement such as a non-disclosure
69 agreement, that contains any provision, clause or language that provides that the contract or
70 agreement or any of its terms are confidential or that the parties to the agreement or contract are
71 prohibited from disclosing, discussing, describing or commenting upon the terms of the
72 agreement or contract.
73(j) Notwithstanding section 39M of chapter 30, chapter 149, and chapter 149A, the
74 department shall require a project labor agreement on contracts for data center construction or
75 expansion and may require project labor agreements as a condition of state or local permit
76 approvals.
77(k) State and local permits shall not be issued nor renewed for data center projects that
78 fail to meet the requirements of subsections (b) through (j), inclusive.
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79(l) Any data center that fails to meet the requirements of subsections (b) through (j),
80 inclusive shall be ineligible to qualify for a sales and use tax exemption established in section 6
81 of chapter 64H.
82(m) Within 90 days after the effective date of this Act, each electric company shall file an
83 application with the department to establish a tariff for the provision of electricity to data centers.
84 The tariff shall be designed to: (i) ensure that non-data center ratepayers are protected from any
85 increased costs that result from infrastructure to serve increased electricity demand caused by
86 data centers; (ii) include appropriate contract terms, including but not limited to minimum
87 charges, minimum contract length, minimum monthly billing demand, time-variant rates,
88 collateral requirements, mandatory notice periods for contract reduction or termination, fees for
89 large reductions in contract capacity, premature exit or termination fees, and other similar
90 provisions to mitigate the risk of stranded costs for other customers; (iii) include large load
91 interconnection technical requirements to ensure the safety and reliability of electric service in
92 the state; and (iv) incentivize data centers to develop and utilize methods to increase energy
93 efficiency, including through the use of technologies that capture and utilize the heat produced
94 by the data centers.
95(n) The department shall review each application submitted pursuant to this section and
96 shall approve the application within 240 days after the application filing if it determines that it
97 complies with the requirements of this section and all other applicable laws, rules and
98 regulations. If the department rejects an application, it shall require the electric company to refile
99 a corrected application within no more than 90 days.
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100(o) As a condition of permitting and ongoing eligibility for the sales and use tax
101 exemption established in section 6 of chapter 64H, all new and existing data centers shall
102 implement continuous environmental monitoring systems to measure and publicly report facility-
103 level air emissions, water usage, and other environmental indicators in real time. Such
104 monitoring data shall be made accessible to the public and relevant regulatory authorities and
105 shall be tied to enforceable performance thresholds established through the permitting process.
106 Permits shall require the establishment of clear compliance and enforcement mechanisms,
107 including defined penalties, corrective action requirements, and suspension or revocation
108 authorities in the event of noncompliance with monitoring, environmental standards, or
109 community benefit obligations. Monitoring frameworks shall be designed to ensure transparency,
110 protect public health, and provide meaningful oversight of cumulative impacts on surrounding
111 communities, with particular consideration for environmental justice populations. The
112 department, in consultation with the department of environmental protection, may promulgate
113 regulations to ensure compliance with this subsection.
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