Rep. Watson Coleman Introduces Bill to Study Impact of AI Data Centers on Local Communities

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J., introduced the Data Center Community Impact Act. The legislation would authorize a federal study on the environmental, economic and public health impacts of data centers, with a focus on communities of color and low-income communities. Watson Coleman said infrastructure projects like the AI data centers being built are important to industry success and economic growth in the country. She added that Congress must protect the health of people and the planet and avoid repeating mistakes from the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 that exposed Black and Brown communities to toxic air pollution. The bill is endorsed by the Natural Resources Defense Council, Climate Justice Alliance, GreenLatinos, Food and Water Watch and Climate Revolution Action Network. It is cosponsored by Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Eleanor Holmes Norton of the District of Columbia, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania, Valerie Foushee of North Carolina, Steve Cohen of Tennessee, Rob Menendez of New Jersey, Shri Thanedar of Michigan and Adelita Grijalva of Arizona. Endorsers said the study would give communities information on costs to health, water and the environment. Climate Justice Alliance Legislative Director Mar Zepeda Salazar said frontline communities need the ability to hold industry and government accountable. GreenLatinos Sustainability Program Manager Roberto Madrid cited a data center campus approved in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, over objections from a Latino working-class community concerned about water resources and emissions. Food and Water Watch Policy Director Jim Walsh said data centers bring increasing pollution, massive water usage and more dirty energy. Climate Revolution Action Network Executive Director Ben Dziobek said the bill would ensure transparency on demands for electricity, water and land.