Boulder City dispute prompts data center review bill

What the bill would change

Nevada Rep. Dina Titus introduced the Public Lands Accountability Act after the Bureau of Land Management approved a Boulder City data center using an earlier environmental review for a solar project.

The bill would stop a federal agency from changing an existing right-of-way permit on BLM land to allow a data center without conducting a separate environmental permitting process that includes public participation. It also would prevent data centers from using categorical exclusions, which can allow projects to proceed without a more extensive environmental review.

BLM would have to assess a proposed data center’s effect on the regional water supply. Developers also would have to submit workforce plans stating how many local jobs a project would create and the wage levels for those positions.

Titus said Nevada’s expanding data center industry requires public scrutiny of effects on water, the environment and the electric grid.

Boulder City project remains paused

The Boulder City data center is on hold after an administrative judge granted a stay requested by city officials and environmental advocates. The judge said the challengers were likely to succeed in their appeal of the federal approval.

The BLM had issued permits after deciding that the environmental review previously completed for the solar project was adequate for the data center.

Opponents raise different concerns

Patrick Donnelly of the Center for Biological Diversity, a party in the challenge that secured the stay, said the legislation does not go far enough. His organization opposes placing any data center on public land, regardless of the review process.

Joe Luppino-Esposito of the Pacific Legal Foundation argued that the bill could create major obstacles for data centers and related infrastructure, including transmission lines with other uses. He said the Boulder City stay shows that existing review and appeal procedures can halt a project.