WV Senate passes data center rules with new language urging developers to study potential water use

by Caity Coyne, West Virginia Watch
March 11, 2026

The West Virginia Senate on Wednesday approved an amended version of a rules bundle directing how the Department of Commerce will certify and approve new microgrids and data centers proposed in the state.

Last week, the Senate Judiciary Committee amended the bill to add language under the “inordinate burden” clause in the rules outlining that potential water usage is studied and water sources are given “mindful protections” in applications and building plans submitted by developers. 

House Bill 4983 passed the Senate 28-6 on Wednesday. Five Republicans and Sen. Joey Garcia, D-Marion, voted against the legislation.

On Tuesday — when HB 4983 was on second reading in the Senate — Sen. Rupie Phillips, R-Logan, voiced his opposition to the amended version of the bill. He said that requiring developers to include water in reports and studies “could affect a lot of other industries.” Phillips did not expand on what he meant. The rules specifically apply to developers constructing high impact data centers and the microgrids that could power them.

Under the proposed rules, developers who apply for certification must flag if their proposed project could place a significant and unreasonable burden on nearby property owners due to its location, environmental risks, the proximity to schools, homes or historic sites and — in the amended version — local water sources. Developers will have to share how they plan to offset those potential harms and the Department of Commerce will have the right to independently verify or challenge claims made by the developers.

Senate Judiciary Chair Tom Willis, R-Berkeley, said on the floor Tuesday that while the amendment adopted by his committee would be a “more burdensome requirement” for developers, it was meant to assuage concerns that have been repeatedly raised by community members who live where developments have been proposed.

However, while Commerce has the ability to investigate claims made, developers are the only ones responsible for identifying potential risks that their projects could bring. Nicholas Preservati, the deputy secretary for the Department of Commerce, confirmed during the rulemaking process in January that information collected by the department regarding potential “inordinate burdens” would be kept confidential due to potential trade secrets.

Some data centers can use up to 5 million gallons of drinking water a day, straining resources in communities. According to a study released earlier this month by the environmental advocacy group Food and Water Watch, water consumption by data centers nationwide tripled between 2014 and 2023. By 2028, per the report, they could use up to 720 billion gallons of water annually just to cool AI data servers.

The consequences of this water usage are becoming clearer as communities across the country that are located next to new data center developments have been tapped dry or had their water contaminated.

HB 4983 passed the House of Delegates in February. There, lawmakers voted down two amendments. One would have required developers to share specific details on where they would draw water from for operations, how much water they envision using and what impact that water usage could have on local residents. The other would have limited what water they could use, added transparency measures, implemented a 500 foot “buffer zone” for the developments and allowed residents to petition proposals they believed could “significantly impact” their communities.

The proposed rules relate to last year’s passage of HB 2014, which created the certified microgrid program and set policies for how certain data centers that come to the state may operate. The rulemaking process started in the state Department of Economic Development in November.

In December, more than 930 residents submitted public comments on the proposed rules. They cited apprehension over the developments potentially harming the environment, infrastructure and the economy in communities they are built as well as issues with the lack of local control and transparency within the proposed rules.

In the year since HB 2014 was passed, residents in numerous communities have organized against the developments. They worry their communities will be irreparably altered by the data centers and the microgrids — often large, natural gas-run power plants — constructed to power them.

Now that the bill has passed the Senate, lawmakers in the House will vote whether or not to accept the changes made within it. The 2026 legislative session is scheduled to end at midnight on March 14.

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