# Warner Urges Data Center Guardrails

Sen. Mark R. Warner is urging Congress to require data-center reporting and community-protection standards covering energy and water use, building efficiency, setbacks, and transparency. He also proposes conditioning accelerated-depreciation tax benefits on meeting those standards. The Senate was scheduled to vote on the Ratepayer Protection Act on September 30, 2026; the signal does not report the vote’s outcome. The proposed Data Center Tax Accountability and Disclosure Act could also affect project disclosures, operating standards, and tax-benefit eligibility if enacted.

- Data-center developers and their contractors may need to account for energy and water use, building efficiency, setbacks, and disclosures in project planning if the proposed standards become law.
- Companies with projects that rely on accelerated depreciation can assess how the proposed conditions could affect tax-benefit eligibility; the signal describes proposals, not enacted requirements.
- The proposed measures could affect data-center design, construction, operations, and community-impact documentation. Warner said: “My legislation would require, not invite, but require that information to come forward and put a penalty in place.”

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Information Technology, Energy & Utilities
**Topics:** Policy, Regulatory Compliance
**Published:** September 30, 2026

### Government Entities
- U.S. Senate
- Congress
- Commonwealth of Virginia
- Loudoun County

### Vendors
- Microsoft ()
- Meta ()

### Key Quotes
> My legislation would require, not invite, but require that information to come forward and put a penalty in place.
> — Mark R. Warner, U.S. Senator

### Sources
- [On Senate Floor, Warner Calls for Data Center Guardrails on Water, Energy, and Transparency](https://www.warner.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/on-senate-floor-warner-calls-for-data-center-guardrails-on-water-energy-and-transparency/) - Warner Senate