Throughout the state, Michigan residents have clamored for transparency and protections as large-scale data centers seek to make their home in the Great Lakes State. On Thursday, Michigan House Democrats rolled out a set of regulations they say will help address residents’ concerns.
According to the sponsors, House Bills 6135–6142, would ensure these energy-intensive facilities bear the full cost required to provide them with electricity, require community benefits agreements for developers looking to build in Michigan communities, set guardrails on water usage and require a study to determine how much noise data centers emit.
The package also includes a ban on nondisclosure agreements between developers and local officials when tax incentives are on the table, project labor agreement requirements and plans for a decommissioning fund communities can use to restore a data center site if the project fails.
Rep. Joey Andrews (D-St. Joseph) told reporters three additional bills are also in the works. One of these bills would require data centers to meet energy efficiency requirements, while another would require regular reporting on data center water and energy use. The third would create energy rate requirements, which Andrews said would make sure the state meets its goal of 100% clean energy by 2040 and that data centers are not bringing more fossil fuel resources online.
The bills introduced on Thursday focused on similar concerns as a set of policies put forth by the Michigan Senate last week, though lawmakers took different approaches on the specifics of their proposals. Andrews and State Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak) proposed different standards for contracts between data centers and energy companies, and the Senate package does not include legislation on noise pollution.
While Democrats have put forth potential regulations in each chamber, some lawmakers are continuing to advocate for a statewide moratorium on data centers, with state Sen. Jim Runestad (R-White Lake) arguing Michigan residents need immediate assurance that they will not wake up to a data center proposal moving forward next to their property.
Runestad introduced Senate Bills 1018–1020, which would pause data center development until April 1, 2027, mirroring a package Reps. Jennifer Wortz (R-Quincy), Dylan Wegela (D-Garden City) and Joseph Fox (R-Fremont) introduced in February.
While Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she would not sign off on a moratorium, she has spoken in support of policies to protect Michigan’s natural resources, make sure data centers deliver on their promises of jobs, and ensure Michigan residents don’t see energy cost increases from data centers coming online.
Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) has expressed support for regulations requiring data centers to utilize closed-loop cooling systems, protections against increased energy costs and policy promoting collaboration between communities and data center developers.
While Andrews was one of the sponsors of a 2024 package creating new tax breaks for data centers, he told reporters the conversation around data centers has shifted since the legislation was signed into law.
“I think there’s a lot of reason to still be excited about these projects, you know, they’re huge employers, they’re huge taxpayers, they bring the knowledge economy to the state, but I think what we’ve heard is that people are really concerned that the protections weren’t strong enough,” Andrews said.
Now that the projects are coming to the state, it’s the Legislature’s job to be responsive to those concerns, he said.
