SB26-102 would create a comprehensive regulatory framework for “large-load data centers” in Colorado, defined generally as new or expanding data centers with very large electricity demands. The bill sets a threshold-based regime for facilities above 30 megawatts individually or 60 megawatts collectively, and it applies to both new projects and existing data centers that expand beyond those limits. It directs the Public Utilities Commission to determine by June 30, 2030 whether 100% hourly matching of renewable electricity is technically and economically feasible for these facilities, and if not, to set the highest feasible hourly matching percentage and update it periodically.
Beginning in 2031, operators would have to meet 100% of annual electricity consumption with renewable resources and also satisfy the commission’s hourly matching requirement. The bill allows compliance through utility tariffs, contracts, power purchase agreements, or self-supply, and it requires long-term utility contracts or upfront payments to cover infrastructure and resource costs. It also imposes reporting obligations on operators and utilities, limits on backup combustion generation, and requirements related to water management, demand-side management, and emissions performance. The Department of Public Health and Environment would compile annual public reports on energy, water, and incentive data for these facilities.
The bill would also change state and local permitting and siting practices. The Department of Local Affairs would have to publish model local codes for large-load data center development by June 30, 2027, and local governments would be prohibited from treating these facilities as a use by right. Developers would have to submit site assessments with permit applications, and projects in disproportionately impacted communities would trigger cumulative impacts analyses, enhanced public notice and hearing requirements, and legally binding community benefit agreements. Those agreements would be negotiated with local governments and community organizations and could address hiring, revenue sharing, housing, broadband, health care, and community resilience.
In addition, the bill would impose labor standards on operators, including prevailing wages, apprenticeship participation, OSHA training, workplace safety compliance, and a prohibition on documented patterns of wage theft or employee misclassification. It also bars utilities from offering economic development rates to large-load data centers and requires them to offer demand response or flexible connection options. Overall, the bill would add substantial new obligations to utility regulation, land use review, environmental reporting, and labor practices for large data center development in Colorado.
The general sentiment reflected in the bill text is strongly supportive of tighter oversight and consumer protection, with the legislature framing the measure as necessary to prevent cost shifting to other ratepayers, protect clean energy goals, and address water, pollution, and community impacts. However, the bill was ultimately postponed indefinitely in the Senate Transportation & Energy Committee, indicating that it did not advance in its introduced form. No committee transcript or recorded vote details are available here, so the specific reasons for the committee’s action are not documented in the provided materials.
SB26-102 would add a new article to Title 40 of the Colorado Revised Statutes governing large-load data centers and would affect utility regulation, interconnection practices, local land-use review, environmental reporting, and labor standards. It would require the Public Utilities Commission, the Department of Public Health and Environment, and the Department of Local Affairs to adopt or administer new processes, while also restricting utilities from interconnecting or serving qualifying data centers unless cost, reliability, and clean-energy conditions are met. Local governments would retain land-use authority but would face new procedural requirements, including site assessments, cumulative impacts review in disproportionately impacted communities, and community benefit agreements.
The bill’s stated purpose and findings show a generally skeptical view of unchecked data center growth and a strong preference for consumer protection, clean energy compliance, water transparency, and community safeguards. The absence of committee transcript or vote detail limits insight into specific debate, but the bill’s final status—postponed indefinitely in committee—suggests it did not command enough support to move forward. The available record does not show recorded floor votes or amendments.
The main points of contention are likely the bill’s cost-allocation rules, renewable and hourly-matching mandates, restrictions on backup generation, and the extent of local and state oversight over siting and permitting. Utilities and data center developers would bear significant new obligations, including long-term contracts, upfront payments, reporting, and community benefit agreements, while local governments would be prohibited from allowing these facilities as a use by right. Environmental justice, water use, emissions, ratepayer protection, and labor standards are all central to the bill, suggesting likely tension between proponents seeking accountability and opponents concerned about feasibility, costs, and development constraints.