A new bill would force artificial intelligence data centers to publicly disclose their environmental and energy impacts for the first time, addressing a critical information gap as communities nationwide grapple with rising electricity costs, air pollution, and water strain. Senator Edward Markey of Massachusetts and Representative Don Beyer of Virginia reintroduced the Artificial Intelligence Environmental Impacts Act on June 9, 2026, marking the second push for federal oversight of AI infrastructure's real-world consequences.

Right now, there is no comprehensive federal study or mandatory reporting requirement tracking how AI data centers affect the communities where they operate. This lack of transparency has left policymakers and residents in the dark about the true scope of the problem. The legislation would change that by requiring data centers to report on their environmental and energy-related impacts, with financial penalties for non-compliance.

Why Are Communities Concerned About AI Data Centers?

Communities across the country are already experiencing tangible effects from the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure. These impacts span multiple dimensions of daily life and environmental health. The problems are not hypothetical; they are happening now in neighborhoods where data centers are being built or planned.

• Energy Costs: Families are seeing their electricity bills rise as data centers consume massive amounts of power, straining local grids and driving up rates for everyone in the region.
• Air Quality: Data center operations and associated power generation infrastructure contribute to air pollution, affecting respiratory health in surrounding communities.
• Water Depletion and Contamination: AI data centers require enormous quantities of water for cooling systems, stressing local water supplies and potentially affecting water quality.
• Noise and Light Pollution: The physical infrastructure creates ongoing noise and light disturbances that affect quality of life.
• Land Use Changes: Large-scale data center development alters local landscapes and can displace other land uses.

The problem is particularly acute in communities that have historically borne the burden of polluting industries. These neighborhoods often lack the political power to resist new industrial development, making them vulnerable to becoming dumping grounds for AI infrastructure.

What Would the New Legislation Require?

The AI Environmental Impacts Act takes a three-pronged approach to addressing the transparency crisis. First, it would establish clear measurement standards so that all data centers report using the same metrics. Second, it would mandate public disclosure of environmental impacts. Third, it would direct federal agencies to conduct a comprehensive study of AI's full lifecycle environmental footprint.

To develop the framework for corporate reporting, the legislation would direct the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to convene a consortium of experts responsible for establishing measurement standards. This ensures that companies cannot cherry-pick favorable metrics or hide unfavorable data behind inconsistent reporting methods.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in conjunction with other relevant federal agencies, would be required to compile and publish a comprehensive study on the environmental and energy-related lifecycle impacts of AI and related infrastructure. This federal study would provide policymakers with the data they need to make informed decisions about where data centers can be built and what protections communities need.

How to Support Transparency in AI Infrastructure Development

• Engage with Local Government: Attend city council and planning board meetings where data center projects are being discussed; demand that environmental impact assessments be conducted and made public before projects are approved.
• Request Data from Your Utility: Contact your local electric utility and ask for detailed information about data center energy consumption in your region; use this data to understand how AI infrastructure affects your electricity rates.
• Support Transparency Legislation: Contact your congressional representatives and urge them to support the AI Environmental Impacts Act and similar bills that require mandatory disclosure of data center environmental impacts.
• Join Community Coalitions: Partner with local environmental and community organizations to collectively advocate for stronger environmental protections and community input in data center siting decisions.

This is not the first time Senator Markey has pushed for AI environmental accountability. He originally introduced the AI Environmental Impacts Act in February 2024, and has spent the past year building momentum through targeted advocacy. In March 2026, he wrote to the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners urging stronger action to protect ratepayers from data center-induced energy bill hikes. In November 2025, he urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to ensure that increased energy demand from data centers does not result in unjust rate increases for American households.

The bill has attracted broad support from environmental and consumer advocacy groups. The coalition backing the legislation includes the Center for AI and Digital Policy, Public Citizen, the Center for Biological Diversity, the Union of Concerned Scientists, GreenLatinos, Food and Water Watch, Moms' Clean Air Force, and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

"Data centers are literally changing the landscape for families across the country, from the air they breathe to the electricity bills hitting their inboxes every month," said Senator Markey. "Understanding the environmental and energy impacts of AI data centers and requiring transparency from the companies that operate them is the first step toward protecting communities and working to tackle this rapidly growing crisis."

Senator Edward J. Markey, Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee

Representative Beyer emphasized the urgency of the moment, noting that AI is advancing at an extraordinary pace while the infrastructure supporting it continues to expand rapidly. He argued that policymakers have a responsibility to understand the full environmental consequences before the problem becomes even more entrenched.

"As artificial intelligence advances at an extraordinary pace, and as the data centers and energy infrastructure that power it continue to expand, we have a responsibility to fully understand its environmental impacts," said Congressman Beyer. "Our legislation would ensure that we have better data, coordination, and transparency to identify risks and develop solutions that ensure AI development does not compromise our environment and serves the American people as it brings us into a new age of technology."

Representative Don Beyer, Co-Chair of the House Artificial Intelligence Caucus

Advocates argue that transparency is essential for accountability. Without public data on data center operations, communities cannot evaluate whether proposed facilities are appropriate for their neighborhoods. Tech companies have historically kept environmental and energy details confidential, citing competitive concerns, but this secrecy prevents meaningful public debate about the role of AI in society.

"Compelling data centers to report to the environmental and energy impacts of their operations to the EPA provides essential public transparency," stated Tyson Slocum, Director of Public Citizen's Energy Program. "Communities can't evaluate whether proposed data centers are appropriate when the developers lock all the detail behind non-disclosures. Requiring the federal government to collect and publish energy and environmental data of data center operations is an essential part of the ongoing public debate on the role of AI in our economy and society, and will enhance our ability to ensure that any data centers comply with the public interest."

Tyson Slocum, Director of Public Citizen's Energy Program

Environmental justice advocates have been particularly vocal about the need for this legislation. Communities of color and low-income neighborhoods have disproportionately borne the environmental burden of industrial development, and many fear that AI data centers will follow the same pattern.

"Data centers powering AI are being built in our backyards, consuming shocking amounts of energy and water while driving up emissions in the communities that already bear the heaviest environmental burdens," noted Andrea Marpillero-Colomina, Sustainable Communities Policy Advisor at GreenLatinos. "In Latino communities, we cannot afford to have the AI boom accelerate unchecked. This legislation will create key tools for measuring AI's true environmental footprint and creating a public reporting framework, which are crucially needed to protect communities from further AI-related environmental harms."

Andrea Marpillero-Colomina, PhD., Sustainable Communities Policy Advisor at GreenLatinos

The bill has also attracted support from organizations focused on energy policy and environmental law. These groups recognize that the current regulatory vacuum has allowed data center expansion to proceed without adequate scrutiny or community input.

"We know that the recent surge in buildout of data centers and associated infrastructure is already having enormous consequences for people, their pocketbooks, and the environment," explained Julie McNamara, Director of Federal Energy Policy at the Union of Concerned Scientists. "However, the tech industry has repeatedly worked to hide the full magnitude of these harms from decisionmakers and the general public to duck accountability and maximize profits. This Act rightly confronts the issue head-on, demanding urgently needed transparency across a wide range of impacts to enable accountability and inform the development of rigorous industry requirements."

Julie McNamara, Director of Federal Energy Policy, Union of Concerned Scientists

The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, Ron Wyden of Oregon, Cory Booker of New Jersey, and Peter Welch of Vermont, along with Representative Nanette Barragán of California. This bipartisan and multi-regional support suggests that concern about AI's environmental impacts extends beyond traditional environmental constituencies.

As AI continues to reshape the technology landscape and data center construction accelerates, the question of environmental accountability becomes increasingly urgent. The AI Environmental Impacts Act represents a significant step toward ensuring that the benefits of artificial intelligence do not come at the expense of community health and environmental quality.