S3379

An Act concerning water and energy usage at data centers and supplementing Title 48 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. As used in this section:

“Board” means the Board of Public Utilities.

“Data center” means a facility: (1) whose primary services are the storage, management, and processing of digital data; and (2) that is used to house computer and network systems, including associated components such as servers, network equipment and appliances, telecommunications, and data storage systems, systems for monitoring and managing infrastructure performance, Internet-related equipment and services, data communications connections, environmental controls, fire protection systems, and security systems and services.

“Electric public utility” means the same as the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1999, c.23 (C.48:3-51).

“Energy reuse factor” means a calculation of waste heat reused divided by total energy consumption.

“Power usage effectiveness” means a calculation of a data center’s total energy consumption divided by the total energy consumption of the data center’s information technology equipment.

“Renewable energy factor” means a calculation of a data center’s total renewable energy consumption divided by the data center’s total energy consumption.

“Waste heat reused” means any heat that is used or reused outside the boundary of a data center and that replaces, partly or entirely, energy needed outside the boundary of the data center.

“Water usage effectiveness” means a calculation of a data center’s total water input divided by the total energy consumption of the data center’s information technology equipment.

b. No later than six months after the effective date of this section, or, for a data center that has been in operation for at least one year as of the effective date of this section, no later than three months after the effective date of this section, and on a semi-annual basis thereafter, the owner or operator of a data center in the State shall prepare and submit a water and energy usage report to the Board of Public Utilities that contains the following information, at a minimum:

(1) basic information relating to the data center, including:

(a) the name of the data center;

(b) the owner or operator of the data center;

(d) the month and year that the data center commenced operation;

(2) information related to energy and water usage at the data center, including:

(a) the total energy consumption in kilowatt hours, including the use of electricity, fuels, and other energy sources used for cooling;

(b) the name of the electric utility serving the data center and any electric service agreements between the electric utility and the data center;

(c) all on-site power supplies, including any primary power on site and emergency backup power supply and any permit information such as permit numbers, capacity, tier level, fuel type, total permitted emissions for the data center, and any other relevant information;

(d) the total energy consumption of information technology equipment in kilowatt hours measured as the value of the combined annual energy consumption at every uninterruptible power system connected to information technology equipment;

(e) the total water input in cubic meters that includes all water volumes that enter the data center that are used for the functions of the data center, including information technology, security, power, and environment; and

(f) the source of water for the data center including a municipal water supply, groundwater, surface water, and whether water from such sources is potable or reclaimed. If a data center utilizes more than one water source, the data center shall provide information regarding water usage from each source as a percentage of total water usage; and

(3) any other information determined by the board to be necessary.

c. (1) In addition to the reporting requirements enumerated in subsection b. of this section, if a data center is a recipient of a financial incentive from any State agency, then the data center shall also include in the water and energy usage report required pursuant to subsection b. of this section, the following information:

(a) performance calculations and indicators for the data center, including the energy reuse factor, power usage effectiveness, renewable energy factor, and water usage effectiveness; and

(b) sustainability indicators for the data center, including:

(i) the average set point information technology equipment intake air temperature in degrees Fahrenheit, which shall be measured as the average set point temperature in all of the data center’s computer rooms over a 12-month period;

(ii) the average waste heat temperature in degrees Fahrenheit, which shall be measured as the temperature of the fluid used to cool any information and communication technology equipment, averaged over a 12-month period and across every measurement point. Individual waste heat temperature readings shall be measured at the point where heated fluid enters a heat exchanger in the data center’s computer rooms;

(iii) the amount of electricity derived from renewable energy in kilowatt hours; and

(iv) the amount of waste heat reused in kilowatt hours.

(2) If a data center does not receive a financial incentive from any State agency, the information required in paragraph (1) of this subsection may be submitted to the board at the data center’s discretion.

d. Within 30 days of receiving a water and energy usage report from the owner or operator of a data center pursuant to subsection b. of this section, the board shall publish the information on its Internet website and update the information as necessary. The board shall not publish any performance or sustainability information submitted pursuant to subsection c. of this section. Information submitted to the board pursuant to this subsection shall be confidential and shall not be subject to disclosure under the P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), or the common law right of access to a public record, except that such information as anonymized and aggregated from at least five facilities shall be included in the report.

e. An owner or operator of a data center that has submitted a water and energy usage report to the board pursuant to subsection b. of this section shall notify the board of any substantial change in operations or technologies at the data center that would require an update to the information provided in the water and energy usage report submitted pursuant to subsection b. of this section at least 60 days prior to implementing the change in operations or technologies at the data center.

f. The reporting requirement established pursuant to subsection b. of this section shall be in effect for a period of three years following the effective date of this act. Upon conclusion of reporting time period, the board shall determine whether to continue this requirement on a permanent basis. In the event the board determines the reporting requirement shall continue on a permanent basis, the board shall, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt rules and regulations as necessary to implement the provisions of this section.

g. The board shall consult and coordinate with the Department of Environmental Protection in implementing the provisions of this section.

2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill would require the owner or operator of a data center in the State to prepare and submit on a semi-annual basis, for a period of three years, a water and energy usage report to the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) that contains the following information, at a minimum: (1) basic information relating to the data center; (2) information related to energy and water usage at the data center; and (3) any other information determined by the BPU to be necessary. If a data center receives a financial incentive from a State agency then the data center would also need to include the following information: (1) performance calculations and indicators for the data center, including the energy reuse factor, power usage effectiveness, renewable energy factor, and water usage effectiveness; and (2) sustainability indicators for the data center. Data centers that have been in operation for at least a year would be required to provide the report to the BPU within three months after the bill’s enactment, and all other data centers would be required to provide the report to the BPU within six months after the bill’s enactment. Within 30 days of receiving a water and energy usage report from the owner or operator of a data center pursuant to the bill’s provisions, the BPU would be required to publish certain information about data center energy and water usage on its Internet website, and update the information as necessary. The information submitted to the board would be confidential and not be subject to disclosure under the P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), or the common law right of access to a public record, except for information from at least five facilities that is anonymized and aggregated would be included in the report.

An owner or operator of a data center that has submitted a water and energy usage report to the BPU pursuant to the bill’s provisions would be required to notify the BPU of any substantial change in operations or technologies at the data center that would require an update to the information provided in the water and energy usage report at least 60 days prior to implementing the change in operations or technologies at the data center.

Upon conclusion of the three-year reporting period, the BPU would be able to make the reporting requirement permanent through the adoption of rules and regulations.