Add Art 15 Title 35 §§35-0101 - 35-0117, En Con L; add §85, St Fin L
Enacts the "data center water stewardship and reuse act" to reduce reliance on potable public water supply systems and increase use of recycled or reclaimed water; provides for data center water use management into the state's environmental conservation framework, ensuring sustainability, watershed protection, and technological innovation; establishes the data center water stewardship fund.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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10487
IN SENATE
May 15, 2026
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Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
requiring large-capacity data-center facilities to implement advanced
water recycling, reuse, closed-loop cooling and reporting standards;
to provide incentives and technical assistance; and to establish
enforcement mechanisms; and to amend the state finance law, in
relation to establishing the data center water stewardship fund
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
2 the "data center water stewardship and reuse act".
3 § 2. Legislative findings and intent. In accordance with the policy
4 declared in section 1-0101 of the environmental conservation law that
5 "the quality of our environment is fundamental... to prevent, abate and
6 control water, land and air pollution..." -- the legislature finds that:
7 1. Large-scale computing and data-center facilities are becoming major
8 users of water-resources for cooling and process use.
9 2. Reducing reliance on potable public water supply systems and
10 increasing use of recycled or reclaimed water is consistent with the
11 state's environmental policy and the functions of the department of
12 environmental conservation ("DEC") to promote reuse and water-resource
13 protection.
14 3. It is therefore the intent of this act to integrate data-center
15 water-use management into the state's environmental conservation frame-
16 work, ensuring sustainability, watershed protection, and technological
17 innovation.
18 § 3. Article 15 of the environmental conservation law is amended by
19 adding a new title 35 to read as follows:
20 TITLE 35
21 DATA CENTER WATER STEWARDSHIP AND REUSE REQUIREMENTS
22 Section 35-0101. Definitions.
23 35-0103. Applicability and phasing.
24 35-0105. Water-reuse and conservation standards.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14016-01-5
S. 10487 2
1 35-0107. Permitting, review and certification.
2 35-0109. Reporting, transparency and public disclosure.
3 35-0111. Incentives and technical assistance.
4 35-0113. Enforcement, penalties and remedies.
5 35-0115. Exemptions, variances and hardship relief.
6 35-0117. Technical standards and regulatory updates.
7 § 35-0101. Definitions.
8 As used in this title, the following terms shall have the following
9 meanings:
10 1. "Data-center facility" means a building or group of buildings, or
11 campus, primarily used to house computer servers, storage systems,
12 network equipment, power distribution and cooling infrastructure, oper-
13 ating continuously or near-continuously for cloud computing, artificial
14 intelligence processing, large-scale computing services, or analogous
15 operations.
16 2. "Large-capacity computing facility (LCCF)" means any data-center
17 facility that either:
18 (a) has an aggregate electrical demand of ten megawatts or more; or
19 (b) utilizes more than five million gallons of potable water annually
20 for cooling, humidification or other facility-related uses; or
21 (c) is part of a campus comprised of multiple facilities each of which
22 meets paragraphs (a) or (b) of this subdivision.
23 3."Potable water source" means water withdrawn from a public water
24 supply system or private water system treated to drinking-water stand-
25 ards.
26 4. "Non-potable recycled water" means water treated for reuse on-site
27 or via off-site reclaimed water system, not treated to drinking-water
28 standards but suitable for cooling, humidification, landscaping, process
29 use or other facility uses as approved by the commissioner.
30 5. "Closed-loop cooling system" means a system in which the same water
31 or other coolant is recirculated, with only make-up and blow-down loss-
32 es, and minimal fresh water intake.
33 6. "Baseline water intake" means the facility's annual potable water
34 intake in gallons in the year immediately prior to enactment of this
35 title or, for new facilities, the projected potable water intake
36 approved under permit.
37 § 35-0103. Applicability and phasing.
38 1. This title applies to any LCCF located within the state, whether
39 new construction, major expansion defined as increase in capacity great-
40 er than thirty percent of electrical demand or water use, or existing
41 facility.
42 2. For new construction or major expansion with site-preparation
43 commencement after January first, two thousand twenty-eight: permits
44 shall require incorporation of non-potable recycled water systems,
45 closed-loop cooling and potable water intake offset measures consistent
46 with section 35-0105 of this title.
47 3. For existing LCCFs in operation as of January first, two thousand
48 twenty-eight:
49 (a) By January first, two thousand thirty-one: each facility shall
50 have reduced potable water intake by at least fifty percent of its base-
51 line.
52 (b) By January first, two thousand thirty-five: each facility must
53 have reduced potable water intake by at least seventy-five percent of
54 its baseline, unless such facility is exempt under section 35-0115 of
55 this title.
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1 4. The commissioner may adopt regulations to phase in compliance for
2 smaller capacity facilities or establish tiered compliance schedules.
3 § 35-0105. Water-reuse and conservation standards.
4 1. New or expanded LCCFs shall ensure that at least sixty percent of
5 process/cooling water intake, excluding domestic potable use, is derived
6 from non-potable recycled water or other approved non-potable sources at
7 initial build.
8 2. Existing LCCFs shall meet by January first, two thousand thirty-one
9 a minimum of forty percent recycled/non-potable water intake and by
10 January first, two thousand thirty-five a minimum of sixty percent
11 recycled/non-potable water intake.
12 3. Facilities shall design closed-loop or hybrid cooling systems in
13 which make-up water intake is less than five percent annually of system
14 flow, and avoid discharge of warm water or increased thermal loads to
15 surface waters unless approved under best available technology stand-
16 ards.
17 4. Facilities shall calculate and publicly report a water-use effec-
18 tiveness (WUE) metric, gallons of potable water per kilowatt-hour of IT
19 load, and benchmark against peer facilities.
20 5. Facilities located in watersheds designated by the department as
21 water-stress or water-scarce shall prioritize non-evaporative cooling
22 technologies, including, but not limited to, air-cooled, immersion, or
23 other low-water approaches, and use reclaimed water rather than potable
24 makeup water.
25 6. Recycled water systems must comply with treatment, quality and
26 reuse standards promulgated by the department and consistent with feder-
27 al guidelines such as the United States Environmental Protection Agen-
28 cy's industrial water reuse guidance.
29 § 35-0107. Permitting, review and certification.
30 1. The commissioner, in consultation with the New York state energy
31 research and development authority (NYSERDA) and the New York state
32 public service commission (PSC), shall promulgate any necessary rules
33 and regulations establishing:
34 (a) criteria and procedures for permit review of LCCFs, including
35 water intake estimates, water-reuse plans, watershed impact analyses,
36 cooling system design, energy-water trade-off analysis and heat-reuse
37 potential;
38 (b) certification protocols for non-potable water treatment and reuse
39 systems; and
40 (c) procedures for verification of compliance, interim benchmarks and
41 periodic audits.
42 2. No local zoning, planning or building permit for an LCCF shall be
43 issued unless the approving authority receives a certification from the
44 department that the facility's water reuse/cooling plan complies with
45 this article and implementing regulations.
46 3. For existing facilities, the department shall issue a "data center
47 water stewardship certificate" once the facility verifies compliance
48 with reduction and reuse targets under sections 35-0103 and 35-0105 of
49 this title; certificates shall be renewed every five years.
50 4. The department may impose conditions on permits or certificates
51 including, but not limited to, monitoring instrumentation, third-party
52 verification, adaptive remediation plans and periodic audits.
53 § 35-0109. Reporting, transparency and public disclosure.
54 1. Each LCCF shall submit annually to the department a report includ-
55 ing, but not limited to:
56 (a) total potable water withdrawn;
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1 (b) total non-potable recycled water used;
2 (c) total water discharged (volume, destination, temperature or
3 conductivity, makeup losses);
4 (d) the facility's water-use effectiveness metric;
5 (e) description of cooling system, water treatment/reuse system, make-
6 up strategy, heat reuse, if any;
7 (f) any variances or exemptions granted; and
8 (g) summary of community/watershed engagement and mitigation measures.
9 2. The department shall publish an annual "data center water steward-
10 ship report" summarizing aggregated data and facility-specific results,
11 subject to confidentiality protection, and make such report available on
12 the department's website.
13 3. Each facility shall post on its website a summary of its most
14 recent report and certificate status and provide a direct link to the
15 department's public portal.
16 § 35-0111. Incentives and technical assistance.
17 1. Subject to appropriation, NYSERDA and the department shall jointly
18 establish a data center water efficiency grant and loan program to
19 provide cost-sharing grants, low-interest loans or tax credits for:
20 (a) retrofits of existing LCCFs to upgrade cooling systems, install
21 on-site non-potable water treatment and closed-loop infrastructure; and
22 (b) pilot projects demonstrating novel low-water cooling, immersion
23 cooling, heat-reuse integration or shared infrastructure (regional
24 reclaimed water lines).
25 2. The department may offer expedited permitting or reduced fees for
26 LCCFs that exceed the statutory minimums.
27 3. The state supports inclusion of reclaimed/non-potable water infras-
28 tructure in regional water planning, and may assist municipalities or
29 utilities partnering with LCCFs to build shared reuse infrastructure.
30 § 35-0113. Enforcement, penalties and remedies.
31 1. If an LCCF fails to meet required targets or submits false or
32 misleading reports, the commissioner may:
33 (a) issue a notice of violation;
34 (b) impose civil penalties up to fifty thousand dollars per day of
35 non-compliance;
36 (c) suspend or revoke its water-related permit or certificate; or
37 (d) require submission and implementation of a corrective action plan,
38 subject to department approval.
39 2. The department may remove certificate status and the facility shall
40 lose eligibility for incentives under section 35-0111 of this title.
41 3. The state may bring civil action to enjoin non-compliance or compel
42 implementation of required measures.
43 4. All monetary penalties collected shall be deposited into the data
44 center water stewardship fund pursuant to section eighty-five of the
45 state finance law to be used for technical assistance, water-reuse
46 research grants and watershed restoration.
47 § 35-0115. Exemptions, variances and hardship relief.
48 1. The commissioner may grant a variance or temporary exemption from
49 one or more standard or standards upon written application showing:
50 (a) technical/geologic/hydrologic constraints prevent full compliance;
51 (b) the facility has implemented all commercially feasible water reuse
52 measures and additional reduction would cause disproportionate cost or
53 energy penalty; or
54 (c) the facility proposes an alternate plan providing equivalent pota-
55 ble water reduction, including but not limited to, co-located waste-heat
56 reuse or alternate cooling medium.
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1 2. Variance approval shall include a time-bound schedule for compli-
2 ance, be publicly posted, and may be subject to conditions.
3 3. Facilities located in watersheds designated by the department as
4 critical water-stress zones may be subject to stricter standards and
5 less likely to obtain waivers.
6 § 35-0117. Technical standards and regulatory updates.
7 1. The department shall adopt rules and regulations establishing
8 treatment standards, quality specifications and monitoring protocols for
9 non-potable recycled water used by LCCFs, consistent with federal indus-
10 trial reuse guidance.
11 2. The department shall review cooling- and water-reuse technologies
12 at least every three years, and may update regulations or guidance
13 accordingly, including but not limited to, immersion cooling, direct-to-
14 chip cooling, and heat recovery systems.
15 3. The department, in coordination with NYSERDA, shall publish a
16 "water-smart data center design guidelines" document, including, but not
17 limited to, benchmarking tools, best practice case studies and metrics
18 for industry use.
19 § 4. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 85 to
20 read as follows:
21 § 85. Data center water stewardship fund. 1. There is hereby estab-
22 lished in the custody of the state comptroller and the commissioner of
23 taxation and finance a fund to be known as the "data center water
24 stewardship fund." The department of environmental conservation shall
25 administer such fund.
26 2. Such data center water stewardship fund shall consist of all reven-
27 ue collected from any civil penalties imposed pursuant to section
28 35-0113 of the environmental conservation law and any other monies
29 deposited into such fund pursuant to law. Such funds shall be used for
30 technical assistance, water-reuse research grants and watershed restora-
31 tion.
32 3. Moneys of the fund, following appropriation by the legislature,
33 shall be used for execution of data center water stewardship pursuant to
34 title thirty-five of article fifteen of the environmental conservation
35 law, and expended for the purposes as set forth in such title of the
36 environmental conservation law.
37 § 5. Severability. If any provision of this act or the application
38 thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of
39 the act and the application of its other provisions shall not be
40 affected.
41 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately. The commissioner of envi-
42 ronmental conservation shall adopt the implementing rules and regu-
43 lations no later than January 1, 2027. The provisions of subdivision two
44 of section 35-0103 of the environmental conservation law as added by
45 section three of this act regarding new facilities for new/expanded
46 construction shall apply to projects with site preparation on or after
47 January 1, 2028. The provisions of subdivision three of section 35-0103
48 and subdivision two of section 35-0105 of the environmental conservation
49 law as added by section three of this act regarding existing facilities
50 shall apply to projects on and after January 1, 2031.
