Senate, Assembly Pass Data Center Regulation in NJ

TRENTON, NJ — The New Jersey Legislature voted Monday on three bills aimed at regulating and monitoring the state’s growing number of data centers.The Senate passed S3379, which would require data center owners and operators to submit semi-annual reports on water and energy use to the Board of Public Utilities, on a 34-2 vote. SR18, which would require data centers to obtain electricity from a new zero or low emission source, by a 22-15 vote.“New Jersey residents are already facing major increases to their energy bills, and with exploding demand for new data center development, those increases are at risk of worsening,” said Senator John McKeon (D - District 27). “Requiring data centers to source their own clean energy will help keep electricity demand, and prices, more stable while ensuring that communities do not face more pollution.”The Assembly approved A796, which would allow utility companies to apply different rate standards to high-use data centers in order to protect other users from increased cost.Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia (R - District 24) railed against the bill.“If the goal was to protect rate payers, we should fix the actual problems,” she said. “So, while fundamentally, I do not oppose that class of repairs, doing this is incredibly messy, incredibly un-business friendly.”The bill passed on a 54-18 vote.The bills targeted regulation of data centers, which are becoming increasingly common around New Jersey.There are more than 4,500 data centers in the U.S. and more than 80 are in New Jersey. Most are located outside New York City in industrial areas. But due to readily available farm land, many companies are targeting locations in the lower half of the state.Currently, two major data center construction projects are underway in South Jersey.In Vineland, an ongoing fight continues over a new AI data center, one of the state’s largest AI projects at 2.6 million square feet.Town residents have filed numerous noise complaints, saying a loud “humming” sound can be heard around the area near the facility.The Cumberland County Board of Health said they’re investigating the noise site. “We have responded to many concerns and have made several visits to the area in question to measure sound levels,” the department said in a statement.Data One and Nebius, the companies involved with the data center, responded to community noise concerns.“Based on recent inspections and acoustical monitoring conducted by the Cumberland County Health Department, our site is operating in full compliance with Vineland’s noise ordinance limits,” the company said in a statement. “We take our role as a community partner seriously and will continue deploying sound reduction measures to minimize any impact on our neighbors.”Construction of the data center is being handled by Data One, which owns the facility. Nebius, a Netherlands-based company, will operate the facility with a reported $17 billion contract with Microsoft. When construction is complete, the space will use about 300 megawatts of power, more than double what the city of Vineland uses.In Logan Township, a few miles west, another data center, Earth Station 76, is under construction. The 560,000 square foot facility is scheduled to open either late 2026 or early 2027.Earth Station 76 is a tier 3 to 4 designed for 100 to 150 watts of power resiliency. It aims for a low carbon footprint by generating power on-site via cogeneration and utilizing carbon capture systems, while using a loop-cooling system to minimize water usage. The NJ State House News Service is a collaborative effort of professional and student journalists from NJ colleges and universities, in partnership with local media. Reach us at njstatehousenews@gmail.com.