Water resources: data centers.

Assembly Member Papan's water conservation measure establishes new reporting requirements for data centers across California, requiring these facilities to provide water usage estimates to suppliers before obtaining business licenses and submit annual water consumption reports during renewals. The legislation creates a three-tier classification system for data centers based on their infrastructure density and power consumption, ranging from smaller facilities using less than 2 megawatts to large-scale operations exceeding 25 megawatts.

The bill mandates that data center operators self-certify their compliance with these reporting requirements under penalty of perjury when applying for new licenses or renewals with city and county authorities. Once the Department of Water Resources develops efficiency guidelines and best management practices, data centers must additionally certify their adherence to these standards as a condition of licensing, with implementation beginning one year after the guidelines take effect.

According to the bill's findings, these water conservation provisions constitute a matter of statewide concern rather than municipal affairs, making them applicable to all California cities, including charter cities. The measure aligns data centers with the state's "Making Conservation a California Way of Life" regulation, categorizing them as commercial, industrial, and institutional users subject to urban water use objectives.