Approval

Local governments must use the application process to demand as much transparency as possible.

Specify Minimum Transparency Requirements as Part of the Application Process

The minimum transparency requirements as part of the application process include, but are not limited to:

• water usage and mitigation;
• noise study and mitigation;
• energy usage and mitigation;
• on-site emissions;
• value of tax abatements developer is receiving for the project;
• name of all companies involved in data center project, including developer, shell companies, data center operators, and financers;
• jobs (short-term and permanent, hiring efforts, permanent employee wages); and
• a displacement and holistic environmental impact report, centering environmental justice considerations (such as those emerging from redlined/fenceline communities) that establishes the data center will not exacerbate the displacement of residents and local businesses.

Note: In some cases, data center developers are applying for permits without having tenants or end users in place. This can impede a city’s ability to demand transparency measures. Cities should reject any application that cannot account for the data center’s projected resource use or does not offer transparency into economic development terms.

Mandate Public Notice and Community Hearings

Require a minimum number of public community hearings as a central part of the approval process. Upon receipt of a data center application, the appropriate public administrator must add discussion of the data center application to the agenda of an upcoming regular meeting. 

Ensure there is adequate advertisement for the hearing, including but not limited to publication in officially designated newspapers, social media, and certified mailings to all households within the approving government’s jurisdiction. Jurisdictions that depend on key resources (e.g., watershed and energy infrastructure) planning to be used by the data center should also be notified. Clearly display the time and place of the hearing in all communications. 

Ensure that educational information is provided to residents well in advance of any hearing, with materials from independent assessments rather than developers. Engage in proactive outreach to community leaders, community groups, and residents of areas both next to the proposed site and that would be impacted more broadly by rate increases, pollution, or resource use.

Reject Proposals Without Adequate Transparency Measures

Reject data center development or expansion proposals that do not have adequate transparency measures. Establish a waiting period before the rejected proposals can be submitted for reconsideration.

1. “Palantir and AWS,” Palantir, https://www.palantir.com/partnerships/aws. ↩︎
2. Caroline Haskins, “ICE Is Paying Palantir $30 Million to Build ‘ImmigrationOS’ Surveillance Platform,” Wired, April 18, 2025, https://www.wired.com/story/ice-palantir-immigrationos. ↩︎

It is equally important to ensure there are continued transparency mechanisms in place after the approval process. Without these, effective enforcement of conditions in data center approvals and addressing harms from construction and operation will be more difficult.

Require Monthly Public Disclosure

Require data centers to give monthly reports on data centers’ water and electricity usage.

Additionally, data centers must report the results of noise studies; the amount of tax incentives received from local and state governments; the number of jobs created, including the wages and benefits offered to both construction and permanent employees; and the total amount of dollars invested into the community at minimum every year.

This information must be submitted to the local agency overseeing the permitting process to ensure compliance with the terms of the conditional permit. Information should also be reported to a state agency that gathers and discloses this information online. For more information about how states can track and publish these metrics online, see Establish a Statewide Clearinghouse. A state clearinghouse might not be politically feasible in all states.

Ensure Continued Community Involvement

The local government must establish mechanisms for continued community involvement, including a system of public reporting and a city response system to address community concerns. This should also include a post-approval hearing for additional transparency.

Establish Enforcement Mechanisms

Local governments must build out an enforcement mechanism to ensure that data centers abide by transparency requirements contingent upon approval. Jurisdictions must reserve the right to revoke the conditional use permit or remove the certificate of occupancy if conditions are not met. Additional penalties for violation of application terms can include non-nominal fines and civil penalties.

Note: Cities may have to amend their zoning code to increase the acceptable fines, and that cities may need to consult the legality of occupancy removal.