Tech bills of the week: No data centers on public lands; Creating a VA Office of Innovation; and more
Blocking data center development on public lands
Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Ore., introduced a bill on Wednesday that would ban the construction of new data centers and related infrastructure on federal lands managed by the Interior Department and the U.S. Forest Service.
In a bill one-pager, Dexter’s office said that “at least 17 data center campuses are being proposed on public land across six Western states.” Data center development, in general, has become a hot button issue across the U.S., with many Americans opposing the construction of the centers in their local communities over concerns about higher energy costs and water usage.
“Public lands belong in public hands and Oregonians must have a say before the federal government hands over millions of acres of public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for data centers,” Dexter said in a statement. “These treasured lands are where people hunt, fish,...
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