Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) has introduced a resolution advocating for a "Data Center Bill of Rights," aimed at preserving local communities' power to reject data center projects. This initiative comes amid growing concerns about the environmental and financial impacts of rapid data center expansion, including pollution from generators and the substantial water consumption of AI data centers, which could reach 32 billion gallons annually by 2028. Khanna's proposed measure would allow communities to reject data center projects through transparent processes, ban them in residential areas or within 2,500 feet of sensitive locations like homes and schools, and demand clean energy usage.

The resolution highlights the tension between local control and state or federal preemption, noting that federal efforts have often exempted data centers from environmental laws. This proposed "bill of rights" seeks to empower citizens to oppose data center developments, contrasting with some state-level housing laws that aim to override local objections to development.