Bill requires large data centers to make their own power and water
H.R. 9777 — Protecting Ratepayers Act · Filed by Byron Donalds (R-FL) · Introduced Jul 20, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
Data centers using 5 or more megawatts must generate all their own electricity and water. They cannot connect to public power lines or city water systems. Existing data centers have 180 days to comply. New data centers must comply from day one. The bill gives legal power to a presidential proclamation from March 2026 called the Ratepayer Protection Pledge.
Who it affects
Regular people who pay for electricity and water may see lower bills. Data centers will no longer use public power and water. Data centers may have to spend a lot of money to build their own systems. Some data centers might move to other states or countries.
One thing to notice
The bill does not explain what types of power plants count as on-site power generation. It is unclear if solar, wind, nuclear, or fossil fuels would all be allowed. The bill refers to a presidential proclamation without printing its full text. Readers cannot know all the rules from this bill alone.
From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.
Where it stands
- Jul 20, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jul 20, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Words to know
- data centers — large buildings full of computers that store and process internet information
- megawatts — units that measure how much electricity something uses
- presidential proclamation — an official announcement or order made by the president
- ratepayers — people who pay bills for electricity or water
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,672 characters) on Aug 11, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,206 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-17.
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