Republicans and Democrats took a bipartisan step — or perhaps more precisely, a tiptoe — toward putting Congress’ imprint on the debate over the costs of data centers. As the House Appropriations Committee hammered out a $58 billion fiscal 2027 energy and water spending bill Wednesday, members reached rare consensus on a bipartisan amendment that would empower the Energy Department to start regulating data centers. … The bipartisan amendment, which would spur the Energy Department to improve data centers’ water and energy efficiency, was a signal that both parties are feeling the public pressure around energy and data centers ahead of the midterms.

Other data center water use news around the West:

• KSL (Salt Lake City): Family near Box Elder County data center worries about water quality going back into the lake
• FOX13 (Salt Lake City): Utah artists collaborate to protest water right transfers to proposed data center
• Denver Gazette (Colo.): Editorial: The oblivious drumbeat against data centers
• The Salt Lake Tribune: Editorial: Public outcry against a Utah data center is working. Keep it up.