Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Power and Water for Families Act of 2026”.
Power and Water for Families Act of 2026
A BILL
To facilitate the responsible development of data centers and related infrastructure, to protect existing ratepayers from the shifting of incremental infrastructure costs attributable to large-load facilities, to encourage investment in water reuse, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Findings
Congress finds the following:
Artificial intelligence has the potential to drive economic growth, accelerate scientific and medical innovation, strengthen American competitiveness, and enhance the national security of the United States.
Maintaining American leadership in artificial intelligence over the Chinese Communist Party will require the responsible development of data centers and advanced computing infrastructure; and to do so, the United States is experiencing rapid growth in large electrical loads, including data centers and advanced computing facilities, some of which require power at a scale comparable to that of major metropolitan areas.
The effects of new large electrical loads on electricity costs are not uniform across the United States and depend on regional resources, market structure, utility regulation, and the allocation of costs associated with serving such loads. Absent appropriate safeguards, such loads may place upward pressure on power costs, reduce access to Federal resources, and create risks to regional electric reliability.
The electric-power sector of the United States is characterized by diverse regional markets, resource mixes, utility structures, regulatory systems, and reliability needs. State regulatory authorities, nonregulated electric utilities, regional transmission organizations, and other relevant entities should retain flexibility to implement solutions appropriate to the communities they serve.
Water reuse projects, including onsite water recycling systems within data center facilities and municipal water recycling systems, can protect aquifers by replacing the use of freshwater, such as rivers, streams and groundwater, with recycled water and support the responsible development of data centers and other industrial facilities.
Sec. 3 Policy of congress
It is the policy of Congress that—
the United States should pursue an all-of-the-above strategy to develop the energy and water infrastructure required to maintain global leadership in artificial intelligence;
the United States should address demonstrated and localized infrastructure impacts through targeted, evidence-based measures rather than broad restrictions, blanket moratoria, or policies that impede responsible development;
large-load customers should be encouraged to build, bring, or buy new and additive generation resources and should bear the full incremental cost of the infrastructure required primarily to serve their facilities;
the development of data centers and advanced computing facilities should be addressed through regionally appropriate policies that protect affordability and reliability while allowing responsible economic development; and
water reuse should be encouraged through investment in projects that install, replace, or modify onsite water recycling systems, replace the use of freshwater with recycled water from a municipal water provider, or build or expand municipal water recycling systems.