HI SR90

Hawaii State Energy Office is requested to convene a working group to study potential impacts of large data centers on electric utilities, ratepayers, natural resources, and climate goals.

Working group membership includes representatives from the Energy Office, Business and Economic Development, Land and Natural Resources, Public Utilities Commission, electric utilities, consumer advocacy groups, and environmental organizations.

The group will examine regulatory safeguards including cost allocation mechanisms for grid infrastructure, ratepayer protections, transparency requirements for electricity and water consumption, and strategies to ensure data centers use renewable energy.

Data centers consumed approximately 4.4% of U.S. electricity in 2023 and could consume 6.7% to 12% by 2028, with large facilities potentially using hundreds of millions to billions of gallons of water annually for cooling.

The working group must submit findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the 2027 Regular Session and will cease to exist on June 30, 2027.