Bill Description: House Bill 895 would limit how new data centers may use and access water. 

Rating: -1

Does it violate the principle of equal protection under the law? Examples include laws that discriminate or differentiate based on age, gender, or religion or which apply laws, regulations, rules, or penalties differently based on such characteristics. Conversely, does it restore or protect the principle of equal protection under the law?

House Bill 895 would create Section 42-252, Idaho Code, to say, “Data centers, as that term is defined in section 63-3622VV, Idaho Code, that begin construction on or after July 1, 2026, may not use water for cooling purposes as a consumptive use, unless the water is supplied by a municipal, water district, or water and sewer district water system.”

Section 63-3622VV, Idaho Code, defines a “data center” as “a facility comprised of one (1) or more buildings in Idaho that is used to house eligible server equipment for the transmission and storage of data where the facility has the following characteristics:

• Uninterruptible power supplies, generator power, or both;
• Sophisticated fire suppression and prevention systems; and
• Enhanced physical security and restricted access.”

The bill contains legislative findings and intent which includes the claim that data centers “require significant amounts of water” and that such water use “conflicts with the local public interest.”

The bill doesn’t define how much water use is considered significant, and it doesn’t differentiate between areas of the state where water may be abundant or where it may be scarce. It also provides no method (beyond reliance on a municipal, water district, or water and sewer district water system — which are not available in all areas) that a prospective data center could secure or purchase the water rights necessary for its operation.

Fundamentally, this law narrowly targets data centers while similar or arguably more water-intensive businesses are not similarly restricted.

While data centers may consume considerable amounts of water, so do many other businesses, including various types of industrial processing plants such as pulp and paper, electrical generation, and food processing. Agriculture is by far the largest consumer of water, but even a large golf course can use as much or more water than some data centers require.

Uniquely targeting one type of business for special regulation is inconsistent with the principle of equal protection.

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