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Evergreen Ledger

E2SHB 2515

In Committee

House

Large energy use facilities

Addressing emerging large energy use facilities.

This status may be delayed. See Action History below for the latest updates.

How does a bill become law?
  1. Introduced: The bill is filed and assigned a number.
  2. Committee: A subject-matter committee holds hearings, takes public testimony, and decides whether to advance the bill.
  3. Floor Vote: The full chamber (House or Senate) debates and votes on the bill.
  4. Opposite Chamber: The bill repeats the committee and floor vote process in the other chamber.
  5. Governor: The Governor reviews the bill and decides whether to sign or veto it.
  6. Signed: The bill has been signed into law.
Introduced: February 8, 2026
Last Action: March 12, 2026
Status: H Rules 3C
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AI Analysis

This analysis was generated by AI and may contain errors. It is not legal advice. Always refer to the official bill text for authoritative information.
People & CommunitiesBalancedCorporate & Wealthy Interests

This bill establishes new regulations for large energy users—specifically data centers and cryptocurrency facilities—requiring them to meet strict service contract terms with utilities, disclose resource use (energy, water, refrigerants), achieve 100% clean electricity by 2036, and pay a new fee. Revenue from the fee supports low-income energy programs and higher education in AI and quantum computing. The bill also excludes these facilities from receiving free emissions allowances under Washington’s Clean Energy Transformation Act.

  • Requires data centers and cryptocurrency facilities with 20+ megawatts of contracted demand to be regulated as 'emerging large energy use facilities'.
  • Mandates that electric utilities create and submit standardized service tariffs/contracts for these facilities, with provisions to protect ratepayers (e.g., 10-year commitments, exit fees, demand curtailment obligations, and real-time wholesale pricing).
  • Requires facility owners to publish sustainability reports (including energy, water, and refrigerant use) and submit annual resource use reports to state agencies.
  • Sets clean energy performance standards: 80% clean electricity by 2031 and 100% by 2036, verified through renewable energy credits.
  • Imposes a $0.005 per kilowatt-hour fee on facilities starting July 1, 2026, with proceeds funding low-income energy assistance and higher education in AI and quantum computing.
  • Bars emerging large energy use facilities from receiving free emissions allowances under the Clean Energy Transformation Act starting in 2027.

Who is affected

  • Data center and cryptocurrency facility operators — Must comply with new requirements including paying a $0.005/kWh fee, submitting annual sustainability and resource use reports, and meeting clean energy performance standards by 2031 (80%) and 2036 (100%).
  • Electric utilities (investor-owned and consumer-owned) — Must develop and submit standardized service tariffs/contracts for large energy users, with terms designed to protect other ratepayers from cost shifts and grid reliability risks.
  • Emerging large energy use facilities (as defined in the bill) — May lose eligibility for no-cost emissions allowances under the Clean Energy Transformation Act starting in 2027, potentially increasing their compliance costs.
  • Low-income Washington households — Will benefit from 60% of fees collected from large energy facilities being directed to low-income energy assistance, weatherization, and home electrification programs.
  • Public higher education institutions in Washington — Will receive 40% of fee revenue for higher education programs in quantum computing and artificial intelligence education for educators.
Effective: July 1, 2026Fiscal impact: A new $0.005 per kilowatt-hour fee on emerging large energy use facilities is expected to generate revenue deposited into a dedicated state account. Sixty percent will fund low-income energy programs, and forty percent will support higher education in quantum and AI education. The fee is projected to raise tens of millions annually, depending on facility growth.
Model: Intel/Qwen3-Coder-Next-int4-AutoRoundGenerated: Mar 20, 2026 at 2:16 AM

Pro/Con Analysis

Potential Benefits (5)

  • Directs 60% of fee revenue ($0.005/kWh) to low-income energy assistance, weatherization, and home electrification programs—targeting households earning ≤200% of federal poverty level—potentially reducing energy burden for tens of thousands of vulnerable Washingtonians and supporting health and safety (e.g., heating/cooling access, fire safety upgrades).

    FinancialPeopleRef: Sec. 9

  • Allocates 40% of fee revenue to public higher education institutions for AI and quantum computing educator training and career services—expanding workforce development capacity in high-growth tech fields, with a focus on equitable access and regional job growth, especially in rural and underserved communities.

    EducationPeopleRef: Sec. 9

  • Requires emerging large energy use facilities to curtail usage during energy emergencies and participate in demand response—enhancing grid reliability during heat waves or wildfires and reducing risk of cascading outages that disproportionately impact low-income and rural communities.

    Public SafetyPeopleRef: Sec. 2(4)(d)

  • Mandates public sustainability reporting—including water, refrigerant, and energy use—improving transparency and enabling community-based environmental justice assessments, particularly in rural counties hosting data centers where air/water quality monitoring is historically weak.

    EnvironmentPeopleRef: Sec. 4(1)(d)

  • Requires community workforce or project labor agreements for behind-the-meter infrastructure projects, promoting prevailing wages, apprenticeship inclusion, and local hiring—benefiting unionized construction workers and supporting equitable job creation in growing tech sectors.

    Business & EmploymentLean peopleRef: Sec. 10
Potential Concerns (5)

  • Requires emerging large energy use facilities to achieve 80% clean electricity by 2031 and 100% by 2036, which may increase compliance costs for facility operators—particularly those reliant on intermittent renewables or facing grid constraints—potentially delaying or canceling projects, especially for smaller operators without long-term power purchase agreements or capital reserves.

    Business & EmploymentIndustryRef: Sec. 6(1)(a)

  • Excludes emerging large energy use facilities from receiving no-cost emissions allowances under the Clean Energy Transformation Act starting in 2027, increasing compliance costs for these facilities relative to other emissions-intensive industries that retain eligibility—effectively shifting a portion of the decarbonization burden onto a concentrated group of large-scale operators, many of whom are foreign-owned or backed by institutional investors.

    Business & EmploymentIndustryRef: Sec. 7(1)

  • Mandates annual public reporting of energy, water, and refrigerant use, including proprietary technical and operational data, which may expose facilities to competitive disadvantage, increase cybersecurity exposure, and impose administrative burdens—especially for smaller operators lacking dedicated sustainability reporting staff.

    Business & EmploymentIndustryRef: Sec. 4(2)(c)

  • Requires emerging large energy use facilities to pay 85% of projected electricity demand as an annual capacity charge—even if underutilized—potentially deterring incremental expansion, increasing financial risk for marginal projects, and disproportionately affecting facilities still in ramp-up phases or dependent on evolving AI workloads.

    Business & EmploymentIndustryRef: Sec. 2(4)(a)(ii)

  • Imposes a $0.005/kWh fee starting July 1, 2026, which—while modest—adds a fixed cost burden per unit of electricity consumed, effectively functioning as a consumption tax that may be passed through to cloud service customers, data consumers, and ultimately to Washington households using AI-enabled services or enterprise software.

    FinancialIndustryRef: Sec. 8(2)

Who Is Most Affected

Data center and cryptocurrency facility operatorsNegative Impact

Large data center operators (often owned by institutional investors or foreign entities) face significant new compliance costs—including capacity charges, clean energy certification, and fees—potentially reducing project margins or delaying deployments. While some may absorb costs via service price increases, smaller operators or those without long-term PPAs face higher exit risk.

Low-income Washington householdsPositive Impact

Low-income households benefit from direct energy assistance and home electrification upgrades funded by the fee—reducing energy burden, improving health and safety, and increasing resilience during extreme weather. These gains are targeted and additive to existing programs.

Public higher education institutionsPositive Impact

Public higher education institutions gain dedicated funding for AI/quantum educator training and career services—expanding access to high-demand fields and supporting regional economic diversification, especially in communities with existing tech infrastructure (e.g., Seattle, Spokane, Yakima).

Electric utilities (investor-owned and consumer-owned)Mixed Impact

Electric utilities gain authority to impose long-term contracts with exit fees and demand curtailment, reducing stranded asset risk—but also face administrative burdens in tariff development and compliance monitoring. Ratepayer protections are explicit, but utilities may pass some costs to all customers via base rates.

Rural communities hosting emerging large energy use facilitiesMixed Impact

Rural communities hosting data centers may see job growth and tax revenue, but also face increased water use, grid strain, and environmental monitoring demands—mitigated by transparency requirements and fee-funded local capacity building.