Florida legislation · 2026 Regular Session
Florida S484: Data Centers
Status: Chaptered, May 8, 2026
Specifying that local governments maintain authority to exercise power and responsibility over comprehensive planning and land development regulations relating to large load customers; requiring public utilities to provide certain minimum tariff and service requirements for large load customers; prohibiting the governing board of a water management district or the Department of Environmental Protection from issuing a permit for the consumptive use of water to a large-scale data center under certain circumstances; requiring the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to contract for a study relating to the construction and operation of large-scale data centers, etc.
What the bill says
An act relating to data centers; creating s. 163.326, F.S.; providing legislative findings; specifying that local governments maintain authority to exercise power and responsibility over comprehensive planning and land development regulations relating to large load customers; prohibiting a large load customer from being considered an electric substation; amending s. 288.075, F.S.; defining the term âdata centerâ; providing an exception to a provision allowing an extension of certain confidentiality protections; creating s. 366.043, F.S.; providing legislative findings; defining terms…
From the enrolled text, March 13, 2026:
An act relating to data centers; creating s. 163.326, F.S.; providing legislative findings; specifying that local governments maintain authority to exercise power and responsibility over comprehensive planning and land development regulations relating to large load customers; prohibiting a large load customer from being considered an electric substation; amending s. 288.075, F.S.; defining the term âdata centerâ; providing an exception to a provision allowing an extension of certain confidentiality protections; creating s. 366.043, F.S.; providing legislative findings; defining terms; requiring public utilities to provide certain minimum tariff and service requirements for large load customers; requiring that such requirements ensure that large load customers bear their costs of service and that such costs are not shifted to the general body of ratepayers; requiring certain measures to minimize the risk of nonpayment of such costs; requiring that such minimum tariff and service requirements include certain provisions designed to prevent a public utility from providing electric service to a large load customer that is a foreign entity; prohibiting a customer from separating a certain electrical load into multiple smaller connections for a specified purpose; authorizing the Florida Public Service Commission to approve public utility tariffs that include certain utility industry-accepted ratemaking and other financial tools; prohibiting any tariff, contractual provision, service requirement, or other public utility policy from preventing or hindering the curtailment or …