Subcommittee backs substitute requiring cleaner generator technology for new data centers
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Summary
The subcommittee voted to report a substitute to HB507 that would require data centers built after July 1, 2026 to employ best-available, low‑emission generator technology and limit nonemergency use; the substitute passed 7–3 after DEQ noted prior guidance recommending Tier 4‑equivalent generators.
The subcommittee voted to report, as substituted, HB507, which focuses on requiring best‑available generator technology for new data centers and placing limits on nonemergency generator use.
"This bill simply ensures that any data center built after 07/01/2026 must use that best generator technology, with the fewest emissions and puts limits on when and how those will be used," Delegate McAuliffe said in presenting the substitute. He described the measure as a first step toward cleaner backup power and said the original bill contained additional reporting and storage provisions that were pared back in the substitute.
DEQ officials told the committee that guidance recommending Tier‑4 equivalent generators was posted in December and would be published in the Virginia Register; the agency described the guidance as supervisory but said codifying it in law would be the result of this bill. "We already have posted last December a guidance memo that makes the best available control technology to be tier 4 equivalent generators," a DEQ director said.
Environmental groups urged stronger requirements and recommended reinserting monitoring and reporting provisions in future versions. The subcommittee recorded a vote to report the substituted HB507; the tally was 7–3.
The substitute advances an approach that combines regulatory direction with a path for future technical and reporting enhancements as policy develops.
