Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Technical Standards topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Local technologists and infrastructure experts urge stricter technical standards and independent reviews
Summary
Industry and IT practitioners at the hearing praised many draft provisions but urged changes: make SOC 2 certification mandatory, require detailed power and wastewater estimates, ban lithium‑ion storage, and require independent third‑party assessments paid for and selected through a neutral process.
Several commenters who identified themselves as IT and infrastructure professionals praised specific parts of the draft while urging sharper technical requirements.
Donnie Jimenez, who said he has worked in technology and FinTech infrastructure for 35 years, told the commission he had provided federal medical guidance and SOC 2 materials and said the SOC 2 cybersecurity audit should not be voluntary: "I see that you put in here that a SOC 2 is voluntary. I don't think it should be voluntary," he said. Other technicians present advised more precise power metrics; one commenter noted that the proposed 250 kilowatt‑hour per square‑foot per year figure (as read in the draft) would make typical modern data‑center builds infeasible and urged clearly stated megawatt expectations instead.
Industry experts also emphasized operational risks: speakers urged closed‑loop cooling (to avoid potable‑water use), independent environmental and cultural assessments, fire‑suppression measures that avoid PFAS risk, and annual or more frequent environmental monitoring for water, soil, and air impacts. Several commenters recommended that the county require a minimum of 10 hours of energy storage that is not lithium‑ion and that backup generation meet emissions controls.
County staff accepted the technical submissions and asked for the materials to be provided in writing so staff can consider incorporation into the ordinance text.
