No Harm Data Centers Act

This legislation aims to protect residential and small commercial electricity customers from the financial burdens imposed by large data centers. It grants the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) the sole authority to approve retail rates and charges for electric energy sold to data centers with a peak demand exceeding 50 megawatts. These approved rates must be just and reasonable, and critically, must include the full costs of constructing, upgrading, and expanding transmission, distribution, and generation facilities required for data center interconnection and grid reliability. The bill explicitly prohibits covered electric utilities from shifting these specific costs onto other customer types. Beyond electricity costs, the bill addresses other impacts of data centers. It limits the judicial enforceability of predispute nondisclosure clauses against public officials concerning data center construction. Furthermore, it directs the Environmental Protection Agency to engage the National Academies to conduct an assessment of data centers' environmental and public health impacts, including noise, air, water, carbon emissions, and waste, and to develop recommendations for mitigation. Violations of the new rate provisions are subject to significant civil penalties.