| Local Hiring Mandate |
None — no federal requirement to hire locally for data center projects. |
Rare; most state packages focus on capital investment, not workforce origin. |
Mandatory: ≥ 30% construction and ≥ 40% permanent staff from host county. Audited annually. |
| Workforce Training |
Optional; some DOE grants fund R&D, not local training. |
Occasional workforce grants, not tied to project approval. |
Required: Partnership with local colleges/trade schools; funded curriculum in IT, electrical, mechanical, and operations. |
| Community Investment Fund |
None — no federal mechanism for ongoing local reinvestment. |
Rare; some voluntary corporate philanthropy. |
Required: ≥ 0.5% gross revenue annually to locally administered fund for infrastructure, education, or public services. |
| Energy Efficiency Standards (PUE) |
None — efficiency is voluntary; no binding PUE targets. |
None — some states offer extra incentives for efficiency but no mandates. |
Binding: ≤ 1.4 PUE within 3 years; “Gold Tier” ≤ 1.2 at launch. |
| Renewable Energy Sourcing |
Voluntary; some DOE programs encourage renewables but no mandate. |
Varies; Indiana has no binding renewable requirement for data centers. |
Binding: ≥ 50% renewable within 5 years; ≥ 80% within 10 years. |
| Waste Heat Recovery |
Not addressed. |
Not addressed. |
Required feasibility study; implementation if ROI ≤ 5 years. |
| On‑Site Energy Storage |
Not addressed. |
Not addressed. |
Required to offset peak‑load spikes and improve grid stability. |
| Infrastructure Upgrades |
No federal requirement to fund local infrastructure. |
Negotiated case‑by‑case; often minimal. |
Required proportional contributions to roads, fiber, substations; broadband spillover to local ISPs at cost. |
| Emergency Services Support |
Not addressed. |
Not addressed. |
Required funding for fire, EMS, and disaster‑response upgrades proportionate to facility risk. |
| Public Dashboards |
Not required. |
Not required. |
Required quarterly public dashboard with energy, hiring, investment, and environmental metrics; auditable by Dept. of Commerce. |
| Enforcement |
Limited; tied to tax compliance only. |
Limited; clawbacks rare and hard to enforce. |
Strong: Fines up to $50,000/day, loss of incentives, public non‑compliance flag, federal court enforceability of CBAs. |
| Incentives for Exceeding Standards |
Generic tax credits; not tied to community or energy performance. |
Capital investment tax abatements; not tied to performance. |
Targeted: 5% federal tax credit for exceeding PUE/renewable benchmarks; fast‑track permitting for “Gold Tier” projects; R&D grants for AI cooling, storage, and integration. |