A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING SECTION 58-27-835 SO AS TO REQUIRE COMMERCIAL DATA CENTERS THAT CONSUME THREE MILLION GALLONS OF WATER ON A MONTHLY BASIS TO ANNUALLY REPORT THEIR WATER USAGE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES, TO PROVIDE PENALTIES, AND TO DEFINE NECESSARY TERMS.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1.  Chapter 27, Title 58 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

    Section 58-27-835. (A) For the purposes of this section, "commercial data center" means a facility, campus of facilities, or an array of interconnected facilities in this State used by a business enterprise to operate, manage, or maintain a computer, group of computers, or other organized assembly of hardware and software for the primary purpose of storing, retrieving, or transmitting data that has a peak demand of one hundred megawatts or greater.

    (B)(1) A commercial data center that consumes three million or more gallons of water per month must report to the Department of Environmental Services annually by January thirty-first the volume of surface water, groundwater, or any other source of water that the commercial data center utilized during the prior calendar year. The commercial data center must also report the anticipated volume of water that the commercial data center will utilize during the calendar year in which the report is filed.

       (2) The department may audit the reports and any data used by the commercial data center to compile the report. The department must provide a commercial data center with thirty days notice prior to commencing an audit. The department may assess a civil penalty against a commercial data center for filing a report after January thirty-first. The civil fine shall be up to ten thousand dollars for each day after January thirty-first that the report is not filed. The department may also assess a ten-thousand-dollar civil penalty for any inaccurate, misleading, or false information contained in the report.

SECTION 2.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

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