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Read. Follow. Verify.Kentucky legislature establishes strict cost-allocation, tariff, and infrastructure rules for data centers utilizing municipal and retail electric suppliers
Last action · March 31, 2026: taken from Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor (S) 2nd reading returned to Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor (S)Sponsors: Josh Bray and 5 others
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What This Bill Proposed
Kentucky House Bill 593 requires municipal electric utilities and retail electric suppliers to establish specialized data center s, prohibit cost-shifting to non-data center customers, require full capital prepayments, and mandate dedicated power resources for large facilities exceeding specified megawatt thresholds.
Residential and commercial utility customers are legally insulated from paying for infrastructure built to serve large data centers, while data center operators face upfront nonrefundable application fees of at least $75,000 and full cost-of-service allocations.
- Data centers have rapidly expanded their electricity and infrastructure demands across the United States, prompting state legislatures to address grid capacity and ratepayer protections. context
- Kentucky's General Assembly considers legislation governing retail and municipal electric suppliers under KRS Chapters 96 and 278. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Non-data center customer classes
Utility rates and service charges are legally insulated from absorbing any capital or operating costs associated with serving or constructing infrastructure for data centers.
Municipal electric utilities
Utilities must issue specialized data tariffs, conduct engineering and pricing studies, collect application fees, and enforce capital prepayments for data center customers.
Data center customers
Operators must pay a minimum $75,000 application fee, pre-fund infrastructure capital costs, secure dedicated power resources if capacity thresholds are exceeded, and meet minimum capital investment timelines.
Retail electric suppliers
Suppliers must file commission-approved data center tariffs, maintain dedicated resource provisions, and isolate non-data center customers from risk.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the upfront financial requirements for a data center applying for utility service?
Are all data centers in Kentucky subject to these new utility rules?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · passed the House · on the Senate floor.
Procedural history
9 actions- Mar 31, 2026SenateFloortaken from Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor (S) 2nd reading returned to Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor (S)
- Mar 27, 2026SenateCommitteeto Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor (S) taken from Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor (S) 1st reading returned to Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor (S)
- Mar 5, 2026SenateIntroducedreceived in Senate to Committee on Committees (S)
- Mar 4, 2026HouseFloor3rd reading, passed 90-8 with Committee Substitute (1)
- Mar 3, 2026Houseposted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Wednesday, March 04 2026
- Feb 27, 2026HouseFloor2nd reading, to Rules
Show 3 earlier actions
- Feb 26, 2026Housereported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar with Committee Substitute (1)
- Feb 10, 2026HouseCommitteeto Economic Development & Workforce Investment (H)
- Feb 6, 2026HouseIntroducedintroduced in House to Committee on Committees (H)
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Show 1 more sponsor
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Comprehensive Data Center Cost Isolation
The legislation systematically prevents data center energy and infrastructure costs from mixing with or impacting general residential and commercial utility rates across both municipal and retail electric suppliers.
Connected Entities
Sources
apps.legislature.ky.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 85)
- Controversy45Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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