HR 9939
To prohibit Artificial Intelligence Data Centers on Federal land.
TL;DR
Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) introduced a bill that would ban the construction of AI data centers on any federal land. The bill is sitting in the House Natural Resources Committee and would close off millions of acres of federal property from being leased or sold for AI infrastructure projects.
How This Might Impact Your Business
Cloud and AI infrastructure providers (AWS, Microsoft, Google, Meta, Oracle) would lose access to federal land as a siting option for new hyperscale data centers.
Data center developers already scouting Bureau of Land Management parcels in Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and Wyoming would need to pivot to private land, likely at higher cost and with longer permitting timelines.
Power and utility companies planning to co-locate generation near federal-land data centers (including small modular nuclear projects) would see those deals disrupted.
Real estate developers and REITs focused on data center properties may benefit as demand shifts to private parcels, potentially driving up land values in key markets.
No compliance costs for AI users or software companies; the restriction targets physical siting only.
No stated penalties, exemptions, or effective date in the current text since the bill is a single-purpose prohibition.
Bill remains in committee with a single sponsor and no cosponsors listed, signaling low near-term passage odds but a signal of growing political pushback on AI infrastructure expansion.
What Should You Do
If your data center roadmap includes federal land parcels, ask your real estate team to identify private-land alternatives now as a contingency.
Hyperscalers and colocation providers should brief government affairs teams and consider engaging the House Natural Resources Committee before markup.
Utilities and energy developers with pending federal-land AI power deals should review contract force majeure and regulatory-change clauses.
Track companion or similar bills; Tlaib's proposal reflects a broader Democratic concern about AI energy and water use that may resurface in future legislation.
Monitor committee activity; no hearing has been scheduled, so the immediate risk is low but worth watching quarterly.
Who It Affects
Sponsors
Status Timeline
committee
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
July 23, 2026