FOCUSS: Florida Optimized Computing Under Sustainable Standards Act

Proposed bill would amend Chapter 2026-65 of Florida statutes, to protect water resources, agricultural land, and the electric grid while enabling compact, high-performance digital infrastructure

TAMPA, FL — July 21, 2026 — Angel Ramos, candidate for the Florida House of Representatives in District 64, today announced proposed legislation to establish minimum statewide resource-efficiency standards for covered data centers. The proposed bill would amend Chapter 2026-65 of Florida statutes, to prioritize high-density solid-state storage, prohibit routine consumptive water use for cooling information technology equipment, prevent unnecessary conversion of agricultural land, and set strict energy-intensity limits—directly encouraging the industry-wide transition from traditional hard-disk drives (HDDs) to modern flash and successor technologies.

The proposal responds to surging demand for artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and digital storage while ensuring Florida’s water resources, electric infrastructure, agricultural lands, and communities are protected. Advances in data-storage technology, cooling systems, building design, and energy efficiency now make it possible to deliver greater computing and storage capacity using far less land, water, and electricity.

Key provisions of the proposed bill include:

• No routine water use for cooling: Covered data centers would be prohibited from using potable water, groundwater, surface water, or reclaimed water for routine consumptive cooling of information technology equipment. Cooling would instead rely on air-based mechanical systems, refrigerant-based systems, sealed or closed-loop technologies, or other methods that require no routine water consumption.
• Mandatory shift to solid-state primary storage: Covered data centers that provide digital data-storage services would be required to use solid-state, nonmechanical, or successor technology as their primary active storage medium. Rotational magnetic hard-disk drives could not serve as the primary medium, although limited use for archival, backup, disaster recovery, or similar secondary purposes would remain permitted.
• High-density storage standard: Facilities would be required to maintain an installed usable digital storage capacity of not less than 1 petabyte for the space of about a 40 feet container of information technology equipment area dedicated to data-storage equipment—driving compact, efficient design.
• Strict energy-intensity limit: Average total electrical energy consumed by information technology equipment and its cooling systems could not exceed 70 kilowatt-hours during a 24-hour period for about each 40 feet container of information technology equipment area (measured as a rolling 30-day average).
• Protection of agricultural land and compact development: Covered data centers would be required to be designed so their equipment and primary supporting infrastructure can be housed within a building constructed under the Florida Building Code and lawfully approved for commercial or industrial use. Facilities could not rely upon the conversion of land used for bona fide agricultural purposes as a necessary means of satisfying the standards.

The proposed standards would be minimum statewide requirements and would explicitly preserve local government authority over comprehensive planning, zoning, land development, infrastructure, compatibility, and related matters. Local governments would retain full power to deny, condition, or impose more stringent requirements on proposed data centers.

“Florida can and must lead in advanced digital infrastructure without sacrificing our water, our farmland, or our energy reliability,” said Angel Ramos, candidate for Florida House District 64. “By requiring high-density flash and successor storage, eliminating routine water-intensive cooling, and capping energy intensity, this proposed legislation creates a clear path for efficient, sustainable data centers that protect Florida’s resources while meeting the demands of the AI and cloud era. It ends the outdated reliance on energy-hungry hard-disk drives as the primary storage medium and ensures new facilities are compact and responsible from day one.”

If enacted, the bill would apply prospectively to new covered data centers and substantial expansions. Existing facilities would not be required to retrofit solely for compliance. An independent OPPAGA study would evaluate the standards’ effectiveness and recommend future strengthening as technology advances. The proposal would also amend water-permitting statutes to prohibit consumptive-use permits for routine cooling water at covered data centers, reinforcing the water-protection goals.

Link to FOCUSS Act

Media Contact

Campaign of Angel Ramos
Candidate for Florida House of Representatives, District 64
Email: press@angelramosforflorida.com
Contact: (813) 951-0362