We Want Better Data Center Deals. We Need Your Help.
Join the FAS National Task Force to Establish a Model Community Benefits Agreement for Data Centers – Sign Ups by October 30
Our work starts with listening to state and local governments, understanding their challenges, and connecting research to practical solutions.
When we began researching data center Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs), we heard a consistent need: local governments wanted insight into how peer communities were approaching negotiations with data center developers. Which elements were most important to address in an agreement? Which CBAs were protecting communities the most? Which were yielding the most durable benefits to residents? But many agreements are negotiated confidentially, making them difficult to access and compare. That means too many communities are lacking a clear picture of emerging practices and their options at the negotiating table.
Today we are announcing the next step into this work – developing a model CBA template. But we need help from the people who are facing these new challenges first hand.
That’s why FAS is launching a national task force to bring together state and local government officials, subject-matter experts, and community practitioners.
How to Get Involved: Sign up by Friday, October 30, 2026
Become a Task Force Member
We’re looking for state and local government leaders who can bring firsthand experience, policy expertise, and practical perspectives to the template’s development.
Time Commitment: Two meetings per month through April 2027 – one full-group meeting and one committee meeting focused on a specific topic, plus written feedback on draft templates.
Sign up for the FAS Template CBA Task Force
FAS will not publicly identify participating individuals or organizations without their permission.
Join the On-Call Expert Panel
We’re also seeking academic, non-profit, and other subject matter experts to help address knowledge gaps and contribute relevant research, legal expertise, and historical context as the template develops.
Participate in Public Comment
FAS expects to release a draft for public comment in March 2027. Residents and other interested stakeholders, including people living near data centers or in communities negotiating with developers, will have an opportunity to share feedback.
How the Task Force Will Work
FAS has developed an initial draft CBA template based on our research. Task force participants will help refine it, identify knowledge gaps, and develop recommendations that reflect the realities of local policymaking.
The process will include three ways to participate:
- Task Force Members: State and local government leaders and staff who will help shape the template through meetings and written feedback.
- On-call Subject Matter Experts: Academic, nonprofit, and other experts who can contribute specialized knowledge, legal expertise, historical context, and emerging research.
- Public commenters: All interested stakeholders are invited to review and comment on a refined draft.
Drawing on the collaborative In the Lab model, FAS will prioritize evidence-based recommendations, transparency, an efficient timeline, and a community of practice among governments navigating data center development.
What Will the Task Force Cover?
Committee discussions will explore key provisions of a model CBA, including:
- Definitions
- Community engagement + advisory board
- Betterment Fund
- Construction requirements
- Air quality and heat mitigation
- Utility costs and energy requirements
- Water supply and reporting
- Residential setbacks, lighting, and noise
- Decommissioning and e-waste
- Enforcement, transparency, and reporting requirements
- Economic incentives and local hiring requirements
What Success Looks Like
By combining research with the experience of local leaders and subject matter experts, FAS aims to give communities practical tools for more informed negotiations.
The resulting template will help local governments evaluate proposals, identify potential community benefits, set clearer expectations, and strengthen accountability,
The goal: help communities approach data center development with stronger negotiating tools and a clearer understanding of what’s possible.
Our In the Lab initiative demonstrates the value of this collaborative approach. Our Model Data Governance Policy and Practice Guide for Cities and Counties remains the most robust publicly available guide even years later. Our Gen-AI initiative was one of the first task forces created by a national organization that brought together more than 45 unique local governments, 30 universities, four federal agencies, and philanthropic organizations to develop resources on AI community engagement, AI cybersecurity risks, and AI research priorities.
The CBA task force applies this same approach to a growing local policy challenge: bring the right people together, connect research with practical experience, and create the tools government can use.
Why a Model CBA?
To date, many negotiation efforts between local governments and data centers have been held confidentially. This makes it difficult for communities to see what others have secured or proactively identify emerging best practices. Without access to comparable agreements, local governments lack a clear baseline for negotiations. A model CBA can help communities:
- Negotiate from a stronger position with a clearer understanding of potential provisions and community benefits.
- Set expectations for developers around resource use, local hiring, and environmental protections.
- Strengthening transparency and accountability through clearer reporting and enforcement provisions.
- Adapt best practices locally rather than starting from scratch.
The goal isn’t a one-size-fits-all agreement. It’s a flexible starting point grounded in research and shaped by experience.
Why work with us?
The shared experience and perspective will shape a practical, adaptable template that communities can tailor to their own laws, needs, and policy goals. This is yet another form of FAS’s model of policy entrepreneurship: the practice of taking good policy ideas and turning them into actionable policy using science and evidence, and an understanding of how governments actually work. We know there are local residents and leaders already practicing policy entrepreneurship on this issue, and we want to collaborate.
If you have any questions about joining the FAS Template CBA Task Force, please contact metrolab@fas.org.
The goal: help communities approach data center development with stronger negotiating tools and a clearer understanding of what’s possible.
By mandating data centers that are clean, flexible, efficient, and beneficial, Colorado can bring opportunities to communities and enhance its overall infrastructure.
This report serves as a landscape assessment and toolbox from which local governments can negotiate an informed position when it comes to the levers available to them and includes a first-of-its kind analysis of eight executed community benefits agreements.
Colorado faces a projected shortage of more than 2,400 physicians by 2030, alongside the growing shortage nationwide, particularly in rural and certain underserved urban communities.