Gov. Gavin Newsom has vetoed legislation that would have required data centers to report how much water they use.

New data centers have been rapidly proliferating in California and other western states as the rise of artificial intelligence and growing investments in cloud computing drive a construction boom. The centers, full of equipment, generate lots of heat and can use large quantities of water to cool their servers and interiors. Many companies don’t reveal how much they use.

Assembly Bill 93, introduced by Assemblymember Diane Papan (D-San Mateo), would have required new data centers to disclose their expected water use when they apply for a business license and would have required all to report their water consumption annually.

In a message explaining his decision Saturday, Newsom said the widespread adoption of AI “is driving an unprecedented demand for data center capacity throughout the nation.”

“As the global epicenter of the technology sector, California is well positioned to support the development of this critically important digital infrastructure in the state,” Newsom wrote. “I am reluctant to impose rigid reporting requirements about operational details on this sector without understanding the full impact on businesses and the consumers of their technology.”

The bill was opposed by business groups including the Data Center Coalition.

Much of the data center construction boom is taking place in arid states, including California, Arizona and Texas, where strains on water have been mounting amid dry conditions and rising temperatures.

Papan said the bill was “a reasonable, transparent approach to understanding and managing the massive water demand driven by AI,” and that she will keep trying to “strike the right balance between technological innovation and sustainable resource management.”

In other water news, Newsom signed:

• Senate Bill 72, which requires the Department of Water Resources to set long-term water targets including, within 15 years, having “additional water, water conservation, or water storage capacity” totaling 9 million acre-feet — nearly three times the water used annually across six counties in Southern California. Newsom said in his signing message that going forward, the state agency will have to “analyze current and future water needs trends” when updating California’s water plan.
• Senate Bill 31, a bill intended to help the state deal with worsening droughts and the effects of climate change by increasing the use of recycled water. Introduced by Sen. Jerry McNerney (D-Pleasanton), it loosens rules to allow parks to use more reclaimed water and ensure homeowners’ associations don’t have to lay new pipes if they want to use it.
• Assembly Bill 1466 permits courts, in disputes over groundwater, to enter judgments separately for well owners that pump small quantities of water. Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara), the bill’s sponsor, said it will enhance California’s groundwater sustainability efforts and protect “small family farmers that face expensive litigation.”
• Senate Bill 394 is intended to combat theft of water by enabling local agencies to crack down on those who steal from fire hydrants with increased fines and new enforcement powers. The bill was introduced by Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica) and supported by Las Virgenes Municipal Water District and the Assn. of California Water Agencies. Las Virgenes, which supplies about 70,000 customers in Agoura Hills, Calabasas and other communities, said it has lost an estimated 45 million gallons of water in recent years because of theft from hydrants. Supporters of the bill said the theft has reached a point where thieves steal for commercial use, including construction, landscaping or farming. Now they could face an initial fine of $2,500, and up to $10,000 for a repeat offense.

After the January fires that destroyed thousands of residences, victims who lost their clothing, furniture and other possessions faced a daunting task: creating a list of itemized losses to submit to their insurers — typically without records to rely on.

While existing law paid policyholders who suffered total losses as much as $250,000 up front using a formula based on 30% of their dwelling coverage, getting additional money could be overwhelming for victims already dealing with one of the most catastrophic events anyone can suffer.

Now, under a bill signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, fire victims whose residences burned down can get 60% of their personal property coverage up to $350,000 without first submitting what is euphemistically called “The List. “ The law also extends the time for filing itemized claims to at least 100 days, up from just two months.

“While it’s been nine months since these firestorms struck Los Angeles, the destruction and devastation left behind is still fresh for thousands of survivors and remains a constant reminder that we have more to do to support our fellow Californians,” Newsom said in a statement, which accompanied his signature on a bipartisan package of fire-related legislation that included the itemization bill.

The legislation, Senate Bill 495, was backed by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and authored by Sen. Ben Allen (D-Pacific Palisades), whose district includes the Palisades fire zone. It originally called for policyholders suffering total losses to get 100% of their personal property coverage limits up front, but it was opposed by the insurance industry and amended.

The new legislation, like the prior law, only applies in situations where a state of emergency has been declared, which typically occurs after a catastrophic fire. It goes into effect in January.

“The recent L.A. fires exposed difficult inefficiencies in our insurance system that unnecessarily delay the urgently needed financial support survivors are justly due,” Allen said in a statement.

Newsom also signed Senate Bill 429 funding the nation’s first public wildfire catastrophe model, which will be a benchmark for proprietary computer models insurance companies are now using to simulate the damage and potential losses from wildfires and other big disasters.

Under Proposition 103, which regulates the state’s home insurance market, insurers have had to set their premium rates based on historic fire losses. However, there is a growing consensus that climate change has heightened wildfire risks, as evidenced by a growing number of catastrophic blazes California has suffered over the last decade.

Last year, Lara enacted regulations that allow for the private computer models to be used in rate setting, but required that steps be taken to develop a public model since the programs insurers use employ propriety algorithms and data that limit knowledge of how they work.

In May, a task force led by Cal Poly Humboldt recommended that the state fund a research and educational center that would start work on the model and develop a multi-year plan to implement it. SB 429, authored by Sen. Dave Cortese (D-San Jose), creates an insurance department fund to carry it out.

Wary of the proprietary nature of insurer models, which are being used nationwide to simulate various disasters, consumer groups had called for a California public model. Only Florida has developed one, and that is for hurricanes.

“By grounding these models in publicly available data and subjecting them to public scrutiny, policymakers can better protect consumers and promote equitable outcomes in the insurance industry,” said Mekedas Belayneh, a climate policy advocate with Public Citizen, a Washington-based advocacy group.

“Climate change is already reshaping where and how people live. The question is whether the tools used to manage that risk will serve the public interest or the narrow interests of insurance companies. California’s experiment with a public catastrophe model may be the first real test,” she added.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday signed a bill into law that aims to make artificial-intelligence-powered chatbots safer despite some pushback from the tech industry.

The legislation, Senate Bill 243, requires chatbot operators to have procedures to prevent the production of suicide or self-harm content and put in guardrails, such as referring users to a suicide hotline or crisis text line.

The bill is among several that Newsom signed on Monday that would affect technology companies. Some of the other legislation he signed tackled issues such as age verification, social media warning labels and the spread of AI nonconsensual sexually explicit content.

Under SB 243, operators would be required to notify minor users at least every three hours to take a break, and that the chatbot is not human. They would also be required to implement “reasonable measures” to prevent companion chatbots from generating sexually explicit content.

“Emerging technology like chatbots and social media can inspire, educate, and connect — but without real guardrails, technology can also exploit, mislead, and endanger our kids,” Newsom said in a statement.

The bill’s signing shows how Newsom is trying to balance child safety concerns and California’s leadership in artificial intelligence.

“We can continue to lead in AI and technology, but we must do it responsibly — protecting our children every step of the way,” Newsom said.

Some tech industry groups such as TechNet still opposed SB 243, and child safety groups such as Common Sense Media and Tech Oversight California also withdrew their support for the bill because of “industry-friendly exemptions.”

Newsom hasn’t announced a decision yet on a more contentious AI safety bill, Assembly Bill 1064.

That legislation would bar businesses and other entities from making companion chatbots available to California minors unless the chatbot isn’t “foreseeably capable” of harmful conduct such as encouraging a child to engage in self-harm, violence or disordered eating.

Child safety groups and California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta urged the governor to sign AB 1064.

Facebook’s parent company Meta opposes the legislation and the Computer & Communications Industry Assn. lobbied against the bill, saying it would threaten innovation and disadvantage California companies.

Newsom has until the end of the day to decide whether or not to sign or veto AB 1064. A bill can also become law without a governor’s signature.

California is the global leader in artificial intelligence, home to 32 of the 50 top AI companies worldwide.

The popularity of the technology that can answer questions and quickly generate text, code, images and even music has skyrocketed in the last three years. As it advances, it is disrupting the way people consume information, work and learn.

Lawmakers fear chatbots could harm the mental health of young people as they lean on technology for companionship and advice.

Parents have sued OpenAI, Character AI and Google, alleging the companies’ chatbots harmed the mental health of their teens who died by suicide.