Osage Nation Data Center Bill Would Require Congress Approval
Osage Nation Data Center Bill Would Require Congressional Approval for Hyperscale Projects
The Osage Nation Congress is considering legislation that would require tribal government entities to obtain approval from the Nation’s 12-member legislature before authorizing a hyperscale data center within Osage Nation boundaries. ONCA 26-70, introduced by Congresswoman Angela Pratt, comes as a proposed 827-acre Google data center near Sand Springs faces another critical tribal approval process involving the Osage Minerals Council.
The legislation does not itself ban data centers, nor does its introduction mean the Osage Nation Congress has rejected the Sand Springs proposal known as Project Spring. Instead, the measure would add congressional review to decisions involving hyperscale facilities, reflecting a broader debate over tribal sovereignty, water and energy demands, natural resources and who within the Osage government should have authority over projects of that scale.
Osage Nation Data Center Bill Would Add Congressional Oversight
ONCA 26-70 was introduced September 25 during the Tzi Zho Session of the 10th Osage Nation Congress.
The official Osage Nation legislative record for ONCA 26-70 describes the measure as requiring any Osage Nation government entity considering approval of a hyperscale data center within the Nation's boundaries to first obtain approval from Congress.
Pratt has argued that decisions involving projects with potentially significant effects on land, water, energy infrastructure and Osage communities should not remain isolated within a single part of tribal government.
The legislation was referred to the Natural Resources Committee, which placed ONCA 26-70 on its September 25 agenda. The committee is scheduled to consider the legislation again on October 2.
That means the proposal remains in the legislative process and has not yet become Osage Nation law.
The debate also raises an important question about the structure of Osage government.
The Osage Minerals Council has authority over the Osage Mineral Estate, while the Osage Nation Congress exercises legislative authority under the Nation's constitutional government. Some Minerals Council members have questioned whether requiring congressional approval for projects involving mineral leases could intrude on the council's established authority.
ONCA 26-70 therefore involves more than a debate over data centers. It could also determine how different branches and entities of the Osage Nation coordinate when major industrial development affects multiple tribal interests.
Google Project Spring Still Faces Osage Minerals Council Decision
The legislation arrives amid the continuing controversy surrounding Project Spring, a proposed hyperscale data center development near Sand Springs.
Google says it is considering purchasing the project from developer White Rose Partners. The project's official Project Spring website identifies the location as an 827-acre property at 5615 OK-97 in Sand Springs.
According to the developer, the actual data center buildings are expected to occupy less than 10% of the property, with much of the remaining acreage devoted to infrastructure including roads, parking, equipment areas and electrical transmission facilities.
The Sand Springs City Council voted 6-1 in February to approve the project at the municipal level.
That approval, however, did not resolve the tribal issues surrounding the property.
The project sits within the Osage Nation Reservation, and development also intersects with the Osage Mineral Estate, a unique federally protected mineral estate underlying Osage County.
Project Spring still requires leasing approval involving the Osage Minerals Council and federal authorization before development can proceed as proposed.
That gives the Minerals Council a significant role independent of the Sand Springs municipal approval.
Opponents have raised concerns about water consumption, electricity demand, environmental effects, noise, rural development and the potential impact on Osage natural resources. Supporters and developers have pointed to potential economic development, infrastructure investment and employment.
Google has described Project Spring as a potential development rather than a completed investment decision.
The pending tribal approvals mean the project remains unresolved despite receiving the earlier city approval.
Oklahoma Tribes Increasing Scrutiny of Hyperscale Data Centers
The Osage debate is part of a much larger discussion unfolding across tribal nations and Oklahoma communities as artificial intelligence drives demand for increasingly large data centers.
Several Oklahoma tribes have already taken action.
The Cherokee Nation announced in August that hyperscale data centers would not be permitted on tribally owned or trust lands after a task force spent months examining economic and environmental implications. Earlier in the year, Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. created the task force specifically to study how data centers could affect the Nation's economy and natural environment. Cherokee Nation
The Seminole Nation of Oklahoma has adopted an indefinite moratorium on data center development on tribal lands, while the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma has also declared opposition to data center construction and operation on its tribal lands.
The Muscogee Nation has been studying potential impacts as tribal governments across Oklahoma consider how large-scale computing facilities could affect water supplies, electricity infrastructure, land use and sovereignty.
Osage Nation is taking a somewhat different approach with ONCA 26-70.
Rather than imposing an immediate prohibition, the legislation would establish another layer of tribal review by requiring approval from Congress before an Osage government entity could authorize a hyperscale project.
That distinction could become particularly important with Project Spring because multiple governments and tribal entities have authority or interests connected to the development.
For now, Sand Springs has approved the project, Google remains interested in the site, the Osage Minerals Council still has a significant decision ahead and ONCA 26-70 remains under consideration by the Osage Nation Congress.
The next scheduled step for the legislation is another Natural Resources Committee meeting on October 2.
The outcome could help establish not only what happens with hyperscale data centers inside Osage Nation boundaries, but also which parts of the tribal government must have a voice before projects of that scale can move forward.
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