The Senate voted 73-25 to begin considering a bipartisan permitting bill.
Why it matters: The measure could change federal reviews for energy, transmission and other infrastructure projects. It also would require certain new data centers to cover incremental grid costs.
- The November 9, 2026, vote invoked cloture on a motion to proceed to H.R. 2347, not final passage.
- The substitute amendment was filed by Shelley Moore Capito, Mike Lee, Sheldon Whitehouse and Martin Heinrich; the amendment is 494 pages.
- The bill would revise reviews under NEPA, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act and historic-preservation rules.
- New data centers and other high-density computing facilities with loads of at least 20 megawatts would cover incremental generation, storage, transmission and distribution costs.
The Senate voted 73-25 at about 5:31 p.m. Eastern on November 9, 2026, to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to H.R. 2347, the legislative vehicle for the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act of 2026, or BAAJA.
The vote advanced consideration only. It did not approve the permitting package, which still required further Senate action, possible amendments, final passage and resolution with the House.
Capito, Lee, Whitehouse and Heinrich filed a 494-page substitute amendment. The amendment would change federal environmental reviews and permitting for energy projects, transmission, generator interconnection queues and project-certainty rules.
A Congressional Research Service analysis identifies seven major titles covering NEPA, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, electric transmission, energy permitting and historic preservation, among other areas.
The amendment's data-center provision applies to a new data center or other high-density computing facility with a load of 20 megawatts or more. It would require the facility to pay the incremental costs of generation, storage, transmission and distribution needed to serve it. The amendment and CRS analysis do not specify the formula for calculating those incremental costs or provide a separate statutory definition of a qualifying facility.
The measure remains a procedural step rather than enacted law. The Senate vote record establishes the cloture vote and its result, while the filed amendment and CRS analysis document the proposal's review and permitting provisions.
By the numbers
- 73-25 - Senate cloture vote on November 9, 2026
- 494 pages - Length of the filed substitute amendment
- 20 megawatts - Minimum load covered by the amendment's data-center provision
Yes, but: The vote was not final passage. The package still required further Senate action, possible amendments and House resolution.