Rep. Peter Herzberg

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes new rights in Michigan that allow individuals to own and license their name, likeness, voice, and image as personal property for commercial use. It requires written consent from a living person before their identity can be used for trade, though it includes exceptions for news reporting, artistic criticism, and incidental appearances in media. The law also creates a system where these rights can be transferred or inherited, with specific rules on how long an estate can continue to commercially exploit a deceased person's identity after they pass away. If a business violates these rules, the affected individual can sue for damages, which may include up to three times the actual harm caused or a minimum of $10,000 per violation.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes the State Employment Contract Regulation Act to limit severance pay for employees and officers in Michigan's executive and legislative branches. It generally prohibits contracts that offer more than 12 weeks of wages in severance, ban non-disclosure agreements that prevent reporting illegal activities, and require contracts to be fully disclosed to the public. Exceptions allowing higher severance or restricted contracts are permitted only if legal counsel determines they are necessary to protect public funds from litigation risks, provided such agreements include legal releases of claims. Additionally, the law mandates that any contract offering six weeks or more of severance be posted online within 28 days, while contracts for elected officials must be shared with legislative leaders within three days.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires anyone applying for a building permit for a data center in Michigan to submit a detailed acoustic engineering report. The report must include measurements of current noise levels, projections of construction and operational noise, and a comparison of these levels against local rules or national standards. An enforcing agency cannot issue the permit until this report is provided and shared with the Michigan Public Service Commission and the local government. The law only takes effect if several other related bills are also passed.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends Michigan's zoning enabling act to explicitly include the Data Center Community Benefit Agreement Act as a law that local zoning ordinances must follow. By adding this requirement to the list of existing state laws, the measure ensures that municipalities cannot create zoning rules that conflict with community benefit agreements for data center projects. The legislation also clarifies that local governments cannot regulate oil and gas drilling operations and establishes specific criteria for evaluating mining activities based on factors like safety, traffic, and public interest. Additionally, it protects renewable energy projects approved after January 1, 2021, from having their special land use approvals revoked once substantial construction or financial investment has begun.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires electric utilities in Michigan to include project labor agreements or collective bargaining agreements for all construction and maintenance work on qualified data centers. A project labor agreement is a pre-hire contract that sets standard employment terms, prevents strikes, and ensures labor-management cooperation for specific construction projects. The measure applies to facilities designed to house data center equipment for storing and processing information. The legislation will only take effect if several related bills are also passed into law.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires data centers in Michigan to sign legally binding community benefit agreements before they can begin construction or operation. To get approval, data center owners must negotiate deals with local governments and utility providers that address issues like hiring local workers, managing water usage, and funding community projects. The law mandates that these agreements cover at least half of five specific topics, including infrastructure costs and home efficiency improvements, and they must be approved by both the local government and the state public service commission. Without these signed agreements, local authorities cannot issue necessary permits, and the state commission cannot approve the facility's connection to the power grid. This legislation applies to any facility designed to house equipment for storing and processing data within the state.

Maddy summaryThis bill, known as the Data Center Transparency Act, prohibits elected officials in Michigan from signing nondisclosure agreements that keep data center construction details secret. It specifically applies to contracts between local governments and data center owners where the facility is built in exchange for tax incentives. Under the law, any such agreement attempting to hide information about the project would be considered void and unenforceable, while still allowing the redaction of specific intellectual property details. The measure requires that all related bills be passed for this provision to take effect.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires data center operators in Michigan to submit a decommissioning plan to the Public Service Commission before receiving approval for rates or contracts with electric utilities. The plan must include financial assurance, such as a performance bond or escrow account, to cover the estimated costs of dismantling the facility and restoring the land to its pre-construction condition. The commission will review these financial guarantees every three years to ensure sufficient funds are available for cleanup when the data center is eventually closed. This legislation directly affects businesses operating data centers and the utility companies that serve them. The bill is part of a larger package of related measures that must all be enacted to take effect.

Maddy summaryThis Michigan bill establishes the Data Center Water Regulation Act, which requires new and existing data centers to either use a closed-loop cooling system that recirculates water or source all water exclusively from municipal systems. Facilities that currently rely on groundwater or surface water must immediately stop operations once the law takes effect, while those violating the rules face civil fines of up to $1 million per day. The legislation also grants the Michigan Public Service Commission the authority to create specific rules for implementation and mandates that collected fines be deposited into the state's general fund.

Maddy summaryThis bill directs the Michigan Public Service Commission to create a specific rate structure for data centers that requires a 15-year contract with the utility provider. Under the new rules, data centers would face a minimum monthly charge based on 60% of their contracted power demand, regardless of how much electricity they actually use, and must pay a penalty fee if they break their contract early. The legislation also mandates that data centers provide collateral equal to 24 months of billing charges and ensures they cover all costs associated with generating, transmitting, or distributing their power without passing those expenses to other customers. This proposal applies only to facilities in Michigan designed to store and process data and is part of a larger package of related bills that must all pass together to take effect.