Data center infrastructure strategy and roadmap for military installations

(a) In general Not later than January 15, 2028, the Secretary of Defense shall, acting through the Chief Information Officer of the Department of Defense and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment, develop and submit to the congressional defense committees a data center infrastructure strategy and associated roadmap for the build-out of private data centers on military installations. (b) Consultation In developing the strategy and roadmap required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall act in consultation with the following: (1) The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. (2) The Secretaries of the military departments and the respective chiefs of the Armed Forces and relevant headquarters elements. (3) The Joint Chiefs of Staff. (4) The Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation. (5) The Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security. (6) Such other officials and organizations as the Secretary considers appropriate. (c) Capacity and requirements analysis The strategy and roadmap required by subsection (a) shall include an analysis of the following: (1) The current data center capacity of the Department of Defense across all classification fabrics and network types, including partner networks and available cloud capacity. (2) Existing and projected future requirements across such classification fabrics and network types. (3) The gap, if any, between current capacity and existing requirements, and an estimated investment required to close that gap and meet projected future demand. (4) An assessment of data center configurations and form factors required to meet current and future requirements, including permanent fixed facilities, tactical and mobile capabilities, and emerging concepts and capabilities, including orbital data centers. (5) A framework, developed in coordination with the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, for evaluating future demand signals and requirements on an ongoing basis. (d) Installation infrastructure study As part of the development of the strategy required under subsection (a), the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment shall conduct a study that includes the following: (1) Development of a framework for evaluating future investments required to support proposed private data center build-out on military installations, including potential contracts or agreements with external vendors for the construction or operation of data centers on military installations that may not be servicing Department of Defense information processing needs. (2) An assessment of installation-level requirements associated with such contracts or agreements, including the following: (A) Physical security requirements. (B) Personnel vetting standards. (C) Power capacity requirements. (D) Any impacts to utility rates to installations and the surrounding areas. (E) Supporting infrastructure requirements. (F) Contractual arrangements to utilize excess data storage or power generation capacity in the event of an emergency, including requirements or liabilities open to the installation in the event such arrangements are utilized. (G) Contingency plans to address any extreme power fluctuations for the prevention of power outages. (H) Any market research that has identified data center companies’ record of ransomware attacks, or cyberattacks, and any violations of air quality regulations. (3) An analysis of the current and future data center plans of each military department for private data centers located on military installations. (4) An analysis by the Department of Defense Clearinghouse to understand the operational impacts of current and future private data center plans based on the analysis in paragraph (3). (e) Contents of strategy and roadmap The strategy and roadmap submitted under subsection (a) shall— (1) identify specific military installations designated or planned for private data center capacity, the basis for those designations, and the demand or capacity gap each installation is intended to address; (2) outline the authorities, frameworks, and terms governing contracts or agreements with external vendors for private data center construction or operation on military installations, including requirements relating to base infrastructure, power, and physical security; (3) identify the investments required to execute the roadmap, disaggregated by installation and by fiscal year; (4) describe how the Department will meet projected future demand based on the framework developed under subsection (c)(5); and (5) include a governance structure as a standalone annex for negotiating for land use rights and related agreements with external vendors, which shall— (A) designate a lead negotiator for each military department; (B) require each such lead negotiator to operate within the guidance established by the official designated under subsection (f); and (C) establish consistent negotiation guidance to ensure standardized terms across agreements and to protect the interests of the Department. (f) Designation of lead official (1) In general Not later than February 1, 2027, the Secretary shall designate a senior official within the Office of the Secretary of Defense to serve as the lead official responsible for overseeing and coordinating all activities of the Department relating to private data center build-out on military installations, including the development of the strategy and roadmap required under subsection (a) and all associated negotiations with external vendors. (2) Responsibilities The official designated under paragraph (1) shall— (A) have principal responsibility and accountability for the administration of implementation of the strategy and roadmap required under subsection (e); (B) establish the terms, frameworks, and negotiating guidance within which the military departments shall operate; and (C) ensure consistency and coordination across the military departments in the implementation of the strategy and roadmap. (3) Direction to military departments The Secretary shall direct the Secretaries of the military departments to conduct all activities under this section in coordination with and through the official designated under paragraph (1). (g) Form The strategy and roadmap required under subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex. (h) Definition of military installation In this section, the term military installations has the meaning given that term in section 2801(c) of title 10, United States Code.