tl;dr: The EPA is proposing to eliminate the federal requirement that states solicit public comment before issuing air-pollution permits for industrial facilities like data centers and their power plants, and would separately allow construction to begin before permits are approved. Critics argue this removes one of the few formal avenues for residents—particularly in rural Black communities in the South, where data center growth is concentrated—to challenge projects linked to air pollution, higher utility bills, and housing displacement. Nearly 200 advocacy groups and over a dozen states oppose the changes, which the EPA aims to finalize within a year.