Delaware HB 233 large-load rate class (2026)
Delaware — HB 233: Separate Utility Rate Class for Large Energy-Use Facilities, Paying Full Infrastructure Upgrade Costs (Signed August 26, 2026)
Delaware · Del. H.S. 1 for H.B. 233, 153rd Gen. Assemb., 85 Del. Laws c. 440 (2026)
- Status
- In effect
- Took effect
- August 26, 2026
- Applies to
- Large energy-use facilities including data centers operating in Delaware; Delmarva Power and other regulated utilities; the Delaware Public Service Commission in setting rates.
- Enforced by
- Delaware Public Service Commission
Delaware House Bill 233 creates a separate utility rate class for large energy-use facilities such as data centers, and requires them to pay the full cost of the infrastructure upgrades they make necessary rather than spreading those costs across residential and small-business customers. This is the core cost-allocation move: once a hyperscale customer sits in its own rate class, the arithmetic that would otherwise socialise its grid costs no longer applies to it. Governor Matt Meyer signed it on August 26, 2026 as part of a four-bill Energy Consumer Protection package, alongside HB 445's clean-generation requirement, HB 310's removal of tax credits for these facilities, and SB 326's limits on what Delmarva Power can recover from ratepayers. All four took effect immediately. Delaware's approach is notable for treating the problem as four separate levers pulled at once — cost class, power supply, tax treatment and utility capital recovery — rather than a single omnibus statute.
Who is protected: Delaware residential and small-business utility customers, protected from absorbing the infrastructure upgrade costs created by large energy-use facilities.
Legal detail
Delaware House Bill 233 (153rd General Assembly), signed by Gov. Matt Meyer August 26, 2026, effective immediately. Creates a SEPARATE UTILITY RATE CLASS for large energy-use facilities, including data centers, and requires facilities in that class to bear the full cost of infrastructure upgrades attributable to them rather than shifting those costs onto residential and small-business customers. Mechanism is rate-class segregation rather than a project-by-project cost study, which removes the recurring dispute about allocation from each individual interconnection. Enacted as one of four bills in the Energy Consumer Protection package signed the same day: HB 233 (this entry), HB 445 (bring-your-own-generation, see Delaware HB 445 bring-your-own-generation mandate (2026)), HB 310 (tax credit disqualification, see Delaware HB 310 large-load tax credit bar (2026)) and SB 326 (utility capital expenditure oversight, see Delaware SB 326 utility capital expenditure oversight (2026)). Comparison: Virginia established a separate large data center rate class in 2025 by regulatory action and legislated the no-adverse-effect principle in 2026 via SB 253/HB 1393; Delaware reached the rate-class result by statute in a single session.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Delaware |
|---|---|
| Level | State |
| Strength | Stronger |
| Enacted | August 26, 2026 |
| Citation | Del. H.S. 1 for H.B. 233, 153rd Gen. Assemb., 85 Del. Laws c. 440 (2026) |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | Cost responsibility is assigned by rate class; specific penalty provisions not established from available coverage |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy · consumer protection · government use of AI |
| Bill text | DE Delaware HB 233 large-load rate class (2026) — official record (legis.delaware.gov) |
More AI rules in Delaware
- Delaware HB 445 bring-your-own-generation mandate (2026) · In effect
- Delaware HB 310 large-load tax credit bar (2026) · In effect
- Delaware SB 326 utility capital expenditure oversight (2026) · In effect
- Delaware Privacy Law (DPDPA) · In effect
- Delaware Election Deepfake Law · In effect
- Delaware AI Commission Act (government AI inventory) · In effect
Related data-center siting and energy rules elsewhere
- Superior WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Dane County WI Hyperscale Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- Madison WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Manitowoc County WI Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- WA SB 5982 (Data Center / Clean Energy) · In effect
- Dayton OH data center moratorium (180-day, Apr 2026) · In effect
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