Technology and Science02 October, 20263 min read
AWS CEO Matt Garman Ends Government NDAs, Publishes Five Environmental Metrics Annually
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AWS will no longer use government NDAs on data center projects. Matt Garman announced this in a Data Center Commitment post.
9 outlets told this the same way.
AWS drops government NDAs
AWS CEO Matt Garman announced that Amazon Web Services will no longer use nondisclosure agreements with the government agencies it works with on data center projects, and he framed the move as part of AWS’ Data Center Commitment. Garman said the company will publish five environmental metrics annually for public review, including energy use, energy efficiency, water use, water efficiency, and the percent of energy from carbon free resources. Garman also tied the NDA change to a broader community investment program called Built Together, which AWS says will add more than $1 billion over the next five years on top of what it is already doing.
“We no longer use nondisclosure agreements with the government agencies we work with on our projects.”
FourWeekMBAGarman’s post also asserted that Amazon has contributed more than one billion dollars to U.S. communities with meaningful data center presence over the past three years, while describing Built Together as separate and prospective. Garman warned that more than 100 data center moratoriums are being considered across the United States and argued that enacted freezes could write America’s “own losing ticket” in the AI race.
South Bend led the push
South Bend Mayor James Mueller signed an executive order on Sept. 16 prohibiting city departments from entering into NDAs and other confidentiality agreements on data centers, and the order followed confirmation that Public Works Executive Director Eric Horvath had signed an NDA with AWS in 2023 tied to wastewater service for Amazon’s New Carlisle data-center campus.
South Bend Common Council members Oliver Davis and Sherry Bolden-Simpson filed measures on Sept. 28, and the council voted unanimously on a resolution backing Mueller’s order and an ordinance authored by Davis and Bolden-Simpson to bar NDAs across city government’s branches on data-center and related Water Works matters.
WNDU quoted South Bend Councilman Dr. Oliver Davis saying, “Nothing makes up for what was done in the past, except for being in a state where we can correct it,” after AWS announced its national NDA retreat.
Garman’s Friday announcement also came with a promise of open houses and annual public reporting of energy use and efficiency, water use and efficiency, and the share of carbon-free energy, according to WNDU.
Wired reported that Amazon’s blog post acknowledged the backlash is hampering the AI buildout, and it cited Garman’s line that there are “over 100 data center moratoriums being considered across the country.”
What Amazon says comes next
AWS said it would publicly report energy use, energy efficiency, water use, water efficiency, and carbon-free energy annually, and it described those disclosures as a way for the public to review the company’s claims over time. Garman’s post asserted a 2025 global PUE of 1.14 against an industry average of 1.25, and it also claimed sites are seven times more water-efficient than the industry average. Garman said the company’s new sites will use backup generators meeting the EPA Tier 4 emissions standard or regional equivalents, and he stated a commitment to be water positive by 2030 and said it was 75 per cent of the way there as of 2025.
“We will publish our energy use, energy efficiency, water use, water efficiency, and the percent of energy from carbon free resources for the public to review on an annual basis.”
FourWeekMBAThe Built Together program, AWS said, would cover education, workforce training, energy affordability and local priorities, and it said the money is not capital expenditure on data centers, not compute capacity, and not an equity raise. TechCrunch reported that environmental activist Erin Brockovich said the number one complaint she has heard about data centers is transparency, and she described a pattern of “projects announced after permits are already secured” and local officials who signed NDAs before neighbors knew a project was being considered.