Dan Diorio gives an update on legislation the Data Center Coalition is tracking

AUSTIN, Texas - Dan Diorio is senior director of state policy for the Data Center Coalition. 

Via a zoom, Diorio recently gave an update to the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service on the legislation he is tracking in Austin. He was joined on the zoom by Guillermo Aguilar of Blackstone Consultants.

The Data Center Coalition’s website explains what data centers are.

“Data centers are the foundation of the digital infrastructure on which our modern society and economy are built. Data centers are physical locations that organizations use to house their critical applications and data. Anything that takes place online “in the cloud” is powered by a data center,” the coalition stated, on its website.

“Data centers aggregate our collective computing demands – everything from sharing photos with friends and family to streaming our favorite shows to supporting online learning and storing important medical and financial information – efficiently and securely in one location.”

The coalition added: “Previously, these types of computing resources were dispersed across businesses, which was far less efficient and secure. In 2010, nearly 80 percent of data center computing was done in smaller traditional computer centers, largely owned and operated by non-technology companies. By 2018, approximately 89 percent of data center computing took place in larger cloud data centers.”

Diorio brings over 16 years of experience in state and federal government affairs and public policy. He began his career in the Massachusetts State Legislature where he served as legislative director to State Senator Scott P. Brown. Diorio followed Brown to Washington, DC, and the United States Senate where he worked as a Legislative Assistant handling a large portfolio of issues including energy and the environment, education, labor, immigration, and transportation.

Diorio next handled state and federal government affairs for a Boston-based demand response provider. While there he helped form the Advanced Energy Management Alliance, a national trade association for demand response companies and end-users. Upon moving out west for sunshine and dry weather, Diorio covered election administration policy for the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Diorio was also the vice president of legislative affairs for Colorado for the GoWest Credit Union Association. He advocated for credit unions and managed legislative campaigns in both Colorado and Wyoming. Most recently he was chief of staff of Strategic Affairs for C6-Zero, a start-up advanced manufacturing company, where he led public affairs, government affairs and organizational development.

Diorio received his Bachelor of Arts in History from Boston College and has a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Colorado Denver. He lives in Denver with his wife and two children.

On the zoom, Diorio spoke about the legislation his group is tracking and how some pieces of legislation related to data centers have good and bad parts to them.

Together with Aguilar, Diorio spoke about the chances of South Texas landing major data center projects. Here is an audio recording of the zoom.

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