A bill is moving forward in the Utah State Legislature that aims to eventually shut down water to the National Security Agency’s (NSA) new massive data storage facility at Bluffdale, just south of Salt Lake City.

On Wednesday, the Public Utilities and Technology Interim Committee discussed the bill that "prohibits cooperation between a federal agency that collects electronic data and any political subdivisions of the state."

Rep. Marc Roberts, the bill’s author, did not immediately respond to Ars’ request for comment. As currently drafted, the bill would let the Bluffdale contract with the NSA continue until it runs out.

In this desert state, water has been a key issue at the Bluffdale site—particularly since a Salt Lake Tribune reporter, Nate Carlisle, has been actively trying to figure out how much water the NSA uses in the Beehive State.

Earlier this year, the Tribune published data showing that since July 2013, the facility used 6.2 million gallons of water in a month, the highest single month in more than two years of data. For that, the NSA paid $28,596 monthly to the City of Bluffdale, the minimum bill amount.

Under the two entities’ water contract, that minimum bill jumped to $31,692 as of 2014. However, since July 2013, the monthly water usage fell, rose, and fell again in 2014, reaching a low point of 2.8 million gallons as of February 2014 (the most recent data point).

In October 2013, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Utah Data Center had experienced "10 [electrical] meltdowns in the past 13 months." The paper added that the Utah site continuously draws 65 megawatts of power, "which could power a small city of at least 20,000." Bluffdale itself is a small city of 8,000 people, and it's also the headquarters of the Apostolic United Brethren, a Mormon fundamentalist group.

The NSA has not responded to Ars’ repeated requests to find out whether the facility is operational.