The Data Center Community Empowerment Act of 2026 requires the Secretary of Energy to create a new Data Center Community Assistance Program that provides technical help and information to state, local, and tribal governments considering data center projects in their areas. Within 180 days of enactment, the program must offer objective analysis on how data centers would affect electricity demand, water use, infrastructure needs, job creation, tax revenues, and other community impacts. The bill also requires the Secretary to develop a publicly available toolkit written in plain language for local officials, complete with model questions to ask developers, definitions of technical terms, case studies, and explanations of utility costs and cooling systems. When requested, the Secretary can independently review a data center developer's plans and analysis to verify the accuracy and reasonableness of their projections, though the department cannot make recommendations for or against any specific project. The legislation makes clear that the program is advisory only and does not give the federal government authority over local zoning or permitting decisions.