RICHMOND, July 7 — For the data center construction crews working along the corridors of Loudoun County, the theft of copper wire has become more than a nuisance. It is a drain on time, materials, and security. Delegate David Bulova, a Democrat representing the 37th District in Fairfax County, has spent the better part of this year trying to put a stop to it.
In January 2024, Bulova introduced HB 1234, a bill that would require scrap metal dealers to record seller information and hold non-ferrous metals for 10 days. The legislation was a direct response to a 60% increase in thefts from data center construction sites in Loudoun County.
Bulova’s district includes parts of the region known as “Data Center Alley,” a corridor of server farms and tech infrastructure that has become a prime target for copper thieves. The bill is currently pending in committee as of June 2024. It has not yet advanced to a full floor vote.
A legislator with a long view of the district
Bulova has represented the 37th District in the Virginia House of Delegates since 2006. He sits on the House Committee on Commerce and Energy, a natural perch for a lawmaker who has made technology infrastructure security a central issue. Before entering the General Assembly, Bulova worked as a legislative aide.
He holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Virginia, earned in 1992. His background is rooted in the mechanics of governance — how bills are written, how committees function, how policy actually lands on the ground.
That experience shows in the way HB 1234 is structured. It does not simply ban the sale of scrap copper. It creates a paper trail.
Under the proposed law, scrap metal dealers would be required to record seller information of anyone selling non-ferrous metals. Those metals — copper, aluminum, brass — would then have to be held for 10 days before they could be processed or sold.
That holding period is designed to give law enforcement time to cross-reference stolen materials with recent theft reports. For the construction crews working on data center sites, the hold period could mean the difference between a completed project and a delayed one. Copper wiring is essential for electrical grounding, data transmission, and power distribution.
When it disappears from a job site, the entire construction timeline can slip.
The economics of copper theft
The rise in thefts from data center construction sites in Loudoun County has been driven by the high market value of copper. The metal is easy to strip, easy to transport, and easy to sell to scrap yards that do not ask too many questions. The 60% increase in thefts — a figure cited in the source material — has made the problem impossible to ignore.
Bulova’s bill targets the scrap dealers themselves. By requiring them to hold non-ferrous metals and record seller information, the legislation shifts some of the burden of verification from law enforcement to the commercial buyers.
It is a regulatory approach that has been tried in other states with mixed results. In Virginia, it remains to be seen whether the committee will advance the bill to a vote. The 10-day holding period is the most contentious element.
Scrap dealers argue that it ties up their working capital and slows down their operations. Law enforcement officials counter that it provides a critical window for investigations.
Bulova has positioned the bill as a middle ground — a way to deter theft without imposing an outright ban on cash sales or requiring photo identification, measures that have faced constitutional challenges elsewhere.
What comes next
As of this writing in July 2026, HB 1234 remains in committee. The legislative calendar in Virginia runs on a two-year cycle, so the bill could still see action in the 2025 session or be reintroduced in a future year. Bulova has not indicated whether he plans to amend the bill to address concerns from scrap dealers or law enforcement.
For the residents of the 37th District, the issue is not abstract. The data centers that line the highways of Loudoun and Fairfax counties are a major economic engine.
They employ thousands of workers and generate significant tax revenue. But they also attract criminal activity. Copper theft is not a victimless crime.
It costs construction companies time and money. It delays projects.
It drives up insurance premiums. Bulova’s approach — requiring documentation and a holding period — is a relatively low-cost intervention. Whether it will be enough to reverse the trend is an open question.
The committee has not yet scheduled a hearing for the bill. The 2026 legislative session is still months away. For now, the copper wire remains a target.
And the data center construction sites of Loudoun County remain vulnerable.
