U.S. Senate tanks bill meant to shield Americans from data center energy costs

Audio By Carbonatix

(The Center Square) – A bill meant to prevent American communities from shouldering rising energy costs caused by data centers has died in the U.S. Senate.

The Ratepayer Protection Act, which nearly unanimously passed the House two weeks ago, failed to advance Wednesday in a 57-43 vote. Only four Democratic senators supported the bill.

The unsuccessful vote robs Republicans of a legislative win to point to as data centers remain a political flashpoint in the looming midterm elections.

“There is overwhelming bipartisan support for making sure working families are not stuck with the bill for a large company’s electricity use. Yet Senate Democrats voted against it,” Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., posted on social media.

“Republicans supported ratepayer relief and Senate Democrats stood in the way. The American people won't forget it.”

Senate Democrats who opposed the bill argue that it offers protection in name only. It stops short of legally requiring owners of data centers that draw more than 100 MW of power plugging into the electric grid pay for the associated grid upgrade costs.

Rather, it only mandates that state public utility commissioners “commence consideration” of implementing rules that would protect ordinary ratepayers within one year of the bill becoming law.

Sen. Dick Durbin, R-Ill., who voted against advancing the bill, agreed that “AI data centers should pay for the upgrades to the electric grid they need.” But the Ratepayer Protection Act, he argued, “does nothing to establish this requirement.”

“Senate Democrats just blocked this Big Tech distraction,” Durbin posted on social media following the vote. “Americans need real action, not Republican messaging.”

Communities across the country have rebelled against the rapid construction of data centers, even while President Donald Trump remains ardently opposed to a data center moratorium and has claimed the national backlash is a “conspiracy.”