AI-FRONTIERMarch 26, 20261 min read21 views

Senators are pushing to find out how much electricity data centers actually use

U.S. senators are urging the Energy Information Administration to collect comprehensive data on data center electricity usage to prevent rising costs for families.

On Thursday, senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) sent a letter to the Energy Information Administration (EIA) urging it to begin collecting “comprehensive, annual energy-use disclosures” on data centers, as reported by Wired. According to the letter, data on how much electricity data centers are consuming is “essential for accurate grid planning and will support policymaking to prevent large companies from increasing electricity costs for American families.”

Senators are pushing to find out how much electricity data centers actually use

A bipartisan letter is the latest attempt to hold data centers accountable for rising electricity costs.

The EIA announced on Wednesday that it’s launching a pilot program to evaluate data center energy use, but that program is voluntary and focused on Texas, Washington, Northern Virginia, and Washington, DC. The joint letter from senators Warren and Hawley appears to be calling for much broader reporting on data center energy consumption.

It’s the latest in a growing bipartisan push for transparency and accountability around the impact data centers are having on skyrocketing electricity costs across the country. On Wednesday, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) introduced a bill proposing a moratorium on data center construction. Similarly, in February, senators Hawley and Blumenthal (D-CT) introduced a bill aiming to slow electricity cost increases stemming from data centers.

Numerous state-level bills are also under consideration, like one in New York that would put a three-year pause on new data center construction in the state. In December, Democratic lawmakers also sent a letter to tech companies and data center developers demanding answers on how much power data centers are using and the companies’ plans to keep expanding their data centers.

Source: The Verge AI

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