House passes GOP-backed bill targeting data center power costs

Por Nico Portuondo and Amelia Davidson — POLITICO – TOP Stories

House lawmakers on Wednesday easily passed the first major legislative action to address the costs of the AI boom, a bill intended to shield Americans from potential energy costs associated with data centers.

The Ratepayer Protection Act, which has become the House GOP’s signature legislation to address the costs of the data center build-out ahead of the midterm elections, was passed in a broad bipartisan vote of 417-3.

“Large load data centers must cover the full costs of any system updates they require, not families or small businesses. We cannot accelerate this growth on the back of Americans working hard to pay their electric bill at the end of the month,” said Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.), the main co-sponsor of the bill alongside Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.).

The passage marks the first major bill to advance through Congress addressing the costs of the data center boom, as concerns about the costs and safety of artificial intelligence reach a fever pitch among voters. It comes after weeks of internal debate among House Republicans over how best to respond to growing backlash against data centers and could set the stage for further congressional action on AI in the months ahead.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise joined floor debate on the bill Tuesday to support the measure while also speaking about the benefits of data centers.

“As we’re advancing in technology, we’ve got to do it the right way,” Scalise said. “Let locals make the choice, and let consumers reap the benefits.”

Republicans running in tight midterm races pushed House leadership to take up the bill and signed on in droves as sponsors in the past weeks. Energy and Commerce Chair Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) was also pushing for the bill behind the scenes, arguing that it aligned with White House objectives as President Donald Trump has chastised any kind of AI regulation.

It was an open question of just how many Democrats would support the bipartisan legislation, after some progressives complained that the bill didn’t go far enough in compelling tech companies to pay for the energy infrastructure needed for data centers.

But only three Democrats ended up voting against the bill — all progressives. All Republicans present voted for the bill.

“This bill is imperfect,” said Energy and Commerce ranking member Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) during floor debate. “I want to promise that this bill is not the end of our focus on these issues; it’s only the beginning.

The bill would require states to consider — but not mandate they adopt — a federal standard ensuring large power customers cover 100% of the costs of new generation and transmission upgrades.

The bill will now head to the Senate, which has three weeks of legislative session during which they could pass the Ratepayer Protection Act ahead of the November midterm elections.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune noted this week that quick passage would a consent agreement from senators — something he said could be helped by a broad bipartisan vote in the House.

But Energy and Natural Resources ranking member Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) threw cold water on the bill this week, suggesting that the bill was “basically a voluntary structure” and does not go far enough to ensure that data centers pay for their own energy costs.

Fonte: POLITICO – TOP Stories