Baldwin Votes Against Voluntary Approach to Data Centers; Vows to Push Real Reform to Protect Wisconsin Ratepayers

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) voted against legislation that fails to protect Wisconsin ratepayers and does nothing to ensure that data centers pay for their own energy costs. The legislation only asks that states and regulators "consider" making Big Tech pay for the energy that the data centers use, failing to put real protections for families from increased energy costs into law.

"This bill tries to sell the American people a bad bill of goods and take them for fools. This toothless legislation does not protect American families from increased energy costs and allows these huge AI data centers to pass on their energy bills to families and small businesses. Even worse, my colleagues are trying to use this window dressing to dupe the American people into thinking we are acting on an issue that they care deeply about, while not actually protecting them," said Senator Baldwin. "I'm committed to making AI data centers pay their own way and protecting hardworking Wisconsinites from paying a penny of Big Tech's data center energy bills. The solution must be a mandate, under law, that these costs can't be kicked to families because we cannot trust these tech giants to just do the right thing. I'll work with anyone to protect families from yet another bill of theirs from increasing and ensure our communities are the ones in control, not big tech."

The legislation, The Ratepayer Protection Act, requires states to "consider" a standard that would make certain large data centers pay for the costs of grid upgrades necessary to serve them. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, this legislation pushes a voluntary standard, saying that state commissions "may adopt or reject" the federal standard. Therefore, there is no federal requirement preventing energy costs from data centers from being passed along to ordinary ratepayers. Additionally, the legislation does not cover all data centers. The bill only covers data centers with peak demand of 100 megawatts or more, leaving out every other data center that is placing massive new demands on a local grid.

###

• Print
• Email
• Share
• Tweet