BIPARTISAN BILL FAILS TO PROTECT CONSUMERS FROM DATACENTER ELECTRICITY COSTS

Consumer advocates have warned that the Ratepayer Protection Act, a bipartisan bill backed by technology companies including Microsoft, would fail to shield the public from rising electricity prices driven by datacenter expansion. The bill moved through a House subcommittee in mid-June, with a full committee vote scheduled for 1 July that was subsequently delayed. Jim Walsh, policy director at Food and Water Watch, stated the legislation is largely voluntary, allowing state utility commissions to disregard its provisions entirely.

Walsh said the bill prioritises the needs of datacenters and utilities whilst presenting itself as consumer protection, and would increase costs for consumers overall. The legislative package includes provisions that would accelerate datacenter construction, prioritise their connection to the electricity grid, and create loopholes allowing companies to claim they pay for their own power. Approximately 200 new datacenters have been constructed over the past three years to support artificial intelligence infrastructure, with dozens more proposed across the United States.

The Federal Reserve recorded an average wholesale price increase of as much as 6 per cent related to datacenters, reaching as high as 50 per cent in certain areas. In regions with higher numbers of datacenters, official figures suggest electricity costs have risen by 267 per cent over five years. US Representative Kathy Castor, a co-sponsor of the bill, stated in a statement that constituents across Florida face skyrocketing electricity bills, though the full context of her remarks was not provided.