House Subpanel Advances Ratepayer Protection Act — Tech Would Pay AI Data Center Energy Costs

What happened

The House Energy and Commerce subpanel debated and voted on June 24 on the Ratepayer Protection Act, which would direct state utilities to consider a "large load standard" requiring data centers above 100 MW to cover their own grid upgrade costs rather than pass them to ratepayers.

Context and impact

Electricity bills near AI hubs have risen up to 267% over the past 5 years. Data centers now account for 4-5% of total US electricity consumption. The bill codifies Trump's "Ratepayer Protection Pledge" signed by Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle, and xAI. For AI it confirms the principle that infrastructure costs sit with business, not consumers.

Details

• Bipartisan sponsors: Reps. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.) and Kathy Castor (D-Fla.)
• Amends Section 111(d) of PURPA 1978
• 100 MW threshold for "large load"
• Household bills near AI hubs up to 267% over 5 years
• Data centers: 4-5% of total US electricity consumption