Bill to curb AI data center utility costs hits snag in Senate

An attempt by Senate Republicans to quickly pass a bipartisan bill to prevent data center -related utility cost increases failed on Thursday, amid Democratic concerns that it would rely only on voluntary commitments from states and data center developers. Congress this week attempted to rush the measure, dubbed the Ratepayer Protection Act , in the waning days before November's election , as data centers have become an increasingly contentious issue. But Sen. Martin Heinrich , D-N.M., the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, blocked the proposal, after its sponsor, Sen. John Husted , R-Ohio, requested unanimous consent to quickly vote without a roll call.