America's growing digital economy requires power grid updates. Who will foot the bill?

The Ratepayer Protection Act recently failed a procedural vote in the U.S. Senate. With 57 senators voting to advance the measure and 43 opposed, it fell short of the 60 votes needed to move forward. This isn’t the end of the story for this policy idea. It is the beginning of a trend that will characterize the end of this year and the next Congress: the push to regulate every layer of the digital infrastructure and AI stack.

Championed by Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio) and Reps. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.) and Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), the Ratepayer Protection Act aims to protect households and small businesses from paying for infrastructure needed by large data centers. It would require state utility regulators and certain utilities to consider standards under which computing facilities with peak electricity demand of at least 100 megawatts would cover the full incremental costs of power generation and grid upgrades needed to serve them. States would retain authority to decide whether to adopt those standards.

Rashan Colbert is the Director of U.S. Policy and Digital Energy Council Policy Lead at the Crypto Council for Innovation

AI and digital asset networks run on facilities that need electricity, equipment, land, and grid connections. As those facilities grow, public decisions about their costs and impacts will help determine where and how quickly they can be built. A company’s plans for computing capacity depend on whether a utility can deliver power and whether the surrounding community has confidence in the project. At the Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI), we see these questions becoming central to the policy environment for digital assets and the broader digital economy.

Congress is responding to a growing public question about whether households and small businesses will pay for grid upgrades needed by large data centers. The House passed the Ratepayer Protection Act 417–3. Senate debate has centered on whether asking states to consider a cost recovery standard goes far enough. That question will persist, alongside growing pressure to explain how the country can build the infrastructure its digital economy requires while protecting the communities that host it.

Responsible development starts with a fair expectation: large new loads should account for the infrastructure required to serve them, with costs and risks made clear before projects move forward. If a utility builds for a customer’s anticipated demand, its agreements should address what happens if that customer reduces operations or leaves. Families need to know how their bills could be affected. Developers also need clear expectations before committing capital.