House Passes Bipartisan Bill to Shield American Families from Big Tech’s Energy Costs
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The U.S. House overwhelmingly approved the Ratepayers Protection Act, a crucial measure that ensures hardworking Americans are no longer forced to subsidize the costly energy demands of massive data centers, shifting the responsibility back to wealthy tech corporations.
In a decisive 417-3 vote on Wednesday, the House passed the Ratepayers Protection Act, a bipartisan bill that finally puts a stop to the unfair practice of making American families foot the bill for the energy-hungry expansion of Big Tech and data-center companies. The legislation creates a federal standard for state utility regulators, ensuring that the costs of power-generation, transmission, and other infrastructure upgrades for new, large data centers are paid by the operators themselves, not by everyday citizens.
The bill was co-sponsored by Representatives Gabe Evans (R-Colo.) and Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), both members of the Energy and Commerce Committee. Evans, standing up for American taxpayers, declared, "Hardworking families should not have to subsidize the energy demands of data centers. America needs the infrastructure to lead the world in AI and outcompete China, but we cannot have that growth at the expense of hardworking families, farmers, seniors, and small businesses." This legislation is a much-needed check on the unchecked power of tech giants, ensuring that American interests come first.
Despite this common-sense protection, some Democrats still expressed dissatisfaction. Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Tex.) complained that Congress "isn’t doing enough on data centers," and lamented that these facilities are entering communities that "don’t want them." Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) insisted the measure is "not enough in any way, shape or form," while Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) bizarrely focused on so-called AI safety concerns, echoing the president’s misguided view that AI risks are a "hoax."
As the House wrapped up its final business before the November midterm elections, this vote stands as a victory for American families and small businesses against the overreach of Big Tech. The Senate has yet to act, but the message is clear: Americans will not be forced to pay for the ambitions of Silicon Valley elites.