The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Ratepayer Protection Act in an overwhelming 417-3 bipartisan vote. The legislation aims to manage surging energy costs associated with the artificial intelligence boom.
The bill prevents the expenses for new power generation and grid upgrades required by data centers from being passed to residential and small business consumers. It encourages state utility regulators to establish standards requiring large energy consumers to bear the full cost of the infrastructure they necessitate.
The move addresses growing voter concern over rising electricity bills and the massive power demands of rapidly expanding AI data centers. The legislation now moves to the Senate for consideration.