Two U.S. senators, Josh Hawley and Elizabeth Warren, have taken action against data centers and their energy consumption by sending a letter to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). They are requesting the collection of detailed energy use information from these centers to understand its impact on the grid.
In their letter, the senators urged the EIA to create a mandatory annual reporting system for data centers and other significant energy consumers. They highlighted that the lack of standardized data on energy consumption by large loads poses risks to effective grid management. This initiative was first highlighted by Wired.
Other politicians have also been addressing data center regulations. Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently proposed legislation to stop new data center constructions until Congress reaches a consensus on AI regulation.
Energy consumption by data centers has surged significantly. For instance, Google’s data centers doubled their energy use from 2020 to 2024. Projections indicate that by 2035, new data centers will nearly triple the energy demand of the sector.
The EIA is a governmental body responsible for gathering and analyzing energy data, functioning like a Census bureau for the energy grid. Established in 1977, it tracks energy usage across four major sectors: residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation.
Hawley and Warren also want the EIA to gather detailed information on energy consumption in data centers, differentiating between AI computing tasks and general cloud services.
The senators request detailed data, including hourly, annual, and peak energy loads, rates paid by companies, grid upgrades for new large loads, the funding of these upgrades, and whether data centers are involved in demand response programs.
They addressed the EIA administrator, Tristan Abbey, who previously mentioned the agency’s crucial role in gathering data on data centers’ energy demand. A response to their letter is requested by April 9.
It’s unclear if this process has started, as the EIA has not publicly confirmed. Any changes to EIA surveys must undergo the Office of Management and Budget process, which includes a public comment period.
Tristan Abbey stated at a public event in December that requests for new analysis are common, but developing a new survey can take about two years. However, there are existing methods to expedite smaller, more focused surveys.