As artificial intelligence rapidly expands, Congress is turning its attention to one of the technology’s less visible costs: the enormous amount of electricity required to power the data centers behind it. The House overwhelmingly passed bipartisan legislation Wednesday intended to keep those costs from being shifted onto American families.

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From The Epoch Times:

The U.S. House of Representatives on Sept. 16 passed a measure put forward by Republicans that would provide a federal blueprint to ensure that data centers pay for their use of local energy grids.

It was adopted in a 417–3 vote.

The legislation would impose new requirements that artificial intelligence and other data centers—which draw huge amounts of electricity from local power grids, straining supplies and leading to utility bill shocks for households across the nation—make deals with local providers to cover “the full, incremental cost of any generation, transmission, or distribution upgrade necessary” to serve their energy needs.

The Ratepayer Protection Act, H.R. 9340, passed the House 417–3. Rather than directly imposing new rates nationwide, the legislation would require state utility regulators to consider standards under which data centers would cover the full incremental costs of the electricity generation, transmission, and distribution infrastructure needed to serve them. The measure now heads to the Senate.

The legislation attracted overwhelming bipartisan support. Supporters argue that America can continue developing artificial intelligence and the infrastructure required to compete technologically without forcing families and small businesses to subsidize the electricity infrastructure demanded by enormous data centers. Critics of the measure have argued that it does not go far enough because states would be required to consider the federal standard but would not ultimately be compelled to adopt it.

The concern is becoming increasingly significant as AI development accelerates. Data centers already account for a substantial portion of U.S. electricity demand, and the Department of Energy has projected that their share could rise from roughly 4.4% in 2023 to between 6.7% and 12% by 2028.

Electricity is not the only concern surrounding their expansion. Communities across the country have also raised questions about the water required to cool servers, the noise generated by cooling equipment, land use, and whether rapidly expanding facilities could place additional strain on local infrastructure.

Artificial intelligence presents extraordinary opportunities, but its growth also forces policymakers and communities to confront practical questions about stewardship, responsibility, and who should bear the costs of technological development. The near-unanimous House vote shows unusual bipartisan agreement that ordinary ratepayers should not simply be handed the infrastructure bill. Let’s pray for wisdom for lawmakers and state officials as they consider these questions, for responsible stewardship of America’s resources, and for technological advancement to serve people rather than unnecessarily burden families and communities.

How are you praying for wisdom as America navigates the rapid growth of artificial intelligence? Share your prayers below.

(Excerpt from The Epoch Times. Photo Credit: EL Evangelista/Pexels)