Senate Democrats on Wednesday blocked a Republican-led bill aimed at combating rising energy costs driven by the data center boom, thwarting a last-ditch effort by Republicans to show they are taking voters’ concerns about affordability seriously.
Even though the bill only recommends that states take action and does not impose price cuts for consumers, the bill’s failure deprives Republicans of the opportunity to counter attacks that they did not do enough to combat high prices before the midterm elections. That represents a setback for one vulnerable Republican senator in particular: Jon Husted of Ohio, who led the charge to pass the bill after being hammered on the issue during his race, one of the Senate’s most competitive battlegrounds.
Now, senators are expected to leave Washington soon and not return until after the midterms, as a number of Republican senators have expressed concern that their party has not done enough to address the high cost of living ahead of crucial elections where control of Congress is at stake.
The vote also exposes Democrats to criticism for blocking the bill, which passed the House earlier this month with broad bipartisan support.
The measure – known as the “Ratepayer Protection Act” – was blocked by a vote of 57 to 43, with only four Democrats voting with Republicans.
Senate Democrats said before the vote that they opposed the bill because it did not go far enough. The bill requires state regulators to “consider” adopting a proposed federal standard that would require data center companies to cover their costs on the energy grid, rather than passing them on to consumers. Democrats said the language was weak and lacked enforcement mechanisms.
“Here we need real action on data centers and what is the Republican senator from Ohio proposing? Something that’s optional,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday, as Democrats pledged to push for more robust measures.
The vote, which will take place in the Senate’s final days in Washington before the midterm elections, highlights the struggle between the two parties as they strive to show voters they are better equipped to deal with the high cost of living. It also comes as the expansion of AI-powered data centers sparks concern among Americans.
Republicans criticized Democrats ahead of the vote for their opposition, saying it was the best opportunity to act on the issue.
“This is the bill that gives us a chance to prove to the American people that we support lower electricity prices and more accountability for data centers, so the only way to do that is to pass this bill,” Husted said. “This bill is the only possible solution.”
But Democrats dismissed concerns that their opposition’s optics could backfire.
“If taxpayers read this (bill) and see that it’s a name that talks about protecting taxpayers and doesn’t provide any rate relief, they will be rightly angry. They may see something that doesn’t measure up,” said Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont. “You know, I think voters see this for what it is: as a sort of last-minute political maneuver.”
Husted had made it his mission to pass the bill in the midst of a critical and highly competitive Senate race as Republicans fight to maintain their Senate majority.
Data centers have become a hot spot in his race against Democrat and former Sen. Sherrod Brown, as communities across the Buckeye State have experienced first-hand the rapid development of AI processing facilities. In his role as lieutenant governor and senator, Husted applauded the economic boom the centers can bring, but also pushed to approve the “Taxpayer Protection Act” as a way to try to neutralize potential backlash.
It was Husted who pushed party leaders to return to Washington this week to vote on the bill, after leaders considered an early exit before the midterm elections. Multiple sources told CNN that Husted implored his colleagues not to go home early without at least attempting the vote in order to send the message that Republicans were doing something on the affordability issue.
Back in Ohio, Brown cut several ads attacking Husted on the centers. And in August, the Senate Republicans’ campaign committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, sent an internal memo warning that “more than anything else in this race, data centers are the anchor hanging around Husted’s neck.”
“This has become a dormant issue for the entire cycle,” the NRSC wrote.
Husted campaign spokeswoman Amy Natoce accused Democrats of playing politics by blocking the bill.
“The House overwhelmingly passed Senator Husted’s bipartisan legislation requiring data center companies to pay for the electricity they use, but Senate Democrats blocked it. Sherrod Brown and his friends would rather play politics and saddle Ohio families with higher electricity bills than adopt a common-sense solution,” she said.
In a statement, Lauren Chou, a spokeswoman for Brown’s campaign, said, “Jon Husted led the charge to bring data centers to Ohio, forcing Ohioans to pay thousands of dollars more in higher electricity bills and giving giant out-of-state corporations billions of dollars in out-of-control tax breaks.”
“Ohioans should decide whether data centers are built in their communities and should never be forced to subsidize the electricity costs of large businesses,” Chou said.
Yet in the Senate’s final days of work, some Republicans suggested the party could do more to address affordability.
“My view is that people would like some relief on the price of their gas. They would like some relief on the price of their health care. They would like to have some rights with respect to these data centers. If it were me, I would make those things priorities,” said Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley.
Sen. John Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican, lamented that the party was facing economic difficulties in the fight to maintain the House and Senate in the midterms.
“I mean you don’t have to be a senior executive at Cal Tech to understand that people are angry about the cost of living and they’re confused about Iran and the two are inextricably linked,” Kennedy said last week.
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