Axios Live: Data center boom forces U.S. policymakers to rethink power costs
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WASHINGTON — Tech giants building out what's needed to support artificial intelligence should be the ones paying as electricity prices climb, energy experts agreed at an Axios Live event on April 14.
Why it matters: Rising energy bills and local disruptions from the data center boom are becoming a political flashpoint ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Axios' Hans Nichols and Sabrina Moreno moderated conversations with Peter Lake, senior director of power for the National Energy Dominance Council, and Reps. Julie Fedorchak (R-N.D.) and Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.). The event was sponsored by the Edison Electric Institute.
What they're saying: Bipartisan lawmakers agree that data center operators should cover their own costs.
- "The people who need the energy need to pay for the energy, and they're willing to do it," Fedorchak said.
- We need to "make sure that data centers are paying their fair share of the energy demands that they produce, and not consumers or other businesses," McClellan said.
State of play: A bipartisan bill from Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) would guarantee that consumers are protected from data center energy costs.
- The measure would ensure the centers use energy from generation sources separate from the grid, preventing costs from being passed on to ratepayers.
Yes, but: Congress is still "behind the curve," McClellan said. "I think that it needs to be a federal, state and local responsibility, all working cooperatively."
The bottom line: Cloud companies looking to build new data centers must "build, bring or buy" their own electricity generation, Lake said. "Affordability in electricity is a choice."
Content from the sponsor's segment:
Southern Company chair, president and CEO Chris Womack told Axios publisher Nicholas Johnston that utilities are already structuring partnerships to keep ratepayers protected.
- Data centers are "paying their full freight, they're putting up collateral," Womack said. "We're making sure that the cost of data center construction is not being borne by anyone else."
