Draft legislation in the US Senate could impose fees on data centers that support blockchain networks and artificial intelligence if they surpass federal emissions limits, as reported by Bloomberg on April 11. Spearheaded by Senate Democrats Sheldon Whitehouse and John Fetterman, this proposed bill is designed to tackle the environmental consequences of increasing energy demands while also safeguarding consumers from rising energy costs.
### Proposed Legislation Aims to Set Emissions Standards
Titled the Clean Cloud Act, the proposed legislation requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish an emissions performance standard for data centers and cryptocurrency mining facilities with more than 100 kilowatts of installed IT capacity. This standard would be based on the emissions intensity of the regional power grid, with a target for an annual reduction of 11%. Furthermore, the legislation stipulates penalties for emissions that exceed the established standard, starting at $20 per ton of CO2 equivalent, with the fee increasing annually by inflation plus an additional $10.
### Rising Energy Demand from Data Centers and Miners
A blog post from the minority on the US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works highlights that the demand for electricity from cryptocurrency miners and data centers is growing faster than the supply of carbon-free electricity. By 2028, it’s estimated that electricity consumption from data centers could account for up to 12% of the total power demand in the United States. Research from Morgan Stanley indicates that the rapid expansion of data centers could lead to approximately 2.5 billion metric tons of CO2 emissions globally by the decade’s end. Matthew Sigel, head of research at VanEck, criticized the proposed legislation for seemingly targeting Bitcoin miners and similar operations in what he termed a “Losing ‘Blame the Server Racks’ Strategy.”
### Potential Conflicts with Existing Policies
Moreover, this new legislation could conflict with the policies established during Donald Trump’s presidency, who rescinded a 2023 executive order by Joe Biden that aimed to implement safety standards for AI. Trump has previously expressed his ambition to position the US as the leading nation in AI and cryptocurrency development.
### Shift in Focus for Bitcoin Miners
As the Senate considers this draft law, Bitcoin miners—such as Galaxy, CoreScientific, and Terawulf—are increasingly shifting their focus to provide high-performance computing (HPC) power for AI models, according to VanEck. These miners have faced challenges in 2025 due to falling cryptocurrency prices, which have strained their business models, especially following the recent Bitcoin network halving.
### Diversification into AI to Boost Revenue
In response to these challenges, miners are diversifying into AI data-center hosting as a strategy to enhance revenue and utilize existing infrastructure for high-performance computing, as noted by Coin Metrics. Reports suggest that miners’ earnings started to stabilize in the first quarter of 2025. However, this recovery may face setbacks if ongoing trade conflicts hinder their business operations, according to various cryptocurrency executives.
### Concerns Over Trade Policies and Crypto Infrastructure
Nicholas Roberts-Huntley, CEO of Concrete & Glow Finance, warned that aggressive tariffs and retaliatory trade measures could pose significant challenges for key players in blockchain networks, such as node operators and validators. He pointed out that during times of global uncertainty, the underlying infrastructure supporting cryptocurrency can be adversely affected, not just the digital assets themselves.
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