Senators Demand to Know How Much Energy Data Centers Use | WIREDSkip to main contentMenuSECURITYPOLITICSTHE BIG STORYBUSINESSSCIENCECULTUREREVIEWSMenuAccountAccountNewslettersSecurityPoliticsThe Big StoryBusinessScienceCultureReviewsChevronMoreExpandThe Big InterviewMagazineEventsWIRED InsiderWIRED ConsultingNewslettersPodcastsVideoLivestreamsMerchSearchSearchMolly TaftScienceMar 26, 2026 8:00 AMSenators Demand to Know How Much Energy Data Centers UseIn a letter sent Thursday morning, Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley press the Energy Information Agency to mandate annual electricity disclosure for data centers.Photograph: Heather Diehl/Getty ImagesCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyCommentLoaderSave StorySave this storyDemocratic senator Elizabeth Warren and Republican senator Josh Hawley are urging the US’s central energy information agency to provide better information on how much electricity data centers actually use.In a joint letter sent to the Energy Information Administration Thursday morning, seen by WIRED, Hawley and Warren press the agency to publicly collect “comprehensive, annual energy-use disclosures” on data centers. This information, they write, is “essential for accurate grid planning and will support policymaking to prevent large companies from increasing electricity costs for American families.”As the data center boom spreads across the country, there have been widespread worries from voters about how their massive energy needs may increase consumers’ electric bills; this concern helped shape some midterm elections in data-center-heavy states, including Virginia and Georgia. Last month, Hawley cosponsored a bill with Democratic senator Richard Blumenthal that would require data centers to supply their own power sources in order to protect consumers. Earlier this month, Donald Trump convened a group of executives from big tech companies at the White House to sign a nonbinding (and toothless) agreement pledging to pay for their own power for data centers.“If we're worried about ratepayers paying data-center energy costs, then knowing how much energy data centers are using is a necessary part of that calculation,” says Ari Peskoe, a director at Harvard Law School’s Environmental and Energy Law Program. “It's not the only piece of information you need, but it certainly is a piece of the puzzle.”There are lots of scary headlines floating around about how much energy data centers are expected to use over the next few years, but it’s surprisingly difficult to get official numbers from data centers on either their current or projected electric load. No federal government body collects numbers on energy use from data centers specifically. Information about water or electricity use at an individual data center can be considered proprietary business information, and is most often disclosed to the public voluntarily by the company itself. An increasing number of data centers are also turning to installing their own power separate from the grid—known as behind-the-meter power—making it even tougher to calculate total energy use.Utilities are privy to information about energy use from data centers in their region; they use that information to forecast growth. But data centers will often shop around to different utilities, which, experts say, causes utilities to double-count projects and forecast “phantom” growth—data centers that will never be built in their region. The CEO of Vistra, a retail electricity company, said during its first quarter earnings call last year that utilities may be inflating electricity demand anywhere from three to five times beyond what is actually needed.In December, EIA administrator Tristan Abbey said at a roundtable that he expects the EIA “is going to be an essential player in providing objective data and analysis to policymakers” with respect to data centers. The agency announced on Wednesday that it would be conducting a voluntary pilot program to collect energy consumption information from nearly 200 companies operating data centers in Texas, Washington, and Virginia, which will cover “energy sources, electricity consumption, site characteristics, server metrics, and cooling systems.”While the senators praise the EIA pilot program, their letter includes several questions about how the agency plans to move forward with more data collection, such as whether or not the energy surveys will be mandatory and whether or not the EIA will collect information on behind-the-meter power. This information will be especially crucial, the senators say, to make sure that big tech companies that signed the agreement at the White House earlier this month pledging that consumers won’t bear the costs of data center electricity use will stick to their promises.“Without this data, policymakers, utility companies, and local communities are operating in the dark,” the senators write.The EIA mandates that other industries, including oil and gas and manufacturing, provide regular data to the agency; Hawley and Warren assert that the EIA should be able to collect similar information from data centers under the same provision. The provision is broad enough, Peskoe says, that it could absolutely be interpreted to encompass data centers.The letter comes amid widespread concern in Washington and around the country over data center development. On Wednesday, Senator Bernie Sanders introduced a bill that would introduce a national moratorium on data center construction and development until AI safety laws were passed. The same day, Democratic senator Dick Durbin introduced a bill to mandate data centers disclose their energy and water use. And state legislatures have brought forth hundreds of data center bills, with at least a dozen states considering a moratorium on construction altogether.CommentsBack to topTriangleYou Might Also LikeIn your inbox: Upgrade your life with WIRED-tested gearNvidia plans to launch an open-source AI agent platformBig Story: He built the Epstein database—it consumed his lifeShould you leave your phone charging overnight?Watch: How right wing influencers infiltrated the governmentMolly Taft is a senior writer for WIRED, covering climate change, energy, and the environment. Previously, they were a reporter and editor at Drilled, an investigative climate multimedia reporting project. 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The senators Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley have initiated a formal request to the Energy Information Administration (EIA) demanding significantly greater transparency regarding the energy consumption of data centers. Their letter, delivered on Thursday, outlines a pressing need for annual, comprehensive disclosures of electricity use by these facilities – a move they believe is essential for accurate grid planning and effective policymaking, particularly in light of growing concerns about potential increases in consumer electric bills. The senators' action stems from widespread public anxiety surrounding the escalating energy demands of data centers, a concern that influenced midterm election outcomes in states like Virginia and Georgia.

Hawley has already championed legislation requiring data centers to secure their own power sources, while Warren’s efforts focus on mitigating potential costs for American families. The core of their argument revolves around the lack of readily available data on current and projected energy loads from data centers. Currently, no federal body collects specific data on this front, and information is often considered proprietary business intelligence divulged voluntarily by companies.

Furthermore, the increasing trend of data centers establishing their own power sources (“behind-the-meter”) complicates the calculation of total energy usage, as utilities often double-count projects and generate “phantom” growth forecasts. The CEO of Vistra estimates utilities may inflate demand by as much as five times. The EIA’s proposed pilot program in Texas, Washington, and Virginia, designed to collect data on energy sources, consumption, site characteristics, server metrics, and cooling systems, represents a tentative first step toward addressing this gap – though the senators express reservations about the program’s mandatory nature and whether it will capture data on behind-the-meter power generation.

The senators’ request aligns with a broader trend in Washington regarding data center development and heightened scrutiny of their environmental impact. Bernie Sanders recently introduced a bill proposing a national moratorium on data center construction until artificial intelligence safety regulations are established, and other state legislatures are considering moratoriums. This suggests a significant level of concern across the political spectrum. Hawley and Warren argue that the EIA’s mandate for data collection mirrors that applied to industries like oil and gas and manufacturing, asserting that data centers should be subject to similar reporting requirements.

Critically, the senators’ demand hinges on the recent agreement signed by several big tech companies at the White House, promising to bear the costs of data center electricity use. Without robust data, they contend, policymakers, utility companies, and communities lack the necessary information to assess compliance and ensure these commitments are upheld. Ultimately, their initiative seeks to transform the EIA from a passive observer into an active, objective data provider, utilizing existing mandates to drive greater accountability within the data center sector.