Draft legislation in the US Senate has the potential to impose fees on data centers that support blockchain networks and artificial intelligence (AI) models if they surpass federal emissions targets, as reported by Bloomberg on April 11. Spearheaded by Senate Democrats Sheldon Whitehouse and John Fetterman, this proposed legislation is designed to tackle the environmental challenges posed by escalating energy demands while also aiming to shield households from rising electricity costs.
### Clean Cloud Act Targets Emissions
The proposed legislation, known as the Clean Cloud Act, requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish an emissions performance standard specifically for data centers and crypto mining facilities that have over 100 kilowatts of installed IT power. This standard will be determined based on the emissions intensity of regional power grids, with a goal of achieving an 11% annual reduction. Furthermore, the bill stipulates penalties for any emissions that exceed the established thresholds, starting at $20 per ton of CO2 equivalent, with annual increases tied to inflation plus an extra $10.
### Rising Energy Demands and Environmental Impact
A blog post from the minority on the US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works highlights that the soaring energy demand from cryptocurrency miners and data centers is outstripping the growth of renewable energy sources. Projections indicate that electricity consumption from data centers could represent up to 12% of the total US power demand by 2028. Research from Morgan Stanley anticipates that the rapid expansion of data centers will result in approximately 2.5 billion metric tons of CO2 emissions globally by the decade’s end. Matthew Sigel, head of research at VanEck, criticized the bill for targeting Bitcoin miners and similar operations in what he described as a “Losing ‘Blame the Server Racks’ Strategy.”
### Potential Conflict with Previous Policies
The proposed legislation could also conflict with US policies under former President Donald Trump, who rescinded a 2023 executive order from former President Joe Biden that aimed to establish AI safety standards. Trump has previously expressed a desire to position the US as the “world capital” for both AI and cryptocurrency.
### Bitcoin Miners Shift Focus Amid Legislative Changes
While the draft law waits for Senate approval, Bitcoin miners such as Galaxy, CoreScientific, and Terawulf are increasingly shifting their focus toward providing high-performance computing (HPC) resources for AI applications. According to VanEck, Bitcoin miners are facing challenges due to declining cryptocurrency values, which have already strained their business models, especially following the Bitcoin network’s latest halving in 2025.
### Diversification into AI Data Centers
In a bid to secure additional revenue, miners are diversifying their operations into AI data center hosting, repurposing existing infrastructure for high-performance computing tasks, as highlighted by Coin Metrics. Their revenue began to stabilize during the first quarter of 2025, yet this recovery could be jeopardized by ongoing trade tensions that threaten to disrupt their business models, warn several cryptocurrency industry leaders.
### Trade Wars and Infrastructure Challenges
Nicholas Roberts-Huntley, CEO of Concrete & Glow Finance, noted that harsh tariffs and retaliatory trade measures could pose significant challenges for node operators, validators, and other key participants in blockchain ecosystems. He emphasized that in times of global uncertainty, the infrastructure that underpins cryptocurrency could suffer collateral damage, not just the assets themselves.
