Bitcoin Mining and the Politicization of a Once Reputable Federal Agency

The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) mandatory emergency survey of electricity consumption data represents the latest in a politically motivated campaign against bitcoin mining, cryptocurrency, and U.S.-led innovation. We believe this should cause concern for all industries that rely on data centers as part of their operations.

Lee Bratcher is a board member and president at the Texas Blockchain Council. Perianne Boring is founder and CEO of the Chamber of Digital Commerce.

Instead of focusing on improving our aging electricity infrastructure and working to ensure grid stability, the Department of Energy and EIA have prioritized taking unprecedented steps to target private businesses for political purposes. This action is an abuse of authority in order to further the Biden administration’s public goal “to limit or eliminate” U.S. bitcoin miners, while pleading ignorance to U.S. miner’s utilization of renewable resources and uniquely flexible operations.

See also: The U.S. Government Seems to Be Closing in on Bitcoin Mining | Opinion

The survey asks for information that goes beyond the typical requests made by the EIA. For decades the EIA has conducted itself as an apolitical information gathering body within the Department of Energy (DOE). Had this survey been in-line with previous surveys, there would be no cause for alarm.

However, this survey is specifically targeting bitcoin miners and asking for private information such as the name of the energy company with which the miner has signed power purchase agreements. It is not a logical leap to be concerned about the Biden administration putting pressure on those energy providers to discontinue their business with bitcoin miners.

Thanks to bitcoin miners’ ability to rapidly adjust their data centers’ power usage according to grid conditions, their operations are the most flexible and responsive electrical loads in the nation. It is well known that they offer critical grid stabilizing benefits to the communities in which they operate.

These capabilities were on full display during recent periods of cold weather in Texas, which the EIA boldly cites in its justification for this misguided measure. If the stated justification for this emergency action – concern with data centers potentially overloading the grid – is…