Chris Van Hollen says data centers should cover the cost of their energy instead of pushing it onto everyone else
Chris Van HollenU.S. Senator from Maryland, in a statement released by Sen. Elizabeth Warren's office
Sen. Chris Van Hollen said the technology companies still refuse to take full responsibility for the costs their data centers create, and pointed to his legislation requiring data centers to cover the costs of the energy they need.
“Without action from Congress, they will continue to evade accountability – which is why I’ve introduced legislation to require data centers to cover the costs of the energy they need instead of pushing them off to everyone else”
Official statement
Where this statement fits
Should Google have to pay the full cost of shared grid upgrades its data centers trigger?
On January 12, 2026, Google told Senators Elizabeth Warren, Chris Van Hollen and Richard Blumenthal that it pays for all the electricity its data centers use and that it, not local residents, pays for new grid infrastructure required for its growth. On January 22, Warren said that paying an electricity bill is different from fully covering the infrastructure upgrade costs of Google's data centers. An October 2026 report by the three senators said the companies, including Google, commit to paying for infrastructure that serves only their facilities but not the full cost of wider network upgrades. In June 2026, testimony filed for Google in a Virginia utility case recommended letting large customers voluntarily pay the full upfront cost of the substations that serve them. On July 31, Virginia regulators ordered Dominion Energy to develop a policy assigning data centers the cost of the transmission that connects them, and Appalachian Power says revenue from Google's new load in Botetourt County will cover $264 million in upgrades. The dispute is over whether Google should pay the full cost of the shared grid upgrades its data centers trigger, rather than leaving part of that cost with other customers.
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Warren distinguishes payment for consumed electricity from full payment for upgrades caused by data centers. This criticism precedes Google's June Virginia testimony.
Before the quotation
The senators released the companies' replies to their December 2025 inquiry on January 22, 2026. Van Hollen's statement opens by saying the companies are beginning to acknowledge that their data centers raise consumers' electricity costs and strain the grid, "but they still refuse to take full responsibility for these problems they are creating."
After the quotation
The release then quotes Google's commitments and says Google made new commitments to pay for partial costs of its data centers.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case asks whether Google should pay the full cost of the shared grid upgrades its data centers trigger, rather than leaving part of that cost with other customers. Responding to the companies' replies, including Google's, Van Hollen says that without action from Congress "they will continue to evade accountability" and points to his bill "to require data centers to cover the costs of the energy they need instead of pushing them off to everyone else". That argues the companies leave costs with other customers, so we labeled it Condemned. The closest competing label is Mixed or conditional, since he looks to Congress for the remedy; it loses because he treats the companies' current commitments as inadequate.
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Appalachian Power says other customers are not expected to pay for the $264 million in grid upgrades for Google's Botetourt data center
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“In this case, the project adds a large new customer load, which is expected to bring in enough additional revenue to cover the cost of the transmission line and substation upgrades. Because the added revenue is expected to offset those costs, other customers are not expected to pay more because of this work”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Chris Van Hollen says data centers should cover the cost of their energy instead of pushing it onto everyone else". First published: 2026-10-11. Last updated: 2026-10-11. https://disputeindex.com/events/5578-sen-chris-van-hollen-said-the-technology-companies