# Senators clash over AI energy costs, safety bills stall in Congress

Digest AI · Policy & Regulation · published 2026-09-24T17:40:00Z

Canonical: https://digestai.news/story/senators-clash-over-ai-energy-costs-safety-bills-stall-in-congress

## Summary

Senators Jon Husted (R-Ohio) and Martin Heinrich (D-New Mexico) clashed over AI energy costs last week. Husted pushed the Ratepayer Protection Act, which passed the House 417-3, to force AI labs to cover energy costs. Heinrich blocked it, calling it voluntary and inadequate, while Democrats push their own bills. Husted’s push stems from Ohio’s data center expansion, which has drawn negative ads targeting his reelection campaign.

The debate comes amid rising public concern over AI risks, including job displacement, energy costs, and existential threats. After Jacob Coxon’s resignation and his claims that AI labs are ‘gambling with our lives,’ OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for industry slowdowns and government intervention. Since Coxon’s resignation, at least seven new AI-related bills have been introduced. However, with midterms approaching, Congress faces partisan divisions and limited time to act. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Kentucky) have signaled no major AI bills will pass before next year.

Key proposals include the FRONTIER Act, which would require AI labs to report safety incidents and submit models for independent review. Leading the Future, backed by OpenAI president Greg Brockman, supports it. Amodei plans to embed METR investigators to verify Anthropic’s safety practices, but METR faces criticism over ties to effective altruism. Another hurdle is whether federal AI laws should override state regulations, with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) opposing preemption of stronger state protections.

## Key points

- Sen. Jon Husted’s Ratepayer Protection Act passed the House 417-3 but stalled in the Senate over voluntary compliance concerns
- At least seven new AI bills introduced since Jacob Coxon’s resignation, but Congress unlikely to act before midterms
- FRONTIER Act proposes independent model reviews and Commerce Department oversight of catastrophic risks

## Why it matters

Congressional gridlock on AI safety and energy costs risks leaving regulation to states or delaying critical oversight until after midterms. Industry calls for government coordination clash with partisan and technical disputes over liability, preemption, and independent testing.

## Sources

1. [The Fight to Rein In AI Is Dividing Washington](https://time.com/article/2026/09/25/ai-congress-regulation-safety-democrats-republicans) (time.com, 2026-09-24)

Part of the developing story: [The Congressional Battle Over Federal AI Safety](https://digestai.news/thread/obama-urges-democrats-to-lead-public-ai-safety-framework-before-midterms) (2 stories)

## Cite

Digest AI, "Senators clash over AI energy costs, safety bills stall in Congress", 24 September 2026, https://digestai.news/story/senators-clash-over-ai-energy-costs-safety-bills-stall-in-congress

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