Rep. Min Introduces Legislative Package to Address AI’s Impact on American Workers and Consumers

Rep. Min Introduces Legislative Package to Address AI’s Impact on American Workers and Consumers

Washington, DC. — Today, Representative Dave Min (CA-47) introduced a legislative package to address the growing impacts of artificial intelligence on American workers, consumers, and the economy. The package includes the bipartisan Artificial Intelligence Data Authorization and Transparency (AI DATA) Act and the Energy Cost Fairness and Reliability Act. These policies would assist in understanding AI’s disruption to the labor market and address rising costs related to data centers.

“Artificial intelligence is developing at an extraordinary pace, and Congress needs to understand and address the real-world consequences of that transformation,” said Rep. Min.“That means understanding exactly how AI is changing jobs and opportunities for American workers, while making sure families aren’t stuck subsidizing the AI industry through higher utility bills caused by the massive energy needs of data centers. These bills address two of the most immediate impacts of AI on Americans: their jobs and their cost of living.”

The package of bills includes:

• The bipartisan Artificial Intelligence Data Authorization and Transparency (AI DATA) Act, legislation to modernize and expand federal labor market data collection to better understand how artificial intelligence is reshaping the American workforce. Rep. Obernolte (R-CA-23) co-leads the bill. The legislation is the House companion to S. 4742, introduced in the Senate by Senators Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Jim Banks (R-IN), and Todd Young (R-IN).

• The Energy Cost Fairness and Reliability Act, legislation to address the rapidly growing energy demands of AI-focused data centers and prevent associated electricity and infrastructure costs from being shifted onto residential consumers. The legislation is the House companion to S. 4559, introduced by Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA).

Together, the two bills would expand the federal government’s ability to measure AI’s effects on the labor market while establishing new requirements to address the growing energy demands associated with AI infrastructure.

Background on the AI DATA Act:

The AI DATA Act would modernize federal labor market data systems to better track those changes. Specifically, the bill would:

• Authorize and expand key labor market surveys to collect data on changes associated with technological advancement, including AI-driven job displacement, job augmentation, and other workforce transitions. The bill would authorize and modify the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), American Time Use Survey (ATUS), and National Longitudinal Surveys (NLS).

• Add AI workforce questions to the Census Bureau’s Business Trends and Outlook Survey, requiring quarterly collection of information on AI adoption and workforce impacts for 10 years.

• Require an annual AI workforce report from the Departments of Labor and Commerce using integrated data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census Bureau, and other federal datasets to assess AI’s impact on the workforce. The reporting requirement would sunset after 10 years.

“Artificial intelligence is already changing the way Americans work, and Congress must ensure our labor market data keeps pace with those changes,” said Rep. Obernolte. “The AI DATA Act will modernize our federal labor market surveys and provide clearer information about the extent to which AI is affecting jobs, wages, and workforce trends. As AI continues to impact and grow our economy, this legislation will give Congress the information needed to develop clear, actionable policies that support American workers.”

“Artificial intelligence has the potential to reshape the economy and labor market in unprecedented ways, and policymakers need timely, reliable data to understand how work responds to AI across industries, occupations, and communities,” said Friends of BLS Co-Chairs and former BLS Commissioners Erica Groshen and William Beach. “The bipartisan AI DATA Act strengthens the nation’s statistical infrastructure by reinforcing core Bureau of Labor Statistics programs and improving coordination across federal data systems. By modernizing our capacity to measure labor demand, the tasks that workers perform, and workforce outcomes, this legislation will help ensure that workers, employers, educators, and policymakers have the information they need to respond effectively to the opportunities and challenges of AI. High-quality federal statistics are a vital national asset, and this bill represents an important investment in evidence-based decision-making.”

Background on the Energy Cost Fairness and Reliability Act:

The Energy Cost Fairness and Reliability Act would establish a comprehensive federal framework addressing the energy affordability and grid reliability challenges associated with large data centers. The legislation pairs cost-allocation with power procurement, load management, and transparency requirements to protect Americans from data center impacts, reduce grid strain, and ensure companies are paying their fair share.

Specifically, the legislation would:

• Direct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to establish a separate grid interconnection queue for large-load facilities like AI data centers, requiring them to secure their own power, finance necessary grid upgrades, and demonstrate the ability to reduce demand during periods of peak electricity consumption. The bill would also update the interconnection process to reduce speculative applications and prioritize applications that implement battery energy storage systems or labor-friendly policies

• Requires FERC to review cost allocations and transmission rate requests to ensure that AI data centers and other large-load facilities are not shifting their energy and infrastructure costs onto ratepayers.

• Enhance transparency requirements around data center impacts by authorizing the Department of Energy (DOE) to collect information related to electricity use, water consumption, cooling, onsite generation, and other factors, and to establish industry benchmarks on these impacts.

• Establish a national AI testbed at a DOE National Laboratory where academia, industry, and other stakeholders can develop and test technologies to improve data center efficiency, including power and cooling systems and more energy-efficient AI training and inference.

“Hard-working Americans should not be left to foot the bill for rising energy costs amid the buildout of data centers,” said Senator Schiff. “The Energy Cost Fairness and Reliability Act would protect ratepayers from rising costs by ensuring that companies are paying their fair share for their energy use and implementing critical modernizations to protect against blackouts. Our plan would require by law that private industry pay for the power they consume, and I’m grateful to Congressman Min for partnering with me on this effort to bring down Americans’ energy costs.”