The Energy Information Administration (EIA) halted its controversial investigation of crypto mining companies on February 23 following a lawsuit from members of the crypto mining industry.
Crypto mining company Riot Platforms and the Texas Blockchain Council initiated the lawsuit on February 22. The suit names the EIA, the Department of Energy, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the heads of those agencies as defendants.
The EIA confirmed that the investigation has been paused in a rack:
“EIA will not enforce any requirement to file Form EIA-862, nor seek or impose any fines, sanctions or other adverse consequences based on failure to respond to the survey through March 22, 2024.”
The agency will also confiscate all the data it has collected and will not use it until the same data, according to the current notice.
An entry in the case docket similarly confirms the investigation pause, noting that the EIA “will terminate the investigation [and] A message will appear stating that this is the case [four] a few more weeks of delay.”
Concerns about data collection
Republican Congressman Tom Emmer recently raised concerns about data collection from crypto mining companies in a letter on February 22.
He argued that OMB could only grant EIA’s information collection request without a comment period by showing that mining is likely to cause public harm. He added:
“Bitcoining does not pose a threat to public safety. Period of time.”
The lawsuit from Riot and the Texas Blockchain Council is based on a similar argument, as part of their complaint states that the emergency approval and alleged public harm are “prima facie absurd.”
The investigation is closely tied to the Biden administration and the Democratic party. One part of the lawsuit explicitly acknowledges this, noting that a September 2022 statement from the Biden Whitehouse specifically suggested targeting mining companies with energy restriction actions and laws.
The EIA, in turn, is concerned that Bitcoin mining could lead to increased energy consumption during periods of high energy demand, including during cold weather.
The agency originally aimed to collect data from 82 crypto mining companies, and companies that failed to comply could have been fined $10,000 per day until the end of the study period in July.