Lawmakers Move to Cut Federal Funds for Flock Surveillance, Make Data Centers Pay for Power
Lawmakers from both parties are targeting Flock surveillance funding, surveillance data rules, data center power costs and development incentives.
Washington is going after the cameras and the kilowatts, and it is doing it across the aisle. According to Nextgov, lawmakers from both parties introduced a stack of bills this week aimed at AI-powered surveillance and at who pays for data centers.
On Wednesday, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., introduced legislation that would bar federal funds from buying or operating automated mass surveillance systems, including AI-powered cameras from Flock. Her office calls it the only bill in Congress designed to completely prohibit automated mass surveillance technology. "Flock’s technology isn’t making us safer," Tlaib said. On Thursday, Rep. Pat Harrigan, R-N.C., introduced a measure to restrict governmental use of automated license plate readers, though its text is not yet public. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., introduced a separate measure late last month to impose data guardrails on surveillance systems.
Then comes the electric bill. Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., introduced a bill Wednesday requiring data centers and high-density computing facilities with demand of at least 20 megawatts to pay the full incremental costs of their electricity use. On Thursday, Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, introduced the RECLAIM Act, which would prohibit data centers from receiving federal and state incentives. Politico first reported its details.
The roundup gives no official bill numbers for most of these measures.
My take: Democrats and Republicans agreeing that the cameras and the power meters need adult supervision is, frankly, a glittering moment. Watch the money, darlings. That is where this gets real.
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The roundup gives no bill numbers for most of these, and it does not explain how "full incremental costs" would be assessed. A 20-megawatt threshold is easy to write down and harder to audit.
Practical read: if the RECLAIM Act and the Vindman bill both land, data center economics change fast. Right now they are bills, not law, and Harrigan's text is not even public.
