In January, The Verge wrote that “crypto mines will have to start reporting their energy use in the U.S.,” and the U.S. Department of Energy said, “Crypto mines will have to start reporting their energy use in the U.S.” “The government will begin collecting data on the power use of crypto mines, following criticism from environmentalists over whether it will do so.” teeth. “
But then the “Constitutional Freedoms” group “New Liberals and Civil Rights Alliance” (founded with funds from the Charles Koch Foundation) opposed it. “On behalf of our clients, the Texas Blockchain Council and Colorado-based Bitcoin mining company Riot Platforms,” the organization said, “we look forward to completely thwarting the Department of Energy's illegal data collection efforts.” “
The U.S. Department of Energy said the investigation would take 30 minutes to complete, but the complaint claimed it would take 40 hours. According to the judge, the suit “alleges three primary causes of irreparable injury.”
– Irrecoverable costs associated with compliance with the survey
– A credible threat of prosecution if the investigation is not complied with.
– Disclosure of sensitive information requested by the investigation risks disclosing sensitive business strategies
More importantly, however, the investigation was conducted under an “emergency” clause, which the judge said meant “that there is a likelihood of public harm if normal clearance procedures are followed.” “reasonably high” is appropriate only.
Or, as Semafor.com put it, the complaint “seeks an extension of the reporting deadline because the investigation was rushed without a public comment period.”
Judge Alan Albright granted the request late Friday night, blocking the lawsuit. [Department of Energy’s Information Administration] It will prohibit collecting investigative data or demanding answers from Bitcoin companies, at least until a more comprehensive injunction hearing scheduled for February 28th. The decision also concluded that the plaintiffs “are likely to be successful in proving the facts asserted by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.” Government support for emergency requests is far from justifying such action. ”
The U.S. Department of Energy is currently…
- Prohibition on requiring plaintiffs or their members to respond to surveys
- Suppression of data collection necessary for investigation
- “…and any such data already received by Defendants from survey respondents shall be sequestered and not shared.”
Thanks to longtime Slashdot reader schwit1 for sharing the news.