The mining company Riot Platforms and the industry group Texas Blockchain Council (TBC) have filed a civil lawsuit demanding a halt to the “emergency data collection” by authorities from the association’s members.
The defendants are the U.S. Department of Energy, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) within the department, and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of the presidential administration.
In late January, a division of the department announced a survey of mining companies regarding electricity consumption. The study was planned to be completed within six months.
“This case is about a careless government process, contrived urgency, and aggressive data collection by authorities,” the lawsuit states.
According to the document, Riot received a request from the EIA to provide confidential information by February 23 under “explicit threat of criminal and civil penalties.” Similar demands were made to other mining companies participating in TBC.
The plaintiffs argue that the survey forms are “legally defective,” and disclosing the requested data could harm their business.
They believe that the EIA and the OMB, which approved the study’s funding, violated the “Paperwork Reduction Act” and the “Administrative Procedure Act.”
According to estimates, the United States accounts for up to 40% of the global Bitcoin hash rate. A significant portion of the country’s mining capacity is concentrated in Texas.
In January, the hash rate of the leading cryptocurrency plummeted by 33% over a few days amid cold weather in the state, which led to local miners shutting down.