Bitcoin Miner Survey Has Now Been Unexpectedly Stopped After Riot’s Lawsuit

Key Points:

• A federal Bitcoin miner survey was scrapped after a lawsuit.
• The Energy Information Administration has settled on and plans a new survey with a 60-day feedback period.
• Data is to be destroyed as tensions rise between regulation and the crypto industry.

The federal government has abandoned its emergency survey of the Bitcoin mining industry’s power usage amidst a lawsuit filed by Riot Platforms and the Texas Blockchain Council.

Bitcoin Miner Survey Abandoned Amidst Lawsuit

The Bitcoin miner survey, mandated by the Cryptocurrency Mining Facilities Survey, faced opposition from the plaintiffs, who secured a 14-day delay on the submission deadline for power usage data.

Following a settlement today, the Department of Energy and the Energy Information Administration (EIA) agreed to withdraw the survey entirely. The plaintiffs argued that the EIA failed to demonstrate how expediting the survey process would prevent public harm, as required by federal law. They contended that the Office of Management and Budget had authorized the EIA to collect the data regardless.

In response to the lawsuit, the EIA will solicit feedback on its Bitcoin miner survey after reaching an agreement with the Texas Blockchain Council and Riot Platforms. The agreement dictates that the EIA will publish a notice proposing its planned miner survey, allowing a 60-day comment period, replacing the previous survey issued under emergency status.

Data Destruction Agreement Highlights Regulatory Challenges in Cryptocurrency Industry

Furthermore, the DOE and EIA have committed to destroying all data collected thus far and will apply for a nonemergency survey, permitting public comments for 60 days in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act.

Bitcoin mining, reliant on substantial electricity consumption to power intricate computers, involves solving cryptographic problems to submit transaction data to a blockchain, earning miners Bitcoin rewards. The legal dispute underscores tensions between regulatory oversight and the burgeoning cryptocurrency industry’s desire for privacy and autonomy.