Clean Cloud Act of 2025

The "Clean Cloud Act of 2025" directly impacts the crypto industry by explicitly targeting cryptocurrency mining facilities. It establishes a comprehensive regulatory framework centered on energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, placing significant compliance and financial burdens on proof-of-work (PoW) mining operations. The bill's findings express a negative view of PoW cryptocurrencies' energy intensity. The core mechanism of the bill is the imposition of escalating fees on facilities and electric utilities that supply them, for emissions exceeding progressively stricter regional baselines, aiming for zero emissions by 2035. While the bill includes provisions for "clean firm grants" to incentivize zero-carbon energy, the direct and substantial financial penalties on current PoW mining practices, coupled with stringent reporting requirements, create significant punitive barriers. The restriction on electric utilities passing costs to other customers, while allowing them to pass costs to covered facilities, ensures that the crypto mining industry will bear these increased operational costs. This legislation is designed to restrict and significantly deter proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining activities within the United States.