A lawsuit by the Texas Blockchain Council has forced the US government to destroy the data they collected on Bitcoin mining operations. The lawsuit successfully halted the Biden administration’s data collection on Bitcoin mining tools and required them to delete all data collected to date.
On January 24th, the Texas Blockchain Council and mining company Riot Platforms went to federal court in Texas to request an injunction against a survey conducted by the government. The survey, mandatory for miners regulated by the US Department of Energy, was carried out in early January.
The survey focused on changing energy needs for cryptocurrency mining. Furthermore, the US government’s survey identified areas of the country where Bitcoin mining growth is concentrated and data on the energy sources used for these operations. However, the Texas Blockchain Council felt that this survey was invasive and would undermine the mining operations’ business activities.
Bitcoin mining companies stated in their survey response that they did not provide sufficient public notice before issuing it. Therefore, they requested a permanent injunction prohibiting the EIA from requesting data that does not comply with the law beforehand. Now, that lawsuit has been successful.
Before considering any similar requests in the future, the EIA will have to comply with notification and comment procedures and meet standards. It remains to be seen, but there is a possibility that the organization will soon resume these surveys under new regulations.
The EIA and the Biden administration have yet to comment on the lawsuit and its outcome.
