Trump: WH Working With Microsoft, Tech Giants to Keep Power Bills Low

Microsoft is planning "major changes" to ensure that Americans don't see their utility bills climb higher because of the increased power needs for data centers.

Other technology companies will follow the plan, according to President Donald Trump, ahead of Microsoft President Brad Smith's meetings with federal lawmakers on Tuesday.

Trump also said in a post on Truth Social Monday evening that his administration is working with the nation's tech giants to keep consumer costs low.

"Under Sleepy Joe Biden and the Radical Left Democrats, the average American Household's monthly Utility bills went up MASSIVELY — over 30%!" Trump posted.

"I never want Americans to pay higher Electricity bills because of Data Centers," he continued. "Therefore, my Administration is working with major American Technology Companies to secure their commitment to the American People, and we will have much to announce in the coming weeks."

First, Trump said, is "Microsoft, who my team has been working with, and which will make major changes beginning this week to ensure that Americans don't 'pick up the tab' for their POWER consumption, in the form of paying higher Utility bills."

The United States, he said, is the "'HOTTEST' Country in the World, and Number One in AI. Data Centers are key to that boom, and keeping Americans FREE and SECURE but, the big Technology Companies who build them must 'pay their own way.'"

"Thank you, and congratulations to Microsoft," he concluded. "More to come soon!"

Smith is meeting with federal lawmakers Tuesday to outline how Microsoft is calling for the industry and not taxpayers to pay the full costs for the power needed for the data centers needed to power AI services, including its Copilot chatbot, as well as ChatGPT and Google's Gemini.

"People are asking not just pointed questions but completely reasonable questions and it’s our job, I think, to acknowledge them and address them head-on and show that we can do this and pursue this expansion in a way that fully meets their needs," Smith said in an interview.

Smith also outlined the company's plans in a livestream, as the company released documentation about its calls to shield local residents from higher power and water costs.

In a new set of commitments aimed at communities hosting data centers, Microsoft said it will work with utilities and state regulators to set rates for its facilities high enough to cover the full cost of service, including upgrades to transmission, substations, and other infrastructure needed to deliver electricity, so those costs are not passed on to residential customers.

The company cited projections that U.S. data center electricity demand will surge in the coming years, even as the aging grid faces delays in new transmission and equipment shortages.

Microsoft said it opposes calls for the public to subsidize the added electricity required for AI development, arguing the industry should pay its own way.

Microsoft said it will collaborate earlier with utilities by sharing projected power needs, contracting in advance for electricity it will use, and continuing to pay for grid improvements tied to its growth.

It pointed to partnerships in Wyoming and Wisconsin as models for rate structures that charge very large customers, including data centers, for the costs associated with serving them.

The company said it will pursue innovations to make facilities more energy efficient and use AI tools to help utilities improve planning, increase capacity from existing equipment, and accelerate development of new resources, including nuclear technologies.

Microsoft also said it will advocate for policies to speed permitting and interconnection of new electricity projects, modernize the grid, and redesign rates for large power users.

On water, Microsoft said it will reduce data center water use and replenish more water than it withdraws in the same water districts where its facilities operate.

The company pledged a 40% improvement in data center water-use intensity by 2030 and highlighted closed-loop cooling designs that can cut or eliminate the need for potable water.

Microsoft also said it will pay full local property taxes tied to data center development, calling those revenues a key benefit for schools, hospitals, parks, and libraries.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.