Bitcoin miners have denounced the US government’s planned investigation as ‘Operation Chokepoint 3.0’.

A planned investigation by US authorities into Bitcoin miners’ power usage has drawn fierce criticism from the mining community, with many describing it as the genesis of “Operation Chokepoint 3.0”.

Miners criticize the survey.

Jason Les, CEO of Riot Platforms, said the investigation was “politically motivated, illegal and discriminatory” against miners. According to him, this investigation does not serve the public interest, but constitutes a political agenda targeting Bitcoin miners and energy suppliers.

He also expressed concern that such targeting could set a dangerous precedent and said he was considering legal options.

“Our industry is fundamentally transparent, and open data disproves the basis for these obligations. Bitcoin miners helped stabilize the grid during the recent cold spell.” Les Added.

Brian Morgenstern, head of public policy at Riot Platforms, emphasized the need for the industry to unite against regulatory overreach. that suggested Government action could be aimed at gaining information about energy partners, potentially leading to pressure to stop working with miners.

Meanwhile, Alex Brammer, director of the Bitcoin Today Coalition, said the investigation was “outrageous and requires immediate legal action” as it seeks to punish unresponsive miners.

“They have pre-formatted delinquency notices for companies that don’t respond, which include threats of criminal and civil penalties for non-compliance, including fines of $10,633 per day for failure to report,” says Brammer. said.

Authorities justify investigation

In a recent analysis, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) sought to justify the need for an investigation by noting that U.S. miners may have consumed up to 2.3% of the country’s total electricity needs last year.

“Key challenges associated with tracking cryptocurrency mining energy usage include the difficulty of identifying cryptocurrency mining activity among the millions of U.S. end-user customers and the dynamic nature of the cryptocurrency market, which can quickly move mining assets to regions with lower electricity prices. Included.” The agency added:

Last week, the EIA said it would conduct an urgent survey of commercial cryptocurrency miners into their power consumption. The purpose of the survey, approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), is to gather specific details from miners about the broader impact of cryptocurrency mining activities in the United States.