凯文·弗雷金 华盛顿——参议院共和党人正把中期选举前最后几轮投票中的一票用于推动一项法案，试图回应选民对数据中心及其对电费影响的担忧。
KEVIN FREKING WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans are dedicating one of the final votes before the midterm elections to a bill that attempts to address voter worries about data centers and their impact on energy bills.
这项措施印证了选民对数据中心的担忧日益加深，也让支持者得以在这个已成为竞选首要议题的问题上主动出击。法案发起人、俄亥俄州共和党参议员乔恩·赫斯特德正面临艰难的连选挑战。他的民主党挑战者、前参议员舍罗德·布朗在竞选广告中称他是“数据中心的代表面孔”。
The measure is a testament to voters’ growing concerns about data centers and allows supporters to go on offense on what has become a top campaign issue. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Jon Husted, a Republican from Ohio, is in a tough reelection battle and has been labeled in campaign ads as the “face of data centers” by his Democratic challenger, former Sen. Sherrod Brown.
这项法案的力度十分有限。法案要求公用事业监管机构考虑采纳一项联邦标准，根据该标准向大型用电客户收取足以支付为满足其需求所需系统升级费用的费率。民主党人表示，这项法案无异于一项建议，仍需采取更多措施。共和党人则称，这项法案向监管机构发出了采取行动的信号。
The bill is a modest one. It requires utility regulators to consider adopting a federal standard that charges large power customers a rate that covers the cost of the system upgrades needed to serve them. Democrats say it amounts to a suggestion and that more is needed. Republicans say the bill sends a message to regulators to act.
“各位都知道，这里只有这一场游戏可打，”赫斯特德在为自己的法案辩护时对记者说。“在中期选举前，只有推动这项法案通过，才可能向美国民众证明你们究竟站在哪一边。”该措施以417票对3票在众议院获得通过。要进入最终表决，还需至少七名民主党参议员支持；但由于党内有人批评该法案力度不够，而且通过法案可能提振赫斯特德的连任前景，因此有多少人会支持仍不清楚。
“You all know this is the only game in town,” Husted told reporters in advocating for his bill. “This bill passing is the only way to get a chance to prove to the American people before the midterm elections whose side you’re on.”The measure passed the House by a vote of 417-3. It will need support from at least seven Democratic senators to proceed to a final vote, but it’s unclear how many will do so given the criticism from within their ranks that it doesn’t go far enough and knowing that passage could give Husted’s reelection prospects a lift.
“这项法案就是个骗局，说到底就是这么简单，”参议院民主党领袖查克·舒默说。
“The bill is a fraud, plain and simple,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said.
民主党人提出了其他方案。新墨西哥州民主党参议员马丁·海因里希提出一项法案，拟指示联邦能源管理委员会为大型电力用户制定规则，要求这些用户支付必要的电网升级费用。
Democrats have offered competing proposals. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M. sponsored legislation that would direct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to issue rules for large electricity customers that requires them to pay for necessary grid upgrades.
“他们想把它设为可选，实际上就等于零。我们要求强制执行，”舒默说。
“They want it optional, which means zero. We want it mandatory,” Schumer said.
共和党人正试图将民主党人塑造成阻挠派，指责他们在解决选民关切的重大议题上制造障碍。赫斯特提出的法案就是其中一个例子。另一项是内布拉斯加州联邦参议员皮特·里凯茨提出的法案，该法案将禁止国会议员购买个股。这一议题在本届选举周期的各类参选人中颇受重视，同时还涉及选民身份核验要求，民主党人称其为“毒丸”。
Republicans are looking to position Democrats as obstructionists who are blocking progress on key voter concerns. Husted’s bill is one example. Another would be the bill from Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., that would bar members of Congress from purchasing individual stocks. The issue is a popular one with candidates running for office this election cycle, but also includes voter identification requirements that Democrats have called a poison pill.
蒂恩已安排对这两项法案进行程序性表决，法案推进需要获得60票支持。
Thune has teed up both bills for a procedural vote that will require 60 votes to advance.
蒂恩说：“这两项立法都触及了美国人民深切关心、充满热情关注的议题的核心。我们倒要看看，民主党人是否愿意给出一个明确的肯定答案。”
“Both pieces of legislation strike at the very heart of issues that the American people care deeply about, passionately about, and we’ll see if the Democrats are willing to take yes for an answer,” Thune said.
预计众议院和参议院将在整个10月处于休会状态。众议院于9月中旬提前休会，取消了近两周的表决，因为共和党人急于投入竞选活动，希望在下一届国会中保住其多数席位。
The House and Senate are both expected to be out of session for all of October. The House left in mid-September, canceling nearly two weeks of votes as Republicans were anxious to get on the campaign trail in a bid to keep their majority in the next Congress.
美国总统唐纳德·特朗普支持建设更多数据中心，但选民对此日益警惕。约六成美国人支持限制新建数据中心的数量，其中包括大多数民主党人和共和党人。
President Donald Trump has embraced the building of more data centers, but there is growing wariness from voters. About 6 in 10 Americans support limiting the number of new data centers that can be built, including most Democrats and Republicans.
此外，多数美国人对数据中心可能推高当地电价或影响其所在地社区供水“极度”或“非常”担忧。
And a majority of Americans are “extremely” or “very” concerned about the impact of data centers on electricity prices or the water supply in the communities where they are built.
俄亥俄州的数据中心建设热点正遭遇州长和联邦参议员选举的激烈竞争。全国共和党参议员委员会最近在一份备忘录中警告称，赫斯特可能因数据中心问题而失去现有席位。赫斯特担任副州长期间，曾帮助推动俄亥俄州成为数据中心投资目的地。
In Ohio, a data center hot spot with closely contested races for governor and U.S. Senate, the National Republican Senatorial Committee warned in a recent memo that Husted is vulnerable to losing his seat because of the centers. Husted helped promote Ohio as a destination for data centers while serving as lieutenant governor.
俄亥俄州的选举被视为决定参议院控制权的关键，这也解释了为何数据中心法案尽管在众议院获得了压倒性投票支持，却仍受到如此密切的关注和激烈争议。
The Ohio race is seen as vital to determining control of the Senate, helping explain why the data center bill has generated so much scrutiny and is so hotly contested despite the overwhelming vote it received in the House.