In a legal battle against several U.S. energy officials, the Texas Blockchain Commission (TBC) and Bitcoin mining firm Riot Platforms have secured favorable rulings from a U.S. District Judge. The Energy Information Administration (EIA), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and their leaders sought to gather intrusive data from cryptocurrency miners.
Documents submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas on February 23 reveal that TBC and Riot successfully convinced the judge of the potential irreversible harm if further data collection proceeded. Consequently, a temporary restraining order (TRO) was imposed, preventing the EIA from mandating responses from cryptocurrency miners and sharing any collected data.
The court's decision stemmed from TBC and Riot's argument that potential damages included irreparable costs of complying with the investigation, credible threats of prosecution for non-compliance, and the forced disclosure of proprietary information. Disagreement also arose regarding the duration allotted for miners to complete the survey without compensation, with the court deeming the EIA's estimate of approximately 30 minutes as "grossly inaccurate."
TBC and Riot contested this estimate, asserting that compliance efforts thus far had far exceeded 40 hours. The court found merit in the evidence provided by TBC and Riot, determining that they were likely to succeed on the merits of the case. Additionally, it criticized the EIA for approving emergency investigations without sufficient justification.
The TRO, effective until March 25, aims to "maintain the status quo" pending further legal proceedings. The document highlights the plaintiffs' demonstration of their likelihood to succeed on the merits, emphasizing that the investigation initiated under emergency provisions lacked adequate justification.
