WASHINGTON — The Senate on Wednesday rejected a bill intended to address electricity costs tied to data centers, leaving Congress without a response to growing concerns about how the facilities’ power demand and grid upgrades could affect ratepayers before the midterm elections. The Ratepayer Protection Act received 57 votes to advance and 43 against, short of the 60-vote threshold. Four Democrats — Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock of Georgia, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire — joined Republicans in supporting it. The measure, which passed the House 417-3 earlier this month, would have required states to consider a framework for ensuring data centers pay for all the energy they use and the grid improvements associated with them. It would not have required states to adopt that framework. Democrats argued that the bill’s approach was too weak to ensure households do not shoulder costs associated with expanding data center power use. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats favor making data centers legally responsible for those expenses rather than relying on states to consider the idea. “A guardrail without teeth isn’t a guardrail,” Schumer said. Senate Majority Leader John Thune criticized Democrats for blocking the bill, saying he saw little reason for their opposition other than denying Republicans an election-year victory. Democrats have suggested the measure was designed in part to benefit its sponsor, Sen. Jon Husted, an Ohio Republican facing a difficult reelection contest against former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown. Republicans have rejected that characterization. Schumer said Democrats would continue pursuing alternative proposals, including bills from Sens. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland that would more directly require data centers to cover their energy costs. The vote comes as opposition to data center development and concern about its electricity demands become issues in midterm contests around the country. With lawmakers leaving Washington for the campaign period, the Senate’s action leaves the broader debate over who pays for the facilities’ energy needs and grid upgrades unresolved for now.