HARRISBURG — Party-line votes cast by members of the Pennsylvania House Energy Committee on Monday advanced a pair of bills proposing an optional model zoning ordinance for local municipalities to consider toward regulating data center development, as well as mandating annual reports from the facilities about water and energy consumption.
Separate votes split the committee 14-12 in favor of advancing both bills, with all Democrats voting in support and all Republicans opposed. The bills move toward potential floor votes by the entire state House.
The full opposition of the committee’s Republican members signals, without further revision, that a narrow margin would likely decide each bill’s outcome in the House, where Democrats have a one-seat voting majority. Should either advance to the Senate, the path toward becoming law is uncertain. The upper chamber is led by a Republican majority.
Pennsylvania is a hotbed for data center proposals with tech industry giants seeking to establish facilities across the commonwealth, from the Pittsburgh region to greater Scranton, the Lehigh Valley, south-central Pennsylvania and suburban Philadelphia.
Amazon announced a $20 billion investment to build two data center campuses in Luzerne and Bucks counties. Google announced more than $3 billion to modernize two hydropower facilities in Lancaster County. Microsoft is working with Constellation Energy on a $1 billion-plus proposal to reopen a viable nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island.
Those are among 52 separate proposals across Pennsylvania in varied planning stages tracked at www.padatacenterproposals.com.
The broader initiative of capitalizing on data center investments has bipartisan support, including from Gov. Josh Shapiro. The governor has called on the companies to bring their own power sources to the projects, a concept for which Senate Republican Majority Leader Joe Pittman has also expressed interest. Resistance is found on the local level, where residents have raised concerns in several communities about the potential drain on local resources such as water and electricity, plus affordability.
House Bill 2150, introduced by Rep. Kyle Mullins, D-Lackawanna, is named the Data Center Energy and Water Reporting Act. It would require that data centers annually issue a publicly available report to the Department of Environmental Protection, though shielding proprietary information, concerning total and average consumption of water and energy, among other requirements. Daily $10,000 fines would be assessed on violators who fail to comply, with fine money redirected to low-income energy consumers.
Rep. Kyle Donahue, D-Lackawanna, is the prime sponsor of House Bill 2151. The bill seeks to create a model ordinance for local municipalities to consider when adopting a local ordinance. The state has no authority over zoning laws, so the model ordinance is intended as an option, not a mandate.
During Monday’s committee meeting, Rep. Martin Causer, R-Cameron/McKean/Potter, minority chair, framed opposition to both. For the bill requiring annual reporting, he said it unfairly singles out the data center industry alone, a concern shared by the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, and involves the Public Utility Commission, which would also regulate the industry. He also opposed the structure of the proposed fiscal penalties.
“This, in my opinion, is the new industrial revolution. This is the technical revolution of our country,” said Rep. Mike Armanini, R-Clearfield/Elk. “This is so important that if we do not get this right, we are going to fail and economically, Pennsylvania is not going to grow.”
As to the bill for the model ordinance, Causer said he warned that, despite lacking a mandate and being referred to as optional, it would appear to local elected officials as a one-size-fits-all state-approved ordinance. The PA Chamber, for its part, had similar concerns, including the potential for it not only to be overly restrictive but also remove local control to tailor zoning ordinances to meet local needs.
“The good news is this bill is not a requirement, it is not a mandate, and it does not, in fact, restrict local officials’ decision-making in any way. It is optional, it is a model ordinance,” Fiedler said, noting that with the approved amendments, the bill has the support of the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs, while the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors is neutral.