By Paul J. Gough. 7.31.26

Gov. Josh Shapiro said he would consider executive action if the Pennsylvania Senate doesn’t act on his proposed standards for data center development in the coming months.

Shapiro unveiled during his February budget address the Governor’s Responsible Infrastructure Development Standards (GRID), which set baseline best practices for data center developers to meet before they got state funding and other support. They were codified into House Bill 2650 and passed the Pennsylvania House 134-68 on June 24. The bill is now before the Pennsylvania Senate Finance Committee.

During a visit to GE Vernova’s Washington County manufacturing plant Thursday afternoon, Shapiro said he was pleased the House passed it in a bipartisan vote but disappointed that the Senate hasn’t taken it up. He said he hoped to be able to change the minds of the Republican leadership in the Senate.

“If the Legislature doesn’t act soon, I’ll be looking at different things I can do via executive order to strengthen the protections for our local communities,” Shapiro told the Business Times.

Data center development has become an increasingly controversial topic in Pennsylvania, with dozens of projects being considered statewide, including in western Pennsylvania. Shapiro has supported the responsible development of data centers in the commonwealth including the GRID standards. But few bills have crossed the finish line in Harrisburg regarding the building and regulating of data centers. Several, including near Pittsburgh, have faced public opposition.

Shapiro said that data centers had to meet standards, including transparency, local community benefits and protecting water.

Advocates for data center development were able to defeat a proposal to end the state’s sales tax exemption for equipment made in Pennsylvania for data centers.

Only one bill became law: Senate Bill 146 passed during the budget process earlier this month requires data centers with more than 10 megawatts of capacity to provide an annual report on the amount of energy and water consumed.

 

Link: https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2026/07/31/data-center-standards-pennsylvania.html