Public opinion on data center development appears uncertain in parts of the Commonwealth, as dozens of companies apply to build in suburban and rural communities. But state lawmakers in Harrisburg have largely resisted any comprehensive regulation, instead focusing on piecemeal, largely bipartisan efforts.
This week, four such bills passed through the legislative process, most of them almost unanimously.
One of them could require better coordination of emergency planning with local officials, while two others would allow municipalities to halt applications altogether.
However, a proposal to ban the operate of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) faced significant opposition on Tuesday, with several Republicans sharing concerns about making trade secrets public.
Representative Joe Ciresi (D-Montgomery) painted House Bill 2359 as a way to stop local authorities from signing NDAs. Opponents say they had to submit numerous information requests to obtain basic information related to the projects.
“We continue to hear from our residents about data centers, and we continue to talk about transparency and understanding in this chamber,” Ciresi said. “Thanks to this bill, our neighbors know what is being built.”
Others, however, disagreed, arguing that the bill goes beyond NDAs and includes requirements for public meetings and energy reporting.
“NDAs are used in all industries… and the reasons for their use are very clear,” he said Rep. Josh Kail (R-Beaver). “These large manufacturers or companies need to keep certain things secret, do their due diligence, and at the same time be able to provide information to local officials.”
He noted that last week the body adopted an act giving municipalities ability to pause the applicationbut said this proposal takes away some of that local control.Support independent reporting on how Pennsylvania’s policy decisions affect you. SUPPORT
“No one is forcing a local official to sign an NDA if they don’t think it’s the right thing for their community,” he continued.
Rep. Jamie Walsh (Luzerna) said the NDA had “riven the community” in his district, making elected leaders “unable to be honest with the public.”
One Democrat, Delaware County Rep. Greg Vitalijoined 30 minority Republicans in voting “no,” but 171 members chose to send the bill to the Senate.
Preparing for data center failures
House Bill 2535by Representative Christina Sappey (D-Chester) moved the Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee on Tuesday by a 25-1 majority, which she described as a “rather simple” way to reduce potential risk to first responders in emergencies.
To obtain an occupancy permit, data centers would have to submit floor plans and interior contents to local authorities, including information about emergency power switches, escape routes and manual activation points for fire protection systems.
The plans must be updated annually and are not subject to public records laws “to the extent there is a reasonable likelihood that disclosure would jeopardize the security or physical security of the facility or critical infrastructure.”
“We’ve been talking about data centers for months, but the one thing we haven’t talked about is what could potentially go wrong in some of these facilities,” Sappey said. “They are large and in some cases have long corridors. They have different rooms with different types of equipment, and our first responders who had an alarm would not have known what they were walking into.”
The penalty for a first offense is $10,000, followed by a fine of $5,000 for each day thereafter until the violation is corrected.
Rep. Greg Scott (D-Montgomery), a volunteer firefighter from Fairmont, was concerned about cases where rescues may require specialized equipment or firefighting foam – which could fall on compact, underfunded fire departments across the commonwealth.
“This burden should not be placed on taxpayers where there are billion-dollar corporations that have the resources to be able to present this,” Scott continued. “We cannot lose sight of the financial burden that some of these data centers will place on our fire department.”
But Representative Michael Stender (R-Northumberland), a former Harrisburg firefighter, said there was “nothing here that would necessarily concern me,” adding that building codes already required sprinklers.
“Actually, the best firefighters are these sprinklers. They are actually better firefighters than our volunteer and career firefighters,” Stender said. “They put out about 70-80% of the fire, and the rest of the work is usually done by steam.”
Other committee members rejected that claim, noting that data centers operate a wide range of energy sources that may require a more tailored response.
Stender was the only one to vote “no” and added that he had “some doubts about some of the terms included in the bill.”
Allowing municipalities to “pause” development
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and in both chambers seemed interested in improving rules allowing municipalities to halt all data center applications, as seen in two bills that were approved by the Senate Local Government Committee on Tuesday.
“The reality is that many of our local governments have been asked to evaluate these proposals before they have had sufficient time to understand their impacts or develop appropriate zoning ordinances tailored to this rapidly growing industry,” said Republican Paul Friel, sponsor of the initiative House Bill 2496. Don’t count on social media algorithms to facilitate you find a trusted news source. Sign up for our free morning newsletter.SUBSCRIBE
The bill would give municipalities the ability to “pause” zoning plan applications for 180 days. Last week, the House approved the measure by a 201-1 majority. Senators amended it to clarify that it would only apply to up-to-date applications, and unanimously passed the bill.
Another proposal would give municipalities even more time – up to 18 months – to impose a moratorium on up-to-date hyperscale data center applications.
“Our communities need a moment of respite,” he said Senate Bill 1345 sponsor Senator Jarrett Coleman (R-Lehigh). “Honestly, so does this community.”
Coleman stressed that any moratorium must have a specific reason, such as developing regulations or analyzing energy and water supplies.
Although the bill was adopted by a 10 to 1 majority, MPs rejected the amendment of 10 December 2010 Senator Rosemary Brown (R-Monroe), which would extend the moratorium to three years.
Senator Patty Kim (D-Dauphin) reflected on the constitutional limits, noting that the one-year moratorium in Hill County, Texas it had to be reversed last month after a developer filed a $100 million lawsuit challenging the rule.
Both bills now go to the full Senate for further consideration.
Whitney Downard is a writer for the Pennsylvania Capital-Star
