An Act imposing a Statewide moratorium on hyperscale data center development and permitting; and providing for enforcement.

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Rosemary Brown and 2 co-sponsors

Imposes a 36-month statewide pause on hyperscale data centers and related power infrastructure, halting new permits, construction, and approvals.

Referred to Local Government

Summary of SB 1359 (2025-2026) — Pennsylvania

Purpose and intent

Establishes a statewide moratorium on hyperscale data center development, permitting, and related infrastructure for a period of 36 months.

Aims to pause expansion or creation of hyperscale facilities and the power/transmission infrastructure that powers them, allowing time for study, policy development, or transition planning.

Key definitions

Hyperscale data center: A retail electric customer facility used for electronic information services (management, storage, processing, dissemination of data) that meets one of two energy thresholds:

If the electric distribution company’s peak load is ≥ 2,500 MW: the facility must have a monthly maximum demand of at least 20 MW.
If the peak load is < 2,500 MW: the facility must have a monthly maximum demand of at least 1 MW.

Thresholds are calculated by:

Including the load of affiliated companies and companies with common ownership.
Including multiple facilities at a single location if their combined load meets the threshold.

Major provisions

Moratorium (Section 3)

Prohibits:
New construction or expansion of hyperscale data centers.
Expansion of existing non-hyperscale data centers that would cause them to become hyperscale.
New power generation facilities and utility transmission infrastructure needed to power a hyperscale data center.
Duration: 36 months from the effective date.
Scope of prohibition: Applies to the Commonwealth, state agencies, political subdivisions, and public benefit corporations; cannot accept applications or issue permits/approvals for siting, construction, or operation during the moratorium, regardless of when applications were received.

Enforcement (Section 4)

Violations by Commonwealth agencies or municipalities render the action void.
The Attorney General may bring a court action to enforce the act.

Effective date (Section 5)

The act takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Who or what is impacted

Prospective and current hyperscale data centers in Pennsylvania.

Developers, operators, and owners of large-scale data center facilities.

Public utilities and electricity providers responsible for power generation and transmission infrastructure that would support hyperscale centers.

State and local government agencies, municipalities, and public benefit corporations involved in permitting, siting, or infrastructure approvals.

Timeline and procedural notes

Effective immediately upon enactment.

Moratorium lasts 36 months (3 years) from the effective date.

During the moratorium, no new permits, approvals, or applications related to hyperscale data centers or related power infrastructure may be processed.

Practical impact and considerations

The bill creates a pause window for policymakers to assess economic, environmental, energy-use, and land-use implications of hyperscale centers in Pennsylvania.

It could affect investment timelines, permitting workflows, and county/state planning efforts that anticipate large-scale data center development.

Enforcement mechanisms provide a clear pathway for nullifying noncompliant actions and allow the Attorney General to pursue legal action to uphold the moratorium.

If you’d like, I can provide a comparison to existing Pennsylvania energy or land-use policies, or outline potential stakeholder concerns and questions likely to arise during the moratorium period.