Shapiro on placing guardrails on AI data centers in Pennsylvania: “I don’t want developers running roughshod”

Shapiro Signs Executive Order to Tighten Data Center Oversight in Pennsylvania

Wertynews.com – On Tuesday, Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro signed an executive order imposing strict new requirements on data center projects across the commonwealth. The directive mandates an intensive review process for every proposed facility, obligates developers to supply their own electricity, and makes municipal approval a prerequisite before construction can proceed. The order explicitly weighs environmental impact, energy consumption, and community disruption when evaluating new sites.

A Shift in Stance After Community Pushback

Speaking on “CBS Mornings” the following Wednesday, Shapiro explained that his position had evolved through direct conversations with residents. He acknowledged that a year earlier he had personally helped attract a $20 billion Amazon investment for two data centers in the state. Yet he said he increasingly observed developers exploiting Pennsylvanians rather than partnering with them.

“I don’t want developers running roughshod across our communities.”

The governor cited specific incidents that shaped his thinking. He described standing along the left-field line at Eddie Staback Park in Lackawanna County, where a developer had proposed siting a facility directly where parents would sit watching a ball game. He also pointed to a proposed project roughly seven miles from his own residence in densely populated Montgomery County, where he felt the developer was ignoring local residents entirely.

“These are not the kind of projects I want in Pennsylvania.”

Guardrails, Not Blank Checks

Shapiro emphasized that the order does not ban data centers outright. It sets what he called the strictest requirements in the country, but leaves the door open for proposals that earn local backing, protect the environment, and generate their own power.

“We’ve seen too many developers who are trying to bulldoze our community with these speculative deals that are never going to come into reality, and they’re wreaking havoc on our neighbors. I don’t want them here in Pennsylvania. If you’ve got a serious proposal that enjoys the support of the local community, that protects our environment, that generates power, then we’re willing to talk to you and engage with you. And that is our plan here in the commonwealth now with the strictest requirements in the entire country.”

National Skepticism and the AI Boom

Shapiro’s intervention lands amid broad public wariness. Recent CBS News/YouGov polling shows Americans are far more likely to oppose new data centers in their neighborhoods than to support them, even though most respondents admit knowing little or nothing about how those facilities operate. Data centers house networked servers, storage drives, and related hardware that process everything from email traffic to enterprise software. Demand for that processing and storage capacity has surged alongside the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence.

2028 Ambitions and the Democratic Primary Landscape

Widely viewed as a potential 2028 presidential contender, Shapiro insisted the executive order is about protecting Pennsylvanians rather than courting political advantage. When “CBS Mornings” host Gayle King turned to the Democratic Socialists of America and their notable primary victories this cycle, Shapiro offered a measured response.

“Yeah, I think we have to see what happens in the general election. But what’s also clear is there is a ton of passion in the electorate right now, and a desire to defeat Donald Trump’s chaos and cruelty and corruption, and people are showing up in record numbers. Our party is going to certainly have an ideological battle. It’s going to have a real debate over these ideas going forward. But the thing we’ve got to focus on is winning in these midterms and defeating Donald Trump and his enablers.”