PA Legislators: Protect Local Control, Stop the Power Grab!

A pair of bills moving forward in Harrisburg aim to strip power away from local governments, enabling the state to force through new fracking wells, AI data centers, and other dirty infrastructure.

Pennsylvania is not a sacrifice zone for Big Tech and fracking. Urge your state legislators to vote NO on S.B. 939 and H.B. 502!

House Bill 502 is a golden ticket for dirty energy. It would create an unelected board in Harrisburg that could exempt an energy project from certain local laws. That would mean fossil fuel companies could ignore local zoning laws and put dirty energy facilities like fracking wells and power plants in nearly any location — and local governments would be powerless to stop them.
Senate Bill 939 would throw open the floodgates for a massive buildout of AI data centers and the new gas power plants that come with them. It would fast-track these dirty developments by stripping local governments of their power to pass local laws protecting residents from data center noise and pollution, and would fast-track the environmental permit process for data centers.

As the federal and state government put the interests of the tech and energy corporations ahead of people and the environment, our local government is more important than ever. Tell your state senator and representative to stand up against this brazen power grab!

Your Message

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I urge you to oppose House Bill 502 and Senate Bill 939, two bills designed to strip power from local governments and fast-track dirty energy and data centers across the state.

H.B. 502 would establish a so-called Reliable Energy Siting and Electric Transition (RESET) Board. This bill is designed to fast-track polluting power generation and storage facilities of any type by allowing the industry to ignore local zoning ordinances. No corporation should be granted a golden ticket out of following laws that protect the health, safety, and welfare of our communities.

Local governments are best positioned to make land use decisions. But H.B. 502 relegates local elected officials to consulting roles at best, instead creating an unelected seven-member board with the power to issue certificates that would fast-track dirty energy projects. These certificates would allow a power generation facility to be sited in nearly any zoning district, allowing fracking wells or power plants to be located close to homes, schools, hospitals, parks, and neighborhoods.

S.B. 939 uses the exact same playbook to fast-track fossil fuel-powered hyperscale AI data centers. These facilities would bring noise pollution, industrial development, and more dirty energy to our communities, impacting quality of life, water resources, electricity rates, grid reliability, and the environment. Data center booms have devastated communities in Virginia and elsewhere, and energy-hungry hyperscale data centers are contributing to rising electricity bills in areas where they are built.

Under S.B. 939, all regulation of data centers would be handed over to a new “Office of Transformation and Opportunity,” which would operate out of the Governor’s office and at the pleasure of the Governor. All departments involved in permitting would report to this new agency, and permitting would be fast-tracked. Instead of allowing adequate time for thorough review and public participation, environmental permits would be automatically granted if a 120-day deadline is not met.

Municipalities across the country are looking at the evidence and using their authority to make thoughtful, proactive decisions to protect residents and the environment. Both H.B. 502 and S.B. 939 would strip away that local control, silencing community voices across the Commonwealth and forcing towns to accept fossil fuel and data center buildouts.

Please stand up to these brazen attempts to sell out our state to Big Tech and fossil fuel interests. Oppose H.B. 502 and S.B. 939!

Sincerely,
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{user_data~City}, {user_data~State} {user_data~Ghost Zip Code}

Sincerely,
[First Name] [Last Name]
[Your Address]

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