Pittsburgh, Pa. − March 25, 2026 − Senator Lindsey M. Williams (D-Allegheny) announced today that she has introduced Senate Bill 724, the Data Center Fair Share Act. This legislation would require data centers to pay for grid updates made for their benefit, enter into community benefits agreements (CBAs) with impacted communities, and help Pennsylvanians on fixed incomes better afford the increased cost of heating and cooling.
“People have a lot of questions and concerns about data centers coming into their neighborhoods,” said Senator Williams. “They fear their utility bills getting even higher, increasing power outages, and the overall impact on their community. My legislation helps customers lower their utility bills, gives them a say in what’s going to happen in their community, and makes our grid more reliable.”
Some highlights of Senator Williams’ legislation:
- Requiring data centers pay for their own utility infrastructure upgrades.Public utilities cannot pass costs incurred because of a large data center on to ordinary ratepayers — through base rates, riders, surcharges, or any other mechanism. There is a rebuttable presumption that infrastructure costs driven by data centers belong exclusively to those data centers.
- Requiring Community Benefits Agreements (CBA).The data center must enter into a CBA with the host community, which is defined as a community within a 10-mile radius. The CBA must also include at least three established community-based organizations and a monetary payment that is at least 10% of the total cost of project. The community decides how that money is spent: workforce development, environmental benefits, public safety, infrastructure, affordable housing, monitoring energy consumption, or other beneficial uses. This CBA is legally binding and must be filed with the PUC’s Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement.
- Supporting Low-Income Families.Currently, only residential customers pay into universal service and energy conservation programs that help low-income households. This legislation requires data centers to support those programs. It also creates the new Data Center LIHEAP Enhancement Fund to fund a supplemental low-income energy assistance program, including a summer cooling component.
- Prioritizing ratepayers in an emergency.During grid emergencies, such as extreme cold or heat, data centers are scaled back or cut before small businesses and residential customers.
This legislation builds on HB1834, which passed the House just yesterday with bipartisan support.
“This legislation is about fairness,” said Senator Williams. “The bottom line is that we can’t let global tech companies use Pennsylvania’s grid on the backs of Pennsylvania’s ratepayers. We have to give communities real power when negotiating with enormous companies about what is happening in their backyards. And we have to prioritize people over corporations.”
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