Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s handling of data center development has undergone a sharp reversal in roughly 20 months. His administration first promoted a fast-track permitting process that welcomed hyperscale facilities, then introduced additional standards and ultimately removed data centers from the program through an executive order aimed at slowing development.
The change came as opposition grew over electricity demand, environmental impacts and the possibility that households could bear the cost of infrastructure upgrades. Shapiro’s Republican opponent in this year’s governor’s race, Stacy Garrity, has made his initial support for data centers a central line of attack, although polling has not shown a corresponding improvement in her electoral prospects.
The issue nonetheless appears to have weakened Shapiro’s position with voters. A July Quinnipiac poll found that 56 percent of Pennsylvania voters approved of the governor overall, while 34 percent disapproved. On his handling of artificial intelligence data centers, approval fell to 24 percent, compared with 34 percent disapproval and 42 percent who were unsure.
Shapiro entered office in January 2023, shortly after ChatGPT’s launch. That September, he issued an executive order establishing a governing board and standards for his administration’s use of generative AI. In November 2024, he announced the Pennsylvania Permit Fast Track Program, saying it would accelerate approvals for major economic development and infrastructure projects.
Data centers were among the program’s earliest participants. One project, initially called Project Hazelnut, was described by the administration as a 1,300-acre technology campus. Public records later linked it to an Amazon Web Services hyperscale data center campus. In June 2025, Shapiro announced that Amazon planned to invest $20 billion at two other proposed Pennsylvania sites and said the state could provide the power needed for the facilities while maintaining reliable and affordable energy for households and businesses.
Political support began to erode later that year as proposals multiplied and electricity rates rose. Communities challenged proposed facilities, while environmental organizations questioned the fast-track process. The Delaware Riverkeeper Network raised possible air and water concerns about an Amazon project near Philadelphia and released emails in which a state environmental agency employee described it as a governor’s priority project and urged staff to meet or exceed regulatory timelines.
Polling reflected the growing concern. An Emerson College survey released in December 2025 found Pennsylvanians nearly split on data center construction, with 38 percent supporting it and 35 percent opposing it. By April 2026, a Muhlenberg College poll found that one in five respondents viewed data centers as a crisis and two in five considered them a problem. Six of the 11 projects listed on the state’s Fast Track dashboard were data centers, according to the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.
Shapiro changed his public message as opposition intensified. In a February budget address, he acknowledged concerns about large-scale development and introduced the Governor’s Responsible Infrastructure Development standards, known as grid. His administration said the framework set expectations for resource use, community engagement and transparency, while Shapiro insisted it represented clarification rather than a policy reversal.
A white paper released in May said developers would have to obtain 32 percent of their electricity from “clean firm” sources by 2035 and cover all infrastructure upgrade costs. Critics argued that GRID lacked legally binding force. A bill that would have codified the standards passed the state House in June but stalled in the Republican-controlled Senate, and a July budget agreement did not include data center regulations based on the framework.
In August, Shapiro issued an executive order removing data centers from the Fast Track program. His administration said developers seeking early state regulatory review would have to comply with GRID standards. The order also used terms such as “greedy” and “predatory” to describe some industry operators, creating the possibility that projects could face a slower approval process than under the standard state system.
Shapiro’s critics remain skeptical of the change. Megan McDonough of Food & Water Watch pointed to reports suggesting that Amazon received early access to the fast-track process and input on drafts of the GRID principles. She also cited a report from her organization alleging hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from data center interests to Shapiro while his latest executive order was being developed.
Other environmental and consumer advocates give the governor more credit. Katie Blume of Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania said Shapiro’s initial position was understandable when the state appeared likely to receive only a small number of major projects. In her view, the situation changed when speculative proposals multiplied and generated widespread local opposition. She said the executive order could slow projects whose developers fail to meet the state’s expectations.
The industry has also expressed concern about the reversal. Dan Diorio of the Data Center Coalition said uncertainty had made investment decisions in Pennsylvania more difficult and criticized the lack of distinction between major technology companies and smaller developers proposing speculative projects. None of the facilities previously listed in the Fast Track program had obtained all necessary permits, according to Technical.ly, while local opposition continued to delay several projects. The article reported that 74 percent of Pennsylvanians now said they would oppose a data center in their community.
Industry representatives also object to the proposed clean-energy requirements, arguing that compliance could depend on factors outside developers’ control, including delays in new generation projects handled through the PJM Interconnection grid system. Consumer advocates, meanwhile, say Shapiro could use another term to pursue policies addressing electricity affordability and data center impacts.
The political consequences remain uncertain. Shapiro’s overall popularity has declined among some pollsters during the period in which data centers became a major state issue, and his record could receive additional scrutiny if he pursues a presidential campaign in 2028. Supporters see the shift toward GRID and the August executive order as evidence that he responded to changing circumstances. Opponents argue that he embraced the industry too quickly and has yet to impose binding protections.
Sources: Inside Climate News.