Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro has recently revealed details of the upcoming Governor’s Responsible Infrastructure Development (GRID) Standards, which are set to add more requirements for data center developers seeking tax breaks. The plan was controversial, however, as many residents believed that the government should not continue incentivizing companies to build data centers in Pennsylvania.
According to reports from Philly Voice, Shapiro’s new GRID Standards come as Pennsylvanians have grown concerned about rising energy costs. Because of that, the government decided that companies need to meet stricter rules before building data centers, with a focus on transparency and sustainability.
To receive the tax breaks, companies would need to demonstrate that their energy needs will be met without burdening local utility consumers. Other requirements would include meeting clean energy and sustainability standards, improving transparency in public meetings, and maintaining compliance through audits.
Pennsylvania Residents Don’t Want More Data Centers
While some people have supported Shapiro’s decision to make it harder for data centers to receive tax breaks in Pennsylvania, most locals did not seem happy about these facilities being built in the state at all. One of them said, “Let’s give them tax breaks so we can pay more for their electric use. Man, life just keeps getting better, doesn’t it?”
Someone else criticized Shapiro: “Google, Amazon, and Microsoft are worth trillions of dollars. They don’t need tax breaks, so they will not fulfill the requirements for the breaks. This is just a scheme to get the approval to build the data centers.” Others complained that tax breaks were essentially paid for by the American people: “Time to start calling the electric thing what it is; we are socializing the data center built by taxing every single American. Enough with the data center tax.”
In general, most people were skeptical of the entire plan and seemed unhappy with what data centers were being used for. For example, someone argued, “Data centers are the cost of having AI and mass surveillance, both of those a blight in themselves. Why are we giving data centers tax breaks?” One user summarized the situation: “Nothing is sustainable about data centers.”
As utility prices have been skyrocketing in Pennsylvania, more and more locals oppose data centers. It remains to be seen whether Governor Shapiro will listen to them or move forward with the current plans.
