An Act amending the act of July 31, 1968 (P.L.805, No.247), known as the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, in zoning, providing for optional moratorium on filing or consideration of new applications for high impact data centers.

PRINTER'S NO. 3434
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 2533
Session of
2026
INTRODUCED BY WALSH, PUGH, BOROWICZ, KAUFFMAN, VITALI, KRUPA AND
BARGER, MAY 26, 2026
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT, MAY 27, 2026
AN ACT
Amending the act of July 31, 1968 (P.L.805, No.247), entitled
"An act to empower cities of the second class A, and third
class, boroughs, incorporated towns, townships of the first
and second classes including those within a county of the
second class and counties of the second through eighth
classes, individually or jointly, to plan their development
and to govern the same by zoning, subdivision and land
development ordinances, planned residential development and
other ordinances, by official maps, by the reservation of
certain land for future public purpose and by the acquisition
of such land; to promote the conservation of energy through
the use of planning practices and to promote the effective
utilization of renewable energy sources; providing for the
establishment of planning commissions, planning departments,
planning committees and zoning hearing boards, authorizing
them to charge fees, make inspections and hold public
hearings; providing for mediation; providing for transferable
development rights; providing for appropriations, appeals to
courts and penalties for violations; and repealing acts and
parts of acts," in zoning, providing for optional moratorium
on filing or consideration of new applications for high
impact data centers.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of July 31, 1968 (P.L.805, No.247), known
as the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, is amended by
adding a section to read:
Section 622. Optional Moratorium on Filing or Consideration
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of New Applications for High Impact Data Centers.--(a) A
municipality may impose by ordinance a temporary moratorium
prohibiting the filing or consideration of documents relating to
high impact data centers as follows:
(1) A moratorium may last no longer than 18 months from
the ordinance's effective date.
(2) A prohibition may apply to an application, petition
or submission seeking approval, review or relief for a high
impact data center, including, but not limited to:
(i) a zoning map or text amendments specific to a
site or use;
(ii) conditional uses, special exceptions or
variances;
(iii) land development plans or subdivision
applications; or
(iv) a building permit or certificate tied to an
approval for a high impact data center when the permit or
certificate requires prior land use or zoning approval.
(3) A moratorium may not:
(i) prohibit the consideration or filing of
documents unrelated to high impact data centers;
(ii) affect data centers that do not meet the
definition of a "high impact data center" under
subsection (i);
(iii) suspend enforcement actions or remedial
proceedings for violations of law; or
(iv) impair routine maintenance or safety upgrades
at existing facilities.
(b) (1) A moratorium ordinance shall identify the planning,
study or ordinance-development activities to be undertaken
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during the moratorium, which may include:
(i) infrastructure capacity assessments, including,
but not limited to, assessments relating to water,
wastewater or an electrical grid;
(ii) public safety and emergency services impact
analysis;
(iii) environmental and community impact
evaluations; and
(iv) drafting and consideration of zoning,
subdivision and land development, or other municipal code
amendments addressing high impact data centers.
(2) A municipality shall make reasonable progress on the
activities listed under paragraph (1) during the moratorium
period identified in the ordinance.
(c) Prior to the adoption of a moratorium ordinance under
this section, the governing body shall conduct a public hearing
with notice as required by this act. The ordinance shall include
findings supporting the necessity of the moratorium and
identifying the moratorium's relationship to the planning
activities in subsection (b).
(d) The moratorium may not apply to approvals or permits
previously granted.
(e) (1) A moratorium ordinance shall provide a process by
which an applicant may request a waiver upon a showing that:
(i) strict application of the moratorium would
result in substantial, unique and demonstrable hardship
not created by the applicant; and
(ii) granting the waiver would be consistent with
the public interest and the purposes of this section.
(2) The governing body of the municipality may grant,
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grant with conditions or deny a waiver after a public
meeting. The decision shall be in writing and include
findings of fact and conclusions.
(f) During a moratorium period, the municipality shall
consult, as applicable, with the county planning agency
regarding planning and ordinance updates contemplated under
subsection (b).
(g) A moratorium authorized under this section and
implemented in compliance with this act is a reasonable, time-
limited planning measure and shall not be construed to effect a
taking or to create liability for damages if the municipality
affords the exemptions and procedures required under this
section.
(h) (1) Nothing in this section shall:
(i) be construed to limit any other municipal powers
or procedures authorized under this act, nor to mandate
the adoption of a moratorium; or
(ii) alter or diminish the rights of public
utilities or electric cooperatives under other applicable
statutes.
(2) In the event of a conflict with another provision of
law, this section shall be harmonized with other provisions
of this act to the maximum extent possible.
(i) As used in this section, the following words and phrases
shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection unless
the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Critical IT load." The aggregate electrical power drawn by
information technology equipment under normal operating
conditions at steady state, exclusive of a non-information
technology building load.
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"Data center." A facility or group of facilities that is
used to house and operate equipment that:
(1) receives, stores, aggregates, manages, processes,
transforms, retrieves, researches or transmits data; or
(2) is necessary for the proper operation of equipment
that receives, stores, aggregates, manages, processes,
transforms, retrieves, researches or transmits data.
"High impact data center." A facility or group of facilities
that:
(1) is a data center;
(2) consists of one or more parcels in this
Commonwealth, along with the buildings, substations and other
infrastructure, fixtures and personal property located on the
parcels;
(3) is owned, operated or leased by an entity or
affiliated group of entities; and
(4) has a critical IT load of 25 megawatts or higher.
Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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