Cumberland County

Updates, newest first

1. Oct. 20, 2026 Pennsylvania Digital 1 (PAX-1) · The state Department of Environmental Protection's data center permit tracker lists 21 environmental permit or authorization entries for the project: 9 issued, 4 pending, 8 not yet submitted. (Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Oct. 20, 2026; Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Oct. 20, 2026)
2. Oct. 5, 2026 Pennsylvania Digital 1 (PAX-1) · Cumberland County Judge Matthew Smith refused to halt construction and set a Nov. 13 hearing on a discretionary stay. (ABC27, Oct. 5, 2026)
3. Sept. 2026 Pennsylvania Digital 1 (PAX-1) · Supervisors granted final approval. (ABC27, Oct. 5, 2026)
4. May 2026 Pennsylvania Digital 1 (PAX-1) · Supervisors approved zoning changes and preliminary approval; opponents filed a zoning challenge. (ABC27, Oct. 5, 2026)
5. Jan. 9, 2026 Pennsylvania Digital 1 (PAX-1) · Middlesex Township supervisors approved subdivision plans for the 18-building campus. (WHP 580 (iHeartRadio), Jan. 9, 2026)
6. Jan. 30, 2025 Pennsylvania Digital 1 (PAX-1) · Earliest environmental permit application listed for the project on DEP's data center permit tracker submitted. (Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Oct. 20, 2026; Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Oct. 20, 2026)

Statewide

Pennsylvania exempts computer data center equipment from state sales and use tax for certified data centers (Act 84 of 2016, amended by Act 13 of 2019 and Act 25 of 2021; the up-front exemption began Jan. 1, 2022), run by the Department of Revenue; Spotlight PA reported the exemption is projected to cost about $2 billion by mid-2031. (Pennsylvania Department of Revenue, Oct. 20, 2026; Spotlight PA, July 20, 2026) The Public Utility Commission adopted a model large-load tariff on April 30, 2026 and issued its final order May 13, 2026 (Docket M-2025-3054271): guidance for utilities on customers over 50 MW (or 100 MW combined), with cost responsibility, collateral, six-month interconnection studies and public queue information. (Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, May 13, 2026) Executive Order 2026-05 (Aug. 18, 2026) set the governor's GRID standards for data centers, requires local approvals before DEP reviews permits, bars state nondisclosure agreements with developers, ordered a public permit map and ended Fast Track eligibility for data center projects. (Barley Snyder, Aug. 19, 2026) DEP's Data Center Permit Tracker, created under that order, listed 73 project entries on Oct. 20, 2026 (some projects appear more than once), with 375 permit rows; most proposals have filed no permits yet. (Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Oct. 20, 2026; Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Oct. 20, 2026) The 2026-27 budget (July 2026) added a requirement that data centers using more than 10 MW report their energy and water use; local moratorium bills (SB 1345, 18 months; a House six-month bill; SB 1359, a three-year statewide pause) had not reached the governor. (Spotlight PA, July 20, 2026; Broadband Breakfast, July 21, 2026; Altoona Mirror, June 30, 2026) Constellation is restarting the 835 MW Crane Clean Energy Center (former Three Mile Island Unit 1) in Dauphin County for Microsoft under a 20-year power deal, targeting the second half of 2027; FERC granted an interconnection-rights waiver in June 2026. (Mugglehead, June 4, 2026) Pennsylvania data centers →