Bill bolstering nuclear energy development sent to governor
Rep. Joe McAndrew July 13, 2026 | 3:42 PM
HARRISBURG, July 13 — Nuclear development in Pennsylvania took a significant step forward this week with the final General Assembly passage of legislation which will make the construction of smaller, more efficient nuclear reactors more affordable in Pennsylvania.
The bill (H.B. 2017), prime sponsored by state Reps. Jose Giral, D-Phila., Nate Davidson, D-Cumberland/Dauphin, Joe McAndrew, D-Allegheny, and Elizabeth Fiedler, D-Phila, would update the state’s fee structure for operators of nuclear energy sites to reflect how modern small modular reactors and micro reactors differ from traditional light-water reactors.
“Pennsylvania has long been a national energy leader,” said Giral. “I am proud to see the General Assembly committed to ensuring our laws respond to and reflect energy technology as it evolves. The up-front capital needed to build new traditional reactors is prohibitively expensive and this bill meets the moment by recognizing SMR development as the next important step in nuclear development and updating our current fee structure to make it more affordable for SMR developers to build here.”
According to the lawmakers, traditional light-water nuclear reactors have sprawling footprints with multiple reactors per site. They take extensive time and money to construct and run. In contrast, SMRs require more, smaller sites with fewer reactors per site, which allows them to be built in areas with less access to existing power grids, like rural Pennsylvania. Their small size also allows them to be factory-built, rather than built on-site, so that they can be transported to areas where large-scale construction is difficult. And technological developments have made these smaller reactors more efficient than light-water reactors.
“Nuclear energy provides a critical piece of Pennsylvania’s baseload capacity, and SMRs must be a part of the commonwealth's energy future,” said Davidson. “Our largest trading partner, Canada, is actively building the first SMR for grid energy production in a G7 country. This important legislation sets the stage for Pennsylvania to be a national leader in SMR construction, opening the door to even closer economic ties with our neighbors to the north.”
Right now, the Department of Environmental Protection levies fees on a per-site basis. Because SMRs require more sites to meet energy demand, Giral said asking operators to pay too high a fee per site discourages companies from expanding into Pennsylvania.
"This bill levels the playing field for nuclear innovation in Pennsylvania. As we look at energy to diversify our grid, this is an opportunity to allow new technology to flourish, resulting in lower energy costs. We're making it clear that our commonwealth is ready for next-generation energy," said McAndrew.
The fees collected by DEP are used to cover the costs of environmental monitoring, administrative oversight, and decommissioning.
HB 2017 would update the Radiation Protection Act of 1984 to add definitions for small modular reactors and micro reactors and distinguish them from traditional light-water reactors, create a new, separate fee structure for these smaller reactors, and direct the Environmental Quality Board to determine reasonable fees for SMR sites.
Giral also noted that modernizing our energy technology will help lower energy costs for residents in the long term and may even help offset the significant energy consumption of data centers. By opening the door to smaller, more efficient nuclear reactors, the state could be looking at a future in which data centers can run more efficiently and with less strain on our power grids.
“This bill has received an incredible level of bipartisan support, and I am thrilled to see it pass the Senate,” said Fiedler, “In the Energy Committee, we are focused on bold solutions to the energy crisis that families in all our districts face. This bill addresses a key piece of the puzzle: generating more energy, and does so in a clean, zero-carbon way. Congrats to Rep. Giral, I look forward to seeing projects break ground in Pennsylvania in the years to come!”
“We have the workforce and expertise to keep Pennsylvania ahead of the curve on energy modernization,” said Giral. “I am grateful to my colleagues in the Senate for supporting our energy sector and the jobs that modernizing it will necessarily create, and I look forward to seeing this bill signed into law.”
The bill moves to the desk of Gov. Josh Shapiro for his signature.