Data centers have become one of the most contentious issues in Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District race, drawing sharp attacks from both sides over money, regulation, and who really has the region’s best interests at heart. With Election Day approaching, the debate between Democratic candidate and Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti and Republican incumbent Rep. Rob Bresnahan has grown increasingly pointed — and complicated.
At the center of the fight is a television ad Cognetti released in which she slams a laptop shut and delivers a blunt message to data center developers who don’t meet her conditions on electric bills, water quality, and local union labor.
“Don’t raise our electric bills. Don’t poison our water. And hire local union labor. You can’t meet that? Goodbye. Then get out. This is our home. We are not for sale.”
Bresnahan’s campaign fired back quickly, accusing Cognetti of hypocrisy. His team pointed to roughly $13,000 in donations she received over the past two years from individual lawyers at Myers, Brier & Kelly — a Scranton law firm that represents DBT Data, a developer planning a data center in Jessup, Lackawanna County. The contributions include $4,500 from attorney Robert T. Kelly Jr., who served as WVIA’s board chairman until earlier this year. Cognetti’s campaign responded that none of the attorneys who donated to her are working on the DBT Data project — that work is handled by a different attorney at the firm, Neil Thatcher, who has not contributed to her campaign.
Bresnahan’s own financial ties to the data center industry have drawn scrutiny as well. Federal campaign records show his campaign accepted more than $8,700 directly from data center developers, including $1,500 from Scott Linde, who is planning a center in Wayne County, and $7,260 from James Marzolino, who is linked to proposals for data centers and natural gas power plants in Dickson City and Archbald. Bresnahan also holds stock in four companies that develop data centers — ranging from between $1,001 and $15,000 in Digital Realty Trust, Iron Mountain, and Equinix, to between $15,001 and $50,000 in SBA Communications. He also holds hundreds of thousands of dollars in stocks tied to companies that supply data center equipment or rely on data centers. Bresnahan has consistently said his financial advisers make those investment decisions and he plays no role in them.
Bresnahan’s Legislative Approach
Bresnahan’s position on data centers has shifted over time. In an April 2025 statement to The Times Leader newspaper in Wilkes-Barre, he enthusiastically welcomed the industry to the region.
“I am pleased to hear that companies are looking to Northeastern Pennsylvania for their data centers, which can serve as catalysts for economic growth and technological innovation for our region as we work towards fostering a 22nd century workforce. The second fastest growing industry in Northeastern Pennsylvania is energized land, which will help power these data centers. I look forward to these investments and encourage companies to look to Northeastern Pennsylvania as a home for economic and technological advancements.”
As public opposition mounted, Bresnahan introduced the Local Control Protection Act on June 11. The bill would prevent data center developers from challenging local government decisions in federal court when those decisions were made by recorded vote with documented findings. It would also bar developers from receiving federal permits or tax credits unless they reach enforceable agreements with local governments covering taxes, road and utility impacts, environmental and noise monitoring, and a preference for hiring local workers and contractors. The bill has two co-sponsors, including Rep. Dan Meuser of the neighboring 9th Congressional District, but Congress has not acted on it.
Bresnahan framed the bill as a matter of local empowerment, telling a Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce forum on October 23:
“The best form of government, in my opinion, is always a government closest to the people. Rob Bresnahan is not going to tell anyone what they’re going to live next to, what they’re going to tolerate.”
His spokesperson, Samantha Bullock, characterized the bill as evidence of meaningful action, saying
“Rep. Bresnahan went on a fact-finding mission to learn what would be best for Northeastern Pennsylvania and then drafted legislation to address it while Paige Cognetti’s only concern was what position sounds best for her campaign.”
Cognetti’s Record in Scranton
Cognetti has attended multiple public hearings on data center proposals in Lackawanna County, including a January hearing in Ransom Township where she raised concerns about stormwater runoff and potential flooding in Scranton. She also attended and testified at hearings in Archbald. In March, her administration proposed amendments to Scranton’s zoning ordinance to regulate data centers, covering definitions, allowable locations, noise, vibration, landscaping, and studies on utility capacity, traffic, and water demand.
City Council members initially welcomed the proposal. Councilperson Sean McAndrew said at the time,
“I’m very happy that this is proactive or getting it out there. And we’re mak(ing) sure we’re protecting our city.”
Councilperson Tom Schuster added,
“It’s going to give us time for public input and public comment.”
But four months passed without significant updates. At the council’s July 28 meeting — the same day Cognetti’s data center campaign ad began airing — McAndrew asked for a status report.
“So can we please get some information over break so we could kind of see where we’re going with this?”
At a caucus held this past Tuesday focused on the amendments, McAndrew said the lack of communication over the summer was frustrating.
“Little updates like that would have went a long way here because we’ve been asking, and when we get no response, it’s just like, well, what’s going on?”
Councilperson Mark McAndrew raised concerns about the timing, noting the amendments are expected to be considered in December during the city’s busy budget season.
“If you had that much time from March until now, I’d be a little more acceptive of (it) if we knew what was going on. Time’s always our enemy, and it shouldn’t be.”
Carolyn Yagle, the consultant developing the amendments, explained the delays were tied to monitoring state legislation and Governor Josh Shapiro’s executive order on data center development.
“We needed to ensure that we had a steady foot with all of those kinds of influences before coming here, and now we know that we do, and we’re presenting this information with a solid stance on being able to understand things.”
City Solicitor Jessica Eskra told council members that if the amendments aren’t passed by year’s end, the process would have to restart in 2026. She also noted Tuesday was the earliest date the administration was offered to present its findings to the council.
“It is an over a month-long process. You’ll have ample time to deliberate to discuss. We are highly attuned to this issue. We’ll be incredibly responsive, and really do look forward to collaborating with you on it.”
The target date for final adoption is December 16. No data center proposals have come before Scranton itself.
Bullock criticized Cognetti’s timing:
“It is awfully curious that she would wait until the week before an election after months of being called out by her own city council to even consider addressing an ordinance that would directly affect Scranton.”
Cognetti defended her record in a statement following the caucus:
“(I’ve been) with our neighbors throughout Lackawanna County as we have come together to stop reckless data center projects. We are ready to protect our city and will continue to work with other municipalities to determine best practices and make sure we are protecting our entire region.”
Investment Disclosures and PAC Donations
Both candidates’ financial disclosure forms have become part of the argument. Bullock pointed out that the largest holding in Cognetti’s BlackRock retirement fund is NVIDIA, the chipmaker central to data center operations, and that nearly 40 percent of that fund is in AI and data center companies. Federal disclosures show Cognetti has between $1,001 and $15,000 in the BlackRock Large Cap Focus Growth Fund, a 401k that holds significant positions in large tech firms including NVIDIA, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon.
By comparison, Bresnahan’s disclosures show he owns between $765,004 and $1.55 million in those same four stocks alone — including between $250,001 and $500,000 in NVIDIA.
Bresnahan’s campaign also raised questions about Cognetti’s pledge not to accept corporate PAC donations, noting she has accepted money from PACs that themselves take corporate PAC contributions. Cognetti campaign spokesperson Emma Mustion pushed back, saying Bresnahan has taken more than $350,000 from corporate PACs.
“Paige is the only candidate in this race who does not accept donations from corporate PACs, supports a federal ban on corporate PAC donations, and will never be handed a corporate check in exchange for special access or political favors. That is a fact. The reason for her pledge is simple: Paige is independent and doesn’t work for anybody but the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania.”
Cognetti also criticized Bresnahan for voting for the original House version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which would have prohibited state and local governments from regulating artificial intelligence for a decade. That provision was removed in the Senate version, which Bresnahan also voted for. Bullock said he supported the original version
“to advance the largest working families tax cut in history knowing that it would not be the final version,”
and credited him for then introducing his own legislation to preserve local control over data center development.
Cognetti summarized her position:
“Rob Bresnahan has embraced the data center boom while standing to profit from it. I’m focused on protecting NEPA from speculative developers and in Congress, I’ll push for guardrails including a federal AI regulator. NEPA has a long history of being taken advantage of by greedy corporations. I’ve been clear: we can’t let data center developers be the latest corporate interest using our community to line their pockets, only to leave us paying the price.”
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