Giral bill encouraging nuclear energy development passes Pa. House
Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus February 4, 2026 | 3:35 PM
HARRISBURG, Feb. 4 — Energy developers may soon find advancing smaller, more efficient nuclear reactors more affordable in Pennsylvania, thanks to legislation by state Rep. Jose Giral that passed the Pennsylvania House of Representatives today.
House Bill 2017, which passed unanimously, 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.
Traditional light-water nuclear reactors typically operate on one site that has multiple reactors.
“The nuclear reactors we all recognize today are housed on very large, sprawling sites,” said Giral, D-Phila. “They take extensive time and money to construct and to run. The up-front capital needed to build new ones is prohibitively expensive, and that’s making it harder for us to grow our nuclear power footprint here in Pennsylvania.”
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.
According to Giral, maintaining the existing fee structure would prevent SMR development in Pennsylvania, putting the state behind the curve on nuclear energy investment.
“The fees collected by the Department of Environmental Protection are levied on a per-site basis. Because SMRs require more sites to meet energy demand, asking operators to pay too high a fee per site will discourage companies from expanding here,” said Giral. “The fee structure needs to meet DEP’s needs and keep SMR development competitive in Pennsylvania so that companies aren’t encouraged to invest in other states that have already modernized their regulatory structure.”
The fees collected by DEP are used to cover the costs of environmental monitoring, administrative oversight, and decommissioning.
House Bill 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.
“I’m proud to see this bill pass the House today and grateful to my colleagues for supporting nuclear energy development in our state,” said Giral. “We have the expertise, workforce, and infrastructure to adapt to these new nuclear options. This is a significant step forward in bringing clean, renewable energy to more of our communities.”
The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration.