5 takeaways from new Pennsylvania report on AI

In January, Pennsylvania’s Joint State Government Commission released a long-awaited report on artificial intelligence and its impact across the state. 

The nearly 400-page report comes as AI is reshaping the global economy, drawing billions of dollars in investment in technology infrastructure and energy projects, while also raising concerns about digital privacy, data center development in residential areas, and workforce impacts. The document examined how AI is infiltrating nearly every facet of everyday life, from education and energy production to law enforcement and the legal landscape.

The report – developed in consultation with an advisory committee that included state lawmakers, labor and business leaders, and AI and technology experts, among others – outlined a series of recommendations on how to effectively and appropriately use AI at a time when, as one advisory committee member noted, it feels like “the wild, wild West.”

The recommendations – which were made by a consensus of the committee, and not by unanimous agreement – include requiring the state to review AI legislation every three to five years and requiring AI developers to assess AI systems’ potential impact on privacy, due process and equal protection. Below, City & State looks at some of the major recommendations from the Joint State Government Commission’s report on AI.

Data and information protections

Some of the best-known AI tools, such as generative AI platforms, learn from large datasets. AI is also being used to conduct various transactions, such as processing insurance claims and loan applications. The JSGC suggests that when personal protected information is collected, “the use of data should be restricted to just what is needed to accomplish the transaction the consumer has initiated.”

The report recommends that the collection of such data be disclosed, and that those interacting with the AI tool be able to opt out of data collection while still being able to access the services they’re seeking. Another recommendation is the creation of a data broker registry that allows consumers to verify whether their personally identifiable data has been collected and to request its deletion. 

The advisory committee also recommended a private right of action for individuals whose information is collected without their consent, “including data taken from people’s photographs, fingerprints, voiceprints, retina scans, and other types of imaging.”

Transparency and AI use disclosures

AI-generated content is seemingly everywhere – on social media, in Super Bowl commercials, and even in political campaign materials. 

The Joint State Government Commission report recommended a series of AI disclosure measures that could improve transparency, including requiring employers and businesses to disclose when and how AI is used, disclosing when AI is used for political and election-related purposes, and communicating when automated decision-making tools are used to make “high-risk decisions” like college admissions, hiring and employment decisions, and decisions in health care and insurance.

In the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Democratic state Rep. Tarik Khan has introduced legislation, which the House has passed, that would allow political candidates to file civil suits against people who knowingly and intentionally share or produce deepfakes that misrepresent a candidate and their beliefs. Other lawmakers in the General Assembly have introduced proposals to regulate AI use in the hiring process, in health care and in the legal profession, among other fields. 

The report also acknowledges that the complex nature of algorithms, as well as their proprietary status, makes full disclosure not just difficult but also disadvantageous. However, the report states that “AI developers could address concerns about transparency by offering as much non-proprietary information as necessary to boost explainability.”

AI in the classroom

How and whether to use AI tools in education is already prompting serious debate, but that hasn’t stopped educators in Pennsylvania from working to familiarize both themselves and students with AI. 

As AI becomes more commonplace in the classroom, the Joint State Government Commission’s advisory committee reached a general consensus that certain principles should guide AI implementation in educational settings. 

Among those guiding principles, AI should not be implemented unless there is “empirical evidence” that it will benefit students’ educational experience. AI tools should also be available to all students, and AI content should be introduced at developmentally appropriate levels. 

The report also suggests that teachers and educators should receive training and professional development on the ethical responsibilities and practical applications of AI.

Data center development

The AI boom has led to numerous data center development projects proposed across Pennsylvania, from the Lehigh Valley and NEPAto the central and western parts of the commonwealth.

These large-scale development proposals have also brought community concerns to the fore, as alluded to in Gov. Josh Shapiro’s most recent budget address, where the Democratic governor outlined standards for data center development to promote greater transparency and reduce the impact of data centers on electricity bills. 

“I know Pennsylvanians have real concerns about these data centers and the impact they could have on our communities, our utility bills, and our environment – and so do I,” Shapiro said during his annual budget address to state lawmakers. 

The Joint State Government Commission report also made several recommendations on data center development, suggesting that the state ensure Pennsylvania municipalities “have the authority to engage in municipal planning and zoning activities that protect local community interests” when deciding on the location and environmental impact of data centers.

The advisory committee also recommended that data centers annually report their electricity and water usage to the state’s Public Utility Commission and Department of Environmental Protection, respectively. 

“These reports will allow communities and municipalities to take into account the impact of existing usage and availability of these resources when engaging in municipal planning for non-data center activities,” the report reads.

AI’s impact on the workforce

Much has been made about the potential for AI to improve efficiency across various sectors – and its potential to displace workers. 

A November 2025 poll from Real Clear Pennsylvania and Emerson College found that 48% of Pennsylvania residents think AI will have a negative impact on the economy, while 21% think it will have a more positive impact. Additionally, 23% said they knew someone who had already lost their job due to AI, while 77% said they didn’t know anyone who had been displaced by AI. 

Some state lawmakers have already introduced legislation seeking to examine how AI could affect the state’s workforce, with state Sens Vincent Hughes and Kristin Phillips-Hill partnering on a bill that would require the state’s Department of Labor and Industry and its Department of Community and Economic Development to study AI’s future impact on the labor force in Pennsylvania.

The commission’s report suggested that employees should be given “reasonable advance notice” of the deployment of AI tools that could affect their employment, and that employers should be required to report when AI displaces employees. 

The report also proposed creating new grant programs to prepare high school students and adults for careers in AI.