JACKSON TWP — Butler County’s state legislators, all Republicans, expressed support for data center development, energy expansion and infrastructure improvements in the region; while they were critical of Gov. Josh Shapiro on several issues during a Friday, May 1, event.

At the State of the Commonwealth legislative breakfast, local state senators and representatives addressed proposals for the minimum wage, EMS financial support, funding for local colleges and other issues.

The breakfast, held at the Steamfitters’ event center, is hosted by the Butler County Chamber of Commerce. Hundreds of business people heard from state Sens. Scott Hutchinson, R-21st; Elder Vogel, R-47th; and state Reps. Marci Mustello, R-11th; Aaron Bernstine, R-8th; and Tim Bonner, R-17th.

Hutchinson, who deals with state revenue and taxes as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said he feels Pennsylvania should tap further into its natural resources and embrace various sources to support the state’s economy and energy needs.

He said the state needs to shift its mindset to “getting back to be(ing) willing to do things, and not just say ‘not in my backyard.’”

“Folks, energy is the lifeblood of our entire economy,” Hutchinson said. “I think we have superb possibilities here in Pennsylvania and we’ve only touched the tip of the iceberg.”

Legislators painted Butler County as being in a “great position” for future economic and population growth and poised for the future of energy and technology. They said they support efforts such as trying to abandon the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, Mustello said.

They also see a world with a growing reliability on data centers, where proper infrastructure and energy sources are needed to support them.

“What I want to remind everyone is that, every single one of us uses data centers every day already. If you have a cellphone, if you use GPS, if you make online purchases … all these things are based on the ability of your phone, your computer, to hook in to these data centers,” Hutchinson said. “Our society depends on, and likes, having the services the data centers provide, so we have to embrace (it), and I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for Pennsylvania.”

Data centers are gaining increased skepticism around the country due to concerns over impacts on electric bills, plus environmental concerns. The legislators addressed this at the event.

Vogel noted the one thing that can be agreed upon across party lines is that the data centers must bring their own power source. Bernstine chimed in on the matter, too.

“If you don’t have an environment where you have cheap, reliable, abundant energy and every utility in abundance and non-expensive, you’re going to be in trouble,” Bernstine said.

Following last year’s state budget impasse, Butler County Community College and Slippery Rock University remained flat-funded from the state.

Shapiro’s budget proposal — $53.3 billion total — would not include any increases.

Recently, BC3 president Megan Coval and SRU president Karen Riley testified in front of the state House Appropriations Committee for increases, where Mustello asked them how funding positively benefits learning experiences.

The Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges has asked for a roughly 6% increase, while Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education schools have asked for roughly 5%. Riley has previously said being flat-funded would be equivalent to a funding cut due to year-by-year inflationary costs.

Legislators said Friday morning it is still too early to tell how things will shake out with college funding. Bernstine framed BC3 and SRU as places other colleges in the state look toward and as deserving of the funding.

“At the end of the day, we’re still early in this budget process. Anybody that says we know what’s going to happen, who knows,” Bernstine said.

When asked about proposals to increase Pennsylvania’s minimum wage from $7.25, legislators did not indicate support.

“Minimum wage has been a talking point for years. There isn’t a business anywhere around I think that pays that,” Vogel said. “The Sheetz across from my office is paying $16 an hour and they’ve been paying that for a number of years.”

Instead, legislators on Friday pointed to other efforts to try to grow and support Pennsylvania’s population, such as the Grow PA program, which provides academic grants to in-state students. Vogel also pointed to efforts by Republicans in the legislature to lower the corporate income tax, saying it would help Pennsylvania compete with other states.

“What we’re doing is trying to incentivize students and businesses to stay here. We realize our demographics. We’re an older, graying state. We have a lot of retired people here. We need to bring in more young people because our tax base is going to be based on young people coming and working,” Vogel said.

Pennsylvania is one of 21 states that tied state minimum wage to federal minimum wage, a decision made in 2009.

“We remain at the same level as 20 other states do with the minimum wage,” Bonner said.

He called the topic a “talking point for our colleagues on the other side of the aisle,” but said only a small percent of the state’s workforce was being paid minimum wage.

The purpose of the breakfast, according to the Chamber of Commerce, was “networking and collaboration,” and “fostering growth and achievement in Butler County.”

But social issues were not avoided at the business-oriented gathering.

The topic of transgender athletes in high school and college sports came up Friday morning, as the state Senate passed legislation in 2025 banning transgender girls from school sports.

Several legislators, particularly Bernstine, criticized legislative Democrats for their stances and votes on transgender issues, framing the Democrats as “not knowing what a woman is.”

The heated rhetoric included Bernstine repeating the phrase “They are who they are,” several times about Democrats.

There were fewer than 10 known transgender student athletes in the NCAA out of over 500,000 as of January 2025, according to previous testimony from NCAA president Charlie Baker. The number of transgender high school athletes in Pennsylvania is not well documented.

When asked about what they were doing to support EMS providers in Butler County and beyond, legislators on Friday suggested the responsibility to keep EMS agencies afloat falls to local municipalities.

Township code does indicate that municipalities “shall be responsible for ensuring that fire and emergency medical services are provided within the township and to the extent determined by the township.”

But leaders of EMS agencies in Butler County, who regularly approach their municipalities to ask for help, have said the state needs to help, too. Some say the tax allowable for municipalities to collect for EMS is too low. Others have expressed concerns about billing and reimbursements.

Currently, House Bill 1152, aims to address the financial crisis by improving billing and reimbursement processes for EMS agencies.

When asked about it, Hutchinson pointed to the legislature increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates for EMS providers several years ago. He said doing that again would be “prudent,” but “the whole system needs looked at.”

Hutchinson thinks local officials are “up to the task” to address hard questions like merging or consolidating services, how to further work with local hospitals and getting people trained.

“The state can be a help in that. But the primary responsibility in emergency services is at the local government,” Hutchinson said. “I do want to applaud the county commissioners for what they’ve done to help get more emergency service providers trained. I think that’s been a wonderful program and I wish we could do that more across the state.”

Bonner lamented what he sees as a “loss in volunteerism” in Pennsylvania. He said while some reform is needed at the state level, local communities need to come together to “recognize this problem” and fund services.

“As the senator (Hutchinson) has indicated, by law, ambulance and response services, fire companies, are primarily a local, municipal obligation under state law. That doesn’t mean the law can’t be changed,” Bonner said.

Shapiro’s hypothetical 2028 presidential campaign looms in the background of state operations.

While Shapiro has largely avoided commenting on the speculation, Republican legislators continue to criticize Shapiro as “distracted,” and “focused on Pennsylvania Avenue, not Pennsylvania.”

The legislators were critical of Shapiro’s handling of the state budget and its reliance on reserve funds.

“Very few people realize what’s coming down the road. We had a delay last year of 135 days to pass the budget. If this weren’t an election year, I’d say the wait would be much longer,” Bonner said. “But this governor wants a quiet year, because his presidential campaign will start in 2027. So it will be interesting to see how he resolves this issue.”

Shapiro’s name came up on topics ranging from the budget to transgender issues.

“I wish we could talk about more common sense issues and forget about all this stuff, because I have no idea where it’s coming from and I have no idea how this is going to help our governor if he ever thinks he’s going to run for president, where this is going to get him,” Mustello said.