Communities across Pennsylvania rely on roads, bridges, and water systems, and the residents in the 10th Congressional District—that’s Dauphin County, as well as parts of Cumberland and York counties—know it all too well.
In 2021, then-President Joe Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure law awarded a $500 million grant to replace the South Bridge, carrying I-83 over the Susquehanna between Harrisburg and the West Shore. At the time, Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry (R) voted against the law.
It’s a clear reminder to the more than 125,000 locals who pass over it every day that who you vote for matters. Federal lawmakers can influence infrastructure systems through their support for bills regulating and funding transportation, water resources, and grants to state and local governments—and they can vote against them, too.
As they run to represent the 10th District in Congress, Democratic candidate Janelle Stelson and Republican incumbent Scott Perry have both said they support infrastructure investment, but their public records and statements provide different perspectives on how they would approach it in Congress.
Roads and transportation
In the past, Stelson has publicly supported investments in transportation infrastructure. In 2024, she said she viewed transportation and infrastructure investments as a source of “family sustaining jobs” across the state.
While Stelson’s campaign priorities don’t list specific transportation projects in the district or proposed federal funding levels, she did mention I-81 as a highway in need of repair during a recent debate with Perry. She also had some critical words for Perry’s voting record on infrastructure.
“I would just like to remind the Congressman who has been in charge the last 14 years, seven terms as your US Congressman, he has not held an in-person town meeting since 2019,” she said. “So probably he hasn’t heard what we all have to say about what we’d like to improve in this area.”
While Perry argued that he supports federal investment in transportation infrastructure, specifically mentioning the Eisenhower Interchange as an area that needs improvements in his district, he said that too much government involvement slows projects and increases costs.
As for his voting record, in 2021, Perry voted against the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a bipartisan law that funded transportation improvement projects across the nation, including in the commonwealth.
Read More: Meet the candidates: Scott Perry and Janelle Stelson face off in Pa.-10 rematch
Water infrastructure
When it comes to water in central Pennsylvania, a majority of Stelson’s public statements touch on the issue as it pertains to data center development. During a recent debate between the candidates, and on her campaign site, Stelson said data center developers should commit to protecting local water supplies.
“Congressman Perry took campaign cash from data center developers and voted for nearly $70 billion in tax breaks to data centers, giving them our money to build data centers in our communities,” Stelson says on her campaign site. “These projects drive up electric rates, use and pollute drinking water, and are made with secret deals that hurt Central Pennsylvanians.”
“I believe that local communities and their leadership should have the right to approve or reject a data center project without getting sued by big corporations.”
In reporting by Politico, Perry noted that data centers are a reality of the future.
“We are in a race for AI with China, so data centers are a part of that,” Perry said. “We simply can’t afford to slow down the build-out.”
Stelson has also expressed her support for investments in infrastructure and clean water projects tied to federal climate and infrastructure legislation, according to a candidate profile on PoliticsPA.
Perry’s record on water includes a recent vote in favor of a federal water resource bill, the Water Resources Development Act of 2026. The legislation supports projects involving ports and harbors, inland waterways, flood and storm risk management, environmental restoration, and other water resources overseen by the US Army Corps of Engineers.
But he has also voted against certain protection measures, such as a bill that would protect waterways from coal mining waste, a booming industry in the commonwealth.
