Photo: Ted Van Pelt · CC BY 2.0Living in Harrisburg, PA: what to set up and who to call
Harrisburg has its own drop-off, Dauphin County Recycling Center. Trains stop in Harrisburg.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Harrisburg, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Harrisburg.
Power comes from PPL Electric Utilities
PPL Electric Utilities (PPL Electric Utilities Corp), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Harrisburg. Its homes paid an average of 18.6¢ per kWh in 2025, about $164 a month (its average across Pennsylvania, for customers on its standard service). Pennsylvania lets you buy power from another supplier; 36% of PPL Electric Utilities’ home customers do, and PPL Electric Utilities still delivers it.
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Capital Region Water
Capital Region Water supplies almost all of Harrisburg. It draws surface water and serves 66,540 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 90% of the 597 systems serving 50,001–100,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jun–Sep 2025, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. PA7220049.
5 home internet providers serve Harrisburg
100% of 15,939 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 79% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xfinity | Cable | 100% | 2,000/250 |
| Verizon | Fiber, Fixed wireless | 96% | 980/880 |
| PA.net | Fixed wireless | 100% | 200/50 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless | 62% | 100/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 60% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash day in Harrisburg depends on your street
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Harrisburg, from the town’s own site.
Your pickup week
- TrashEvery week, on your street’s dayFind your street’s day on harrisburgpa.gov →
- RecyclingEvery week, day by address
- Bulky itemsEvery week
Dauphin County Recycling Center
We couldn’t find its opening hours.
Single-stream recycling
All your recyclables go in one bin, no sorting.
- Tubs from yogurt, cottage cheese, margarine, etc.
- Aluminum and steel containers (empty and rinse)
- Tin cans and food containers
- Soda cans
- Empty aerosol spray bottles
- Empty paint cans
- Newspaper, magazines, phone books (bundled into paper bags)
From harrisburgpa.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Harrisburg is in Harrisburg City School District.
D−School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jul 2022; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Harrisburg spans 6 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Harrisburg residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Harrisburg | ZIP’s residents in Harrisburg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17104 | Harrisburg, PA | 40% | 100% |
| 17110 | Harrisburg, PA | 19% | 35% |
| 17103 | Harrisburg, PA | 17% | 71% |
| 17102 | Harrisburg, PA | 16% | 100% |
| 17101 | Harrisburg, PA | 6% | 100% |
| 17111 | Harrisburg, PA | 2% | 2% |
A few homes fall in 17120. 17105, 17106, 17107, 17108, 17121, 17122, 17123, 17124, 17125, 17126, 17127, 17128, 17129, 17130, 17140, 17177 are P.O. box or single-organization ZIPs with no homes.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
Train: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Harrisburg
Who supplies Harrisburg’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Capital Region Water (EPA ID PA7220049). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 90% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jun–Sep 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Harrisburg?
PPL Electric Utilities (PPL Electric Utilities Corp), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 18.6¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Harrisburg?
Xfinity, Verizon, PA.net, AT&T, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Harrisburg?
17104 (40%), 17110 (19%), 17103 (17%), 17102 (16%), 17101 (6%), 17111 (2%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Harrisburg in?
Harrisburg City School District.
How do I register to vote in Harrisburg?
In Pennsylvania you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person until 15 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 15 days before). Elections here are run by the Dauphin County Board of Elections. Check your registration at pavoterservices.pa.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: Harrisburg’s own website (harrisburgpa.gov), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.