Chester County might be the only Philly suburb not raising taxes next year
Despite the increased spending and more limited state and federal resources, county officials said they expected to avoid a tax increase next year.
Chester County may be the only county in Philadelphia’s suburbs that will avoid a property tax hike next year.
In the proposed 2026 budget, released last month, Chester County’s commissioners projected $666.3 million in operational spending, roughly 4.7% more than the county budgeted for 2025. The budget is expected to pass the three-member board of commissioners with bipartisan support.
Despite the increased spending and more limited state and federal resources, county officials said, they expected to avoid a tax increase next year thanks to budget cuts across nearly every department and delayed projects.
“This budget was really difficult for us, but we did what we had to to keep it at zero,” said Chester County Commissioner Marian Moskowitz, a Democrat.
David Byerman, the county’s CEO, described the county as being in a “defensive crouch” financially.
“We are in a very unpredictable environment in which we have a lot of conflicting information that we’re dealing with,” Byerman said, citing federal funding uncertainty under President Donald Trump. “We were charged by our commissioners in Chester County with crafting a budget that held the line in terms of tax increases.”
How does Chester County compare with the rest of the region?
The decision sets Chester County apart from its peers in a year that has been marked by budget uncertainty at the state and federal levels. In recent weeks, Delaware County’s executive director proposed a 19% property tax hike to address the county’s structural deficit. Montgomery County’s commissioners are proposing a 4% increase. Bucks County’s commissioners have floated a tax increase to address a deficit in next year’s budget.
But on the heels of a 13% property tax increase that took effect in January, Chester County’s commissioners said they were eager to keep taxes flat for residents.
“This is a pared-down budget because we didn’t know what the federal and state government were going to do,” said Josh Maxwell, a Democrat, who chairs the county board of commissioners.
The biggest cost increases, he said, came in the form of employee and inmate healthcare.
How did Chester County cut its budget?
In the first quarter of this year, Chester County officials asked each county department to reduce non-personnel spending by 5% for the 2026 budget. By and large, officials said, they responded to the call, freeing up significant funds even as overall personnel costs increased.
“We asked them to cut back, and some of them really did,” said Eric Roe, the lone Republican on the board of commissioners. “I’m really happy with how they helped us get to this point.”
In this year’s budget, officials said, they opted to delay projects like park maintenance and computer system upgrades that could be put off.
“The cuts are giving us an opportunity to prioritize and rethink our discretionary spending,” Maxwell said. “They may have to go to some of the things that the federal and state government used to do that they’re getting out of the business of doing.”
Additionally, Byerman said, the county instituted a soft hiring freeze by requiring all new hires to be approved by top-level management.
Can Chester County avoid tax increases in future years?
Heading into next year, Maxwell said, he is bracing for cuts to federal social service programs that will result in larger expenditures from the county to serve its neediest residents.
For example, anticipated cuts to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Continuum of Care program could leave 70 more families on the streets in Chester County, Maxwell said.
“This is a year where we’re going to look at all of our programs and make sure that we’re investing in the areas that the community wants us to,” Maxwell said.
This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.