Shapiro budget address: $53.2 billion spending plan includes $1 billion for housing and infrastructure, raising Pa. minimum wage to $15 an hour
Pennsylvania's budget deal last year was reached after a four-month stalemate. There's reason to believe this year's could be resolved faster.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is giving his fourth budget address on Tuesday, and is expected to propose a $53.3 billion spending plan.
Affordability — including an expansive $1 billion housing and infrastructure plan to incentivize new development — and creating new revenue streams are expected to be major themes.
The address comes just three months after Shapiro and state lawmakers settled a bitter, 135-day budget impasse that squeezed schools, counties and nonprofits.
There's one reason to believe this year's budget could see a faster resolution: 2026 is an election year.
Shapiro takes aim at grid operator PJM, utility companies for high rates
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro had sharp words for PJM, the region’s independent electric grid operator, during his budget address Tuesday, saying it has “moved too slow to supply new power,” helping lead to high energy rates to consumers.
Shapiro and advocates have long criticized the way PJM holds auctions that impact the rates consumers pay to energy providers. On Tuesday, he called for a continued cap on rates of wholesale electricity payments to power plant owners.
But Shapiro, calling PJM “just one part of the problem,” also took aim at utility companies, saying they have “too little public accountability or transparency.”
Budget talks to start Wednesday
Budget talks will start tomorrow.
In an apparent effort to dodge a repeat of last year’s five month (135 day) budget impasse, Shapiro announced he would be meeting with legislative leaders on Wednesday to begin budget talks.
Shapiro said he had invited the leaders of all four caucus in the House and Senate to his office and each had accepted.
Shapiro calls for renter protections including a statewide cap on rental application fees
Shapiro also used his budget address to call for protections for households that either rent their homes or rent the land their homes sit on.
He called for a statewide cap on rental application fees, “limiting them to the actual cost of screening, and prohibiting landlords from charging fees before a prospective tenant can view a property.”
Philadelphia City Council members last year passed legislation that prohibits rental property owners from charging rental application fees of more than $50 or the cost of running a background and/or credit check, whichever is less. And landlords are banned from charging application fees unless they are used to cover the cost of these checks.
Budget proposal includes $10 million increase for recruiting and retaining childcare employees
Shapiro proposed an additional $10 million toward recruiting and retaining childcare employees.
“Last year, we all – all of us – identified a problem that we don't have enough childcare workers, and that's because we don't pay them enough,” said Shapiro.
In response to the need, the state launched a program to pay 55,000 childcare workers a bonus of $450.
Shapiro renews calls for lawmakers to legalize marijuana in Pennsylvania
Shapiro renewed his calls for the state General Assembly to legalize recreational, also known as adult-use, marijuana as a way to drive needed revenue in the commonwealth.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures 24 states, including Pennsylvania’s neighbors in Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Ohio, have legalized adult use marijuana. Pennsylvania is among 14 states that allow marijuana for medicinal purposes only.
The governor’s budget proposal calls for a 20% tax on marijuana products sold with sales beginning on January 1 of next year. According to budget documents from his office that tax would provide Pennsylvania with $729 million in revenue in its first year.
Shapiro pushes for more housing construction
If Pennsylvania doesn’t take action to build and preserve more housing, it will be short 185,000 homes by 2035, Shapiro said during his budget address. He called for the construction of more homes and the reform of local land-use laws to allow for more housing and lower housing costs.
Shapiro’s budget would create a $1 billion fund, supported by the issuing of bonds, to pay for a range of infrastructure projects. He called the fund “a major investment in building new housing.”
“We need hundreds of thousands of new homes,” Shapiro said. “This is how we build them.”
Shapiro urges GOP lawmakers to pass statute of limitations reforms for child sex abuse victims
After years of advocating for statute of limitations reform to allow a window for child sex abuse victims to sue their abusers, Shapiro placed the blame for the policy’s lack of movement at the feet of Senate Republicans in Tuesday's address.
“Stop cowering to the special interests, like insurance companies and lobbyists for the Catholic Church,” Shapiro said to Senate Republicans as Republicans in the chamber booed.
The governor has pushed for the window since his time as Attorney General when, in 2018, his office released a grand jury report on clergy abuse in the state that called for the window among other reforms.
'Stop delaying': Shapiro again asks legislators to raise the state minimum wage
On Tuesday, Gov. Josh Shapiro once again asked legislators to raise Pennsylvania’s minimum wage.
“I am calling on the General Assembly to stop delaying and put a minimum wage bill on my desk, and I will sign it,” he said to audible cheers.
Some in the crowd chanted “raise the minimum wage" as he brought up the issue. Shapiro responded to the chant, noting that 25 senators stood to applaud raising the minimum wage, including two Republicans: Sen. Joe Picozzi (R., Philadelphia) and Sen. Devlin Robinson (R., Allegheny).
Shapiro calls for faster licensing for social workers and other professionals
Shapiro, who has touted himself as a good for business governor and last year worked with Republicans to approve building permitting reform, asked lawmakers to help him move that work forward in reducing licensing time for Pennsylvania professionals.
He called on the General assembly to approve reforms allowing social workers to be licensed in conjunction with graduate school, helping to address a shortage in the state, and he called for lower wait times for other professionals like barbers and pharmacists.
“We’ve put ourselves at a competitive disadvantage by incentivizing workers to go to another state,” he said.
Shapiro proposes adding $5 million to Pa.'s student teacher stipend program
As Pennsylvania continues to struggle with teacher shortages, Shapiro proposed adding another $5 million to the state's student teacher stipend program — bringing the program up to $35 million.
Growing the program, which provides $10,000 to student teachers completing their required placements, will "ensure there are more well-trained teachers," Shapiro said. He called out a teacher from Susquehanna Township, Hallie Sill, who he said had told him how the stipend program that launched in 2024 had helped her land a job after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh.
"Let's increase our commitment to this initiative that we know works," Shapiro said.
Budget would add $18 million in funding for career and technical education
The governor wants to increase funding for career and technical education in the state by $18 million, bringing up total funding for these initiatives to $200 million.
He noted that career and technical education, apprenticeship and vocational technical program funding has increased 50% since he took office.
“We've registered 231 new pre-apprenticeships and apprenticeships, and more than 39,000 of our fellow Pennsylvanians have participated in an apprenticeship during my time as your governor in fields ranging from welding to nursing to dairy herd management,” said Shapiro. “Those investments are making a meaningful difference, and they're creating pathways of opportunity.”
Shapiro introduces ‘GRID’ plan for the rise of massive data centers
Saying the U.S. is in a race to dominate artificial intelligence, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro announced a new plan he says will protect consumers against rising energy costs associated with data centers, while also easing a path for tech companies to build.
The Governor's Responsible Infrastructure Development (GRID) plan would make data center developers either bring their own power generation or pay for any new generation they’ll need, “not saddling homeowners with added costs because of their development.”
Shapiro said too many data center proposals have been “shrouded in secrecy” but that they are crucial to the U.S.
Shapiro proposes ensuring access to recess for Pennsylvania students
The governor made another proposal for Pennsylvania schools: ensuring they have recess.
"Recess, to me, isn't just an extra block on the schedule. I would argue it's just as critical as learning math and science and English," Shapiro said.
He said he had directed the Pennsylvania State Board of Education to develop recommendations to "guarantee recess for our students."
School day cell phone ban would create a 'healthy, productive learning environment,' Shapiro says
Shapiro repeated his support for banning cell phones during the school day — saying kids need fewer distractions for a "healthy, productive learning environment."
"Students need to spend less time focused on their phones and more time focused on learning, on talking to their friends face to face, and on developing the critical skills that they will need later in life," said Shapiro, who drew sustained applause for the proposal. ("If applause could vote, we'd have this whole thing done already," the governor quipped.)
He told lawmakers: "I know there are bills in both chambers to do this — I urge you respectfully to come together and send a bill to my desk."
Some proposals garner unanimous standing ovations from lawmakers
Shapiro’s budget address is a workout for Democratic lawmakers, as they stand up, clap, repeat for each of his ideas.
As Shapiro mentioned mass transit — which he is proposing a long-term funding stream to begin in 2027 — all Democrats quickly shot up to applaud. Only one Republican lawmaker, Sen. Joe Picozzi (R., Philadelphia) stood to celebrate the mention.
As Shapiro talked about new standards he plans to implement for new data centers in Pennsylvania, a handful of other Republicans also stood to applaud.
Shapiro calls for limitations on AI to protect children and seniors
Shapiro called for a litany of limits on artificial intelligence as the emerging technology presents new risks to children and seniors across the commonwealth.
In recent months AI developers have faced calls for regulation nationwide and lawsuits from parents who say their children’s relationship with chatbots drove them to self harm.
Even as Shapiro advocated for making Pennsylvania a hub for AI, he said safeguards needed to be established.
Shapiro touts list of achievements as governor: 'We’re solving problems and getting stuff done'
In his fourth budget address, and final before he stands for reelection in November, Shapiro touted a laundry list of his administration’s accomplishments – from funding of education, to investments in the state’s economy to reducing violent crime across the state.
“We’re solving problems and getting stuff done to improve people’s lives,” Shapiro said, referencing his campaign’s slogan “get sh*t done.”
The list of accomplishments closely mirrored the stump speech the governor gave to supporters in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia last month as he formally launched his reelection campaign and his talking points as he hit the cable news circuit on his book tour last month.
Proposal includes $565 million funding increase to raise poor schools to 'adequately' funded levels
Gov. Shapiro is sticking to the state's plan for remedying constitutional underfunding of its public schools — proposing another $565 million increase to raise poor schools to "adequately" funded levels, and reimburse high-taxing districts.
If approved, Shapiro's proposal would represent the third of nine installments to fill a $4.5 billion gap, identified after a landmark 2023 Commonwealth Court decision concluded the state had discriminated against poorer districts.
The governor's proposed budget also includes a $50 million increase in basic education funding to be distributed to all K-12 schools and a $50 million increase in special education funding.
Watch: Gov. Josh Shapiro's budget address
Shapiro expected to discuss increase in state minimum wage
Shapiro is expected to discuss an increase in the Pennsylvania minimum wage in his budget address.
State legislators have proposed minimum wage increases in recent years, but those bills did not become law.
The labor and industry committee of the Pennsylvania House voted Tuesday to advance a bill that would gradually raise the minimum wage. It would increase to $11 next year, $13 in 2028, and $15 in 2029, with annual cost-of-living adjustments after that.
State mass transit funding fight could be postponed until 2027
Gov. Josh Shapiro is ready to postpone until 2027 a likely fight over a longer-term enhancement of state mass transit funding, citing the temporary cash infusion the administration arranged last year to bail out SEPTA.
"We believe that they are stabilized for two years," said a Shapiro administration official on Tuesday, adding that they are happy to discuss the issue sooner if the General Assembly is willing.
Last fall after negotiations with the legislature stalled on transit, the administration allowed SEPTA to shift $394 million in state funds allocated for infrastructure projects to pay cover daily operational expenses — the third temporary solution in as many years.
State lawmakers share bipartisan hugs ahead of Shapiro's budget address
The joint session of the Pennsylvania House and Senate was called to order, and as the group of state lawmakers awaited the arrival of Gov. Josh Shapiro to the chamber to deliver his $53.2 billion budget proposal.
Up until Shapiro’s arrival, attendees gave bipartisan, bicameral hugs to lawmakers from their opposing chamber. Several legislators reunited with their former colleagues who had returned to Harrisburg on Tuesday in their current roles as mayors or executives across the state, including Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, who previously served in the state House for 11 years.
Seated nearby to Shapiro’s left is state Treasurer Stacy Garrity, alongside the other GOP row officers Auditor General Tim DeFoor and Attorney General Dave Sunday. Garrity is likely to challenge Shapiro in November’s midterm election as the state GOP- endorsed candidate for governor.
Shapiro's budget would allot $30 million in performance-based funding for Temple, Penn State and Pitt
Gov. Shapiro’s budget once again proposes to allot money for performance-based funding for Temple, Pennsylvania State University and the University of Pittsburgh.
The budget includes $30 million for the effort, half of what Shapiro proposed last year, according to a source close to the process. When the current budget was passed, however, it included no money for performance-based funding this year.
Whether the initiative will gain legislative support in the new budget year is unclear.
Why is Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro always so mad at PJM, and what is it?
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is expected to spotlight energy affordability and the rapid expansion of data centers during his annual budget address Tuesday.
PJM Interconnection — the region’s dominant electric grid operator — is poised to play a central role in that expansion, as the independent organization has been shoved into the national spotlight and subjected to mounting pressure over the past year.
In many ways, PJM may be one of the most consequential Philly‑area institutions that most residents have barely heard of, even though their electricity supply and monthly bills hinge on its decisions.
Shapiro will pitch $100 million reserve in the event Trump cuts federal funds for Pennsylvania
Gov. Josh Shapiro is expected to propose a new $100 million fund to use as a reserve in the event President Donald Trump’s administration opts to withhold federal funds from Pennsylvania.
Shapiro will pitch the new Federal Response Fund on Tuesday, when he delivers his fourth budget address before a joint session of the state General Assembly.
While Shapiro’s budget pitch will outline how he believes the state should spend $53.3 billion in state revenue and reserves, it is only a piece of Pennsylvania’s annual spending. In the 2025-26 budget, the state was projected to receive $53.1 billion in additional funds from the federal government, or 40% of the state's total annual spending.
One reason the budget could get resolved faster than last year
There is one bright spot for the schools, counties and nonprofits that rely on state funding and which last year had to wait more than four months for the money when lawmakers couldn’t agree: It’s an election year.
Election years often result in quicker budget resolutions, as lawmakers and officials want to secure money for their districts before they go home to campaign for reelection.
In 2018, when former Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf was up for reelection, he signed the state budget on June 23 — a week ahead of the July 1 deadline.
Budget address begins an uncertain process for SEPTA
In the last few years, SEPTA and its fellow public transportation agencies have learned not to expect much from the regular Pennsylvania budget process.
Rewind to February 2025:
Gov. Josh Shapiro proposed to generate an additional $1.5 billion over five years to subsidize public transit operations by increasing its share of state sales tax income.
Shapiro could promote effort to ban cell phones from Pa. schools today
Gov. Josh Shapiro is backing a proposal to ban cell phones from Pennsylvania classrooms, joining a growing chorus of parents, teachers, and officials seeking to curb school disruptions and detach kids from addictive devices.
“It’s time for us to get distractions out of the classroom and create a healthier environment in our schools,” Shapiro said in a post on X on Thursday.
He called on Pennsylvania lawmakers to pass a bill that would require schools to ban the use of cell phones during the school day, “from the time they start class until the time they leave for home.”
Housing, affordability, and new revenue: What we’re watching for in Gov. Josh Shapiro’s budget address
HARRISBURG — Gov. Josh Shapiro on Tuesday is expected to propose a $53.2 billion state budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, just three months after settling a bitter, 135-day budget impasse that forced schools, counties, and nonprofits to take out loans to stay afloat.
Shapiro, a first-term Democrat running for reelection this year and potentially poised for higher office, will deliver his fourth annual budget address before a joint session of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, where he plans to pitch an expansive $1 billion housing and infrastructure plan to incentivize new housing development with an overall focus on affordability in the state.
And as in years past, Shapiro is expected to again propose new revenue streams to fill a more than $5 billion deficit, such as the legalization and taxation of adult-use cannabis, as Pennsylvania is again expected to spend more than it brings in tax revenues.