Pennsylvania Governor Shapiro delivers 2026-2027 budget address
On Tuesday, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro delivered his 2026-2027 budget address for the state.
"At the beginning of every year, we convene in this beautiful Chamber to begin our work together. And this year - as I lay out my vision to build on the progress we've made - I want you to know that I am just as motivated as the day I started," said Shapiro.
Several items were noted in the address, including education, public safety and "record economic growth."
"The investments we've made are paying off - our economy is growing and in the first seven months of this fiscal year, we've collected $417 million more in revenue than estimated," said Shapiro.
According to a release outlining the address, the investments that Governor Shapiro has made in the state have created over 21,500 jobs and attracted more than $39 billion in private-sector investment across the state.
Shapiro further stated that funding for education has increased by 30%, and vocational technical education, Career and Technical Education (CTE) and apprenticeship programs have expanded.
Furthermore, Shapiro says that the unemployment rate in the state has stayed lower than the national average for 31 months straight.
"School attendance is up, graduation rates are up and more young people are finding their passion in the trades," Shapiro said.
The new budget proposal for the 2026-2027 year, Shapiro says, would direct $565 million more to schools that need it.
Shapiro also spoke on public safety initiatives that the state has funded.
In the last three years, over 2,000 police officers have been funded and tasked with expanding afterschool programs and violence intervention initiatives in the communities they serve.
"As a result, violent crime is down 12% - and fatal gun violence is down 42%. And last year, [Philadelphia] and Pittsburgh experienced the fewest homicides in decades! We're building trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve," said Shapiro.
Additionally, Shapiro says in the address that he wishes to create a "Federal Response Fund" for the state. The fund would be "seeded with $100 million to help mitigate any future actions - or inations - by the federal government that threaten services Pennsylvanians rely on."
If the proposal is accepted, the money would be transferred out of the Budget Stabilization Reserve Fund.
The release goes on to state that the state of Pennsylvania has earned two credit rating upgrades, which can benefit school districts and local governments that look to borrow at lower rates.
Shapiro announced a standard that he wishes to implement called "GRID", meaning the Governor's Responsible Infrastructure Development, in response to concerns from Pennsylvanians regarding data centers.
"Developed by my Administration, in consultation with the community, to hold data center developers accountable to strict standards if they want our full support," said Shapiro.
In this standard, data center developers would have to do the following:
- Commit to bringing their own power generation or paying for entirely new generation
- Commit to strict transparency standards and engage with the community directly
- Hire and train local workers
- Commit to the highest standards of environmental protection, with special attention to water conservation
If development companies were to follow these standards, Shapiro outlines that they would receive benefits from the Commonwealth.
"I know everyone in this room wants to see our economy grow and create more jobs and more opportunity. But I also know this is uncharted territory - So let's come together, codify these principles and take advantage of this opportunity," Shapiro said.
Also noted were goals of creating safeguards and protections on artificial intelligence usage, specifically for minors, including age verification, alerts to parents and prohibitions on sexually explicit or violent content.
The release notes further desires of Governor Shapiro for modernizing the revenue structure for the state by regulating skill games and legalizing adult-use cannabis.
Shapiro says that these two actions could generate about $2 billion a year.
Further items discussed during the budget address can be found here.
