E-Blast: PA's 2026/27 Budget Passes

Rep. Melissa Shusterman July 21, 2026 | 9:42 AM

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My Thoughts on the Budget

On July 12th, I voted YES on a bipartisan state budget that was later signed by Governor Shapiro. The 2026/27 state budget invests in education, community safety, affordability measures, and economic development - all without raising taxes or dipping into the state's Rainy Day Fund.

This budget continues our commitment to fair and equitable education funding for PA's public schools, provides a cost-of-living adjustment for retired teachers for the first time in nearly two decades, improves services for seniors, and continues to create tax relief for working families. For a third year, the expanded Child & Dependent Care Tax Credit that I worked hard to create remains in the budget.

Continuing Historic Investments in Education

We are delivering the 3rd installment of $565 million in adequacy and equity funding to school districts across PA, along with funding for Basic and Special Education. This budget also includes funding increases for:

Every school district in the 157th District
the Child Care Workers Recruitment and Retention program
And the Student Teacher Stipend Program

Showing Up for Our Communities

This year we are showing up in big ways - from increased investments in public safety and mental health, to protecting our environment and ensuring government accountability.

Wins for our community include:

Significant increases in funding for Rape Crisis Centers
Increased funding for the State Police, PEMA, and Fire Protection
Dedicated funding for the 988-crisis hotline and walk-in stabilization centers
Requiring Data Centers to publish records of their water and energy usage
Ensuring adequate funding for State Forest and Parks, including investing in environmental protection operations
Continuation of the Child and Dependent Care and Working Pennsylvanians Tax Credits
Enacting Chip-enabled SNAP access cards, modernizing benefits for families and protecting taxpayers from fraud
Continued funding for Violence Prevention and Intervention Programs, such as the BOOST grant for after-school programs

I am proud of the budget we passed. Although there is always more work to do, both the House and Senate worked with the Governor to deliver measures that benefit all Pennsylvanians: focusing on working families, investing in schools, and reflecting responsible governance.