What’s in the New Pennsylvania Budget?

After a protracted four-month impasse, Pennsylvania finally has a budget.

Despite Gov. Josh Shapiro’s reckless spending proposal and opposition from radical Democrats in the state house, we achieved several wins for families and taxpayers.

Thanks to the work of the Commonwealth Foundation and allied lawmakers, the budget deal:

• Spends $1.4 billion less than Shapiro’s fiscally irresponsible proposal.
• Stops a crushing energy tax that would have raised electricity bills by 30 percent.
• Protects the Rainy Day Fund from Shapiro’s illegal raid.
• Expands school choice tax credits for low-income families by $50 million.
• Advances permitting reform to help employers build and hire.
• Continues to reduce Pennsylvania’s corporate income tax.
• Includes human services reforms to control costs.

To be sure, the $50 billion spending deal spends too much, creating a structural deficit of more than $5 billion.

Here are some of the more concerning pieces of this deal:

• Spending up 5 percent—even as revenues grow less than 1 percent.
• Public schools get nearly $1 billion more—despite having billions in reserves.
• Cyber charter kids—the second-largest student body in Pennsylvania—lose funding, though far less than $600 million cut proposed by Shapiro and House Democrats.

Without addressing spending, this deficit will result in tax hikes of up to $1,500 per family in the next two years.

The Commonwealth Foundation will continue to be at the forefront of advocating for expanded educational opportunity, fiscal responsibility, spending reforms, and protecting working families, as the next budget fight begins in less than three months!

For a more thorough analysis of the budget, please click here.

Our fight continues. And with your continued support, we can make Pennsylvania the leading state for opportunity and prosperity, so that all Pennsylvanians can thrive.