Education

What You Need to Know About Pennsylvania’s 2026-27 State Budget Deal

  • Nathan Benefield
  • July 12, 2026

Summary Pennsylvania’s 2026–27 state budget deal is an improvement over Gov. Josh Shapiro’s reckless proposal, but it still spends too much and leaves taxpayers facing an even larger long-term structural…

Backgrounder

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State Budget

Shapiro for President? He Should Try to Be a Governor First.

  • Andrew Lewis
  • October 27, 2025

In The Wall Street Journal, Joseph Epstein recently admitted to daydreaming about Gov. Josh Shapiro as a presidential candidate. He claims the Pennsylvania governor is “thoughtful,…

Blog

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State Budget

How to Balance the PA State Budget

  • January 21, 2025

Key Points Pennsylvania faces a $3.6 billion structural deficit in fiscal year (FY) 2024–25. Unless addressed, the deficit will require massive tax increases on working families by next year. Extreme…

Backgrounder

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Energy

PACER & PRESS Analysis

  • André Béliveau
  • April 1, 2024

Overview Gov. Josh Shapiro campaigned on a healthy skepticism of carbon taxes before proposing his own carbon tax scheme. His new energy agenda centers around the Pennsylvania Climate…

Fact Sheet

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Regulation

Gov. Shapiro’s First Six Months the Least Productive in 50 Years

  • August 8, 2023

Harrisburg, Pa., August 8, 2023 –Gov. Josh Shapiro has overseen the least productive freshman legislative session in at least 50 years, a new Commonwealth Foundation analysis has found. In the first…

Press Release

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Health Care

No Easy Pass This Year on Cost Overruns

  • Andrew Abramczyk
  • March 3, 2020

Legislators are questioning the administration's chronic overspending habit, but they aren't getting many answers.

Commentary

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State Budget

134 Billion Reasons to Embrace Debt Reform

  • May 14, 2015

Every Pennsylvanian’s share of state and local debt increased by 20 percent over the last twelve years. In 2002, per capita debt totaled $8,693. Today, the total is a shade…

Media

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State Budget

Pennsylvania State Budget Trends, 2015

  • February 6, 2015

The enacted $29 billion General Fund budget (a 1.88 percent increase over 2013-2014) and $71.4 billion total operating budget represent Pennsylvania’s highest spending levels ever—exceeding years when federal stimulus dollars…

Fact Sheet

Read More: Pennsylvania State Budget Trends, 2015