Early in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year, county leaders are busy reviewing proposed departmental projects and budgets for 2026. Given the 2025 tax increases ordered by Chester (13.5%), Delaware (23.8%), and Montgomery (9%) Counties, taxpayers are wondering what the next year will bring. Here’s what we know so far…
Delaware County Council Members Richard Womack (D, Vice Chair), Christine Reuther (D),
Dr. Monica Taylor (D, Chair), Elaine Paul Schaefer (D), Kevin Madden (D)
Delaware and Montgomery Counties will not be holding public meetings regarding the 2026 budget until the first week of December. This is standard practice in Montgomery County according to their meeting calendar. Previous calendars were unavailable for Delaware County, so it is unclear if they typically unveil budget numbers at that time.
What is clear is that Delaware County formed a Budget Task Force earlier in the year made up of citizens interested in cutting costs and making the budget process more transparent. However, as reported in this Broad + Liberty article, although the county says the task force met throughout the year, there are no listed public meetings. This may be a violation of the PA Sunshine Law for public transparency.
At the last Delaware County Council meeting on October 8, 2025, Cynthia Sabatini spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting. She discussed the purpose of the Budget Task Force and indicated that she is a member of the Budget Presentation Committee. However, even she, as a task force member, hasn’t heard anything about the 2026 budget yet. She called for the County Council to discuss it prior to the November 4th General Election and wanted no surprises “at the 11th hour.” County Councilman Richard Womack indicated that the county would hold a public meeting where they release the findings and recommendations of the Budget Task Force. He did not indicate a date.
Commmissioners Eric Roe (R), Josh Maxwell (D, Chairman), Marian Moskowitz (D)
Chester County seems to be the first of the three counties to bring the 2026 numbers to the public. The Chester County Commissioners held three public budget meetings in the last two months.
The first meeting was held on September 16, 2025 where representatives from different Chester County organizations presented to the commissioners and requested grants to help fund projects. This is a list of the non-profits that requested funding from Chester County and for which consideration is being given:
Transportation Management Association of Chester County
Brandywine Valley Symphony
Healthcare Access
The Oxford Theatre
Chester County Women’s Commission
Phoenixville Free Clinic
The Alliance for Health Equity
Arts Holding Hands and Hearts
Penn State Extension Chester County
Camp Dreamcatcher
Thistle Hills
Community Warehouse Project of Chester County
Pottstown Area Rapid Transit
Schuylkill River Greenways
Community Volunteers in Medicine
LCH Health and Community Services
Crime Victims’ Center of Chester County
Chester County Airport Authority
On October 9, 2025 the County Commissioners held a public meeting where they received reports on the Capital Reserve Fund, the Capital Improvement Fund, and the Long Term Capital Projects being requested for 2026. Tyler Jensen, the county’s capital analyst, provided an overview and funding sources of each project.
According to Mr. Jensen, the Capital Reserve Fund has a beginning balance of $53.2 million with expected revenue of $18.7 million which stems mostly from Federal and State grants, totaling $71.9 million in funds. He expects total expenditures on current projects to be $46.8 million with new projects estimated at $8.3 million.
New projects proposed included new prison security cameras, cloud-based storage of digital evidence for the District Attorney’s Office, replacing existing technology firewalls, body-cams for the Sheriff’s Office, five park related projects, and electronic poll books to be used for in-person voting at all precincts.
The Capital Improvement Fund will have a beginning balance of $14.5 million with estimated revenue, primarily from bond proceeds, of $32 million for total of 46.6 million in the fund. The ongoing expenditures from this fund total $45.7 million, leaving a balance of $876,000. However, that is NOT enough to cover the $2.9 million in requested projects.
New projects include a rehabilitation project for Barneston Dam, a new Chesco Connect facility (mostly funded from state grants), prison transformer and generator replacement, replacement of all doors in the Government Services Center, replacement of HVAC units at Exton and Hankin Libraries, and the repair of one of the historic columns from the old courthouse. Also, it was mentioned that the Planning Commission is establishing a Land Bank, staffed by county employees, to acquire properties at tax sale and broker them to builders who would redevelop the properties and create new housing opportunities to put on the tax rolls.
Lastly, on October 10, 2025 there was a public meeting where they discussed the General Fund preliminary budget for 2026. Each department’s proposed budget was read aloud along with the change (increase or decrease) from their 2025 budget figures.
In previous meetings the Commissioners indicated that departments were asked to trim 5% from their non-personnel budgets. Some departments actually complied! For example, the Public Health Department lowered its budget by $723,000, by decreasing overtime and eliminating wasteful spending. And, the Public Defenders Office’s budget is lower by $62,116 because they eliminated personnel through attrition and cut witness fees. However the overwhelming majority of the departments are increasing their budgets. Most of the departments claimed higher personnel costs and/or postage as the reason for the increased budget. Here are a few of the standouts:
Commissioners Department: 2026 budget = $1,691,765 up $200,000 (remember that new Chief Experience Officer?)
Court Administration: 2026 budget = $7,488,549 an increase of $302,000, which was blamed on increased interpreter services, increased costs of their legal research software, increased postage, and increased costs of legal services required for dependency cases.
District Attorney: 2026 budget = $13,853,453 an increase of $769,000. The D.A. claims the increase is due to a rise in personnel and insurance costs. There is a $431,000 payroll increase embedded in that number which will likely go up when contracts expire and are renegotiated.
Prison: 2026 budget = $39,832,366 up $961,000. This includes a $572,000 increase in personnel costs, an inmate wage increase for kitchen services, and a food supplies increase of $328,000 to provide healthier food for the prisoners as requested by the Prison Board.
Public Safety/Communications: 2026 budget = $6,149,796 an increase of $660,000. The department head said they are fully staffed, have less attrition, and require increased overtime expenses due to their training processes. There was no question about decreasing overtime costs once staff is trained.
Voter Services: 2026 budget = $3,354,426 an increase of $458,000, which is said to be due to the purchase of a warranty for voting machines previously purchased and an increase in postage costs. Keep in mind that this is in addition to the $740,000 requested in Capital Reserve Fund budget for electronic poll books.
During conversations around increasing personnel costs, Commissioner Maxwell had trouble understanding that if employee compensation increases in 2025 then it carries forward to the 2026 budget as increased payroll expense. The staff actually laughed at his confusion.
The net increase in the General Fund expenditures appeared to be close to $5 million. We won’t know the total costs until the full proposed budget is released in the next several weeks.
Given the county tax increases for 2025 and the penchant for spending by the stewards of our tax dollars, without intervention, it is likely that 2026 will see additional tax increases. Now is the time to attend county commissioner or council meetings to let them know that taxpayers expect fiscal accountability. They were elected to make the tough decisions. It’s time for them to do their jobs!
As the Constitutional Convention ended in 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked if the delegates produced a monarchy or a republic. Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
We are trying to keep this republic that we love and hold our representatives accountable to the people. Join us in that mission and share this Update with your contacts!
Taxpayers are wondering what next year will bring.
Early in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year, county leaders are busy reviewing proposed departmental projects and budgets for 2026. Given the 2025 tax increases ordered by Chester (13.5%), Delaware (23.8%), and Montgomery (9%) Counties, taxpayers are wondering what the next year will bring. Here’s what we know so far…
Delaware and Montgomery Counties
Delaware County Council Members Richard Womack (D, Vice Chair), Christine Reuther (D),
Dr. Monica Taylor (D, Chair), Elaine Paul Schaefer (D), Kevin Madden (D)
Delaware and Montgomery Counties will not be holding public meetings regarding the 2026 budget until the first week of December. This is standard practice in Montgomery County according to their meeting calendar. Previous calendars were unavailable for Delaware County, so it is unclear if they typically unveil budget numbers at that time.
What is clear is that Delaware County formed a Budget Task Force earlier in the year made up of citizens interested in cutting costs and making the budget process more transparent. However, as reported in this Broad + Liberty article, although the county says the task force met throughout the year, there are no listed public meetings. This may be a violation of the PA Sunshine Law for public transparency.
At the last Delaware County Council meeting on October 8, 2025, Cynthia Sabatini spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting. She discussed the purpose of the Budget Task Force and indicated that she is a member of the Budget Presentation Committee. However, even she, as a task force member, hasn’t heard anything about the 2026 budget yet. She called for the County Council to discuss it prior to the November 4th General Election and wanted no surprises “at the 11th hour.” County Councilman Richard Womack indicated that the county would hold a public meeting where they release the findings and recommendations of the Budget Task Force. He did not indicate a date.
Chester County
Commmissioners Eric Roe (R), Josh Maxwell (D, Chairman), Marian Moskowitz (D)
Chester County seems to be the first of the three counties to bring the 2026 numbers to the public. The Chester County Commissioners held three public budget meetings in the last two months.
The first meeting was held on September 16, 2025 where representatives from different Chester County organizations presented to the commissioners and requested grants to help fund projects. This is a list of the non-profits that requested funding from Chester County and for which consideration is being given:
Transportation Management Association of Chester County
Brandywine Valley Symphony
Healthcare Access
The Oxford Theatre
Chester County Women’s Commission
Phoenixville Free Clinic
The Alliance for Health Equity
Arts Holding Hands and Hearts
Penn State Extension Chester County
Camp Dreamcatcher
Thistle Hills
Community Warehouse Project of Chester County
Pottstown Area Rapid Transit
Schuylkill River Greenways
Community Volunteers in Medicine
LCH Health and Community Services
Crime Victims’ Center of Chester County
Chester County Airport Authority
On October 9, 2025 the County Commissioners held a public meeting where they received reports on the Capital Reserve Fund, the Capital Improvement Fund, and the Long Term Capital Projects being requested for 2026. Tyler Jensen, the county’s capital analyst, provided an overview and funding sources of each project.
According to Mr. Jensen, the Capital Reserve Fund has a beginning balance of $53.2 million with expected revenue of $18.7 million which stems mostly from Federal and State grants, totaling $71.9 million in funds. He expects total expenditures on current projects to be $46.8 million with new projects estimated at $8.3 million.
New projects proposed included new prison security cameras, cloud-based storage of digital evidence for the District Attorney’s Office, replacing existing technology firewalls, body-cams for the Sheriff’s Office, five park related projects, and electronic poll books to be used for in-person voting at all precincts.
The Capital Improvement Fund will have a beginning balance of $14.5 million with estimated revenue, primarily from bond proceeds, of $32 million for total of 46.6 million in the fund. The ongoing expenditures from this fund total $45.7 million, leaving a balance of $876,000. However, that is NOT enough to cover the $2.9 million in requested projects.
New projects include a rehabilitation project for Barneston Dam, a new Chesco Connect facility (mostly funded from state grants), prison transformer and generator replacement, replacement of all doors in the Government Services Center, replacement of HVAC units at Exton and Hankin Libraries, and the repair of one of the historic columns from the old courthouse. Also, it was mentioned that the Planning Commission is establishing a Land Bank, staffed by county employees, to acquire properties at tax sale and broker them to builders who would redevelop the properties and create new housing opportunities to put on the tax rolls.
Lastly, on October 10, 2025 there was a public meeting where they discussed the General Fund preliminary budget for 2026. Each department’s proposed budget was read aloud along with the change (increase or decrease) from their 2025 budget figures.
In previous meetings the Commissioners indicated that departments were asked to trim 5% from their non-personnel budgets. Some departments actually complied! For example, the Public Health Department lowered its budget by $723,000, by decreasing overtime and eliminating wasteful spending. And, the Public Defenders Office’s budget is lower by $62,116 because they eliminated personnel through attrition and cut witness fees. However the overwhelming majority of the departments are increasing their budgets. Most of the departments claimed higher personnel costs and/or postage as the reason for the increased budget. Here are a few of the standouts:
Commissioners Department: 2026 budget = $1,691,765 up $200,000 (remember that new Chief Experience Officer?)
Court Administration: 2026 budget = $7,488,549 an increase of $302,000, which was blamed on increased interpreter services, increased costs of their legal research software, increased postage, and increased costs of legal services required for dependency cases.
District Attorney: 2026 budget = $13,853,453 an increase of $769,000. The D.A. claims the increase is due to a rise in personnel and insurance costs. There is a $431,000 payroll increase embedded in that number which will likely go up when contracts expire and are renegotiated.
Prison: 2026 budget = $39,832,366 up $961,000. This includes a $572,000 increase in personnel costs, an inmate wage increase for kitchen services, and a food supplies increase of $328,000 to provide healthier food for the prisoners as requested by the Prison Board.
Public Safety/Communications: 2026 budget = $6,149,796 an increase of $660,000. The department head said they are fully staffed, have less attrition, and require increased overtime expenses due to their training processes. There was no question about decreasing overtime costs once staff is trained.
Voter Services: 2026 budget = $3,354,426 an increase of $458,000, which is said to be due to the purchase of a warranty for voting machines previously purchased and an increase in postage costs. Keep in mind that this is in addition to the $740,000 requested in Capital Reserve Fund budget for electronic poll books.
During conversations around increasing personnel costs, Commissioner Maxwell had trouble understanding that if employee compensation increases in 2025 then it carries forward to the 2026 budget as increased payroll expense. The staff actually laughed at his confusion.
The net increase in the General Fund expenditures appeared to be close to $5 million. We won’t know the total costs until the full proposed budget is released in the next several weeks.
Bottom line…
Given the county tax increases for 2025 and the penchant for spending by the stewards of our tax dollars, without intervention, it is likely that 2026 will see additional tax increases. Now is the time to attend county commissioner or council meetings to let them know that taxpayers expect fiscal accountability. They were elected to make the tough decisions. It’s time for them to do their jobs!
As the Constitutional Convention ended in 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked if the delegates produced a monarchy or a republic. Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
We are trying to keep this republic that we love and hold our representatives accountable to the people. Join us in that mission and share this Update with your contacts!
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