A state budget stalemate and uncertainty with federal funding have caused some school leaders to raise taxes, consider program cuts and explore short-term loans.
Less than three weeks before some schools resume classes in the region, superintendents are advocating for transparency, stability and fair funding.
“This dual disruption is placing strain on our ability to plan and provide services with confidence,” said Brian Waite, superintendent of Shenandoah Valley School District in Schuylkill County. “As an underfunded district, timely and full release of state and federal funds is critical.”
Pennsylvania budget delayed
State legislators failed to approve a budget before the July 1 deadline. The state House, controlled by Democrats, passed a spending bill in July. Republicans control the Senate and say they are concerned about the level of spending proposed by Gov. Josh Shapiro and included in the House budget.
Since the 2023 Commonwealth Court decision that ruled Pennslyvania’s school funding system unconstitutional, advocates have pushed for a multiyear plan that dramatically increases state money for the most underfunded districts. Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget proposal includes $526 million in adequacy formula funding — the exact number bipartisan leaders agreed to last year — and a $75 million increase in basic education funding.
Shapiro’s administration said this week that billions of funding for schools and human services will be delayed due to the budget stalemate. School districts will see delays on more than $2 billion in payments through August.
Shenandoah Valley and Wilkes-Barre Area were among districts to file the fair funding lawsuit more than a decade ago.
“Without a finalized state budget, we are increasingly constrained in our ability to move forward with critical long-term financial and staffing decisions and lack the necessary assurance to implement innovative programs without the necessary funding,” said Brian Costello, Wilkes-Barre Area superintendent. “This lack of clarity affects more than just our internal operations as it reaches across classrooms and support systems that families rely on every day.”
If the impasse continues, Shenandoah Valley may need to explore a short-term loan to ensure continued operations, Waite said.
Federal funding frozen, then released
In Wilkes-Barre, federal Title funds support after-school programs, parent outreach, professional development and “other services that directly impact the daily lives and futures of children across our community,” Costello said.
President Donald Trump’s administration froze $6 billion in federal funds on June 30, including $230 million for Pennsylvania schools. The funds support before and afterschool programming, teacher training and professional development, adult and family literacy programs, education for children from farming families, education for students learning English and more.
Shapiro joined a multistate lawsuit on July 14, arguing that the funds had been unlawfully frozen. The Trump administration unfroze the funds last week, though superintendents say they worry about future freezes or cuts.
Shenandoah Valley raised property taxes for 2025-26 to keep pace with rising costs in special education, healthcare and cyber charter tuition. The 5.6% increase was the first tax hike in eight years.
The federal freeze had impacted $170,000 in funding for the district, which helps support afterschool programs and professional development for English learners and dual enrollment opportunities for high school students.
Scranton is one of only two districts in the state with a calendar-year budget, instead of a traditional July to June fiscal year budget. The largest district in Lackawanna County had about $1.2 million in federal funds frozen.
The school board approved a $239 million proposed preliminary 2026 budget this week that does not raise taxes. That could change, if state funding is less than anticipated or if federal funding decreases.
“In the uncertainty of what’s happening at the federal level, and just being at the point we are with a state budget, we always need to know what that worst case scenario is, so that we have that in the back of our minds while we’re making decisions,” Superintendent Erin Keating said at the board meeting.
