Harrisburg, PA – Just seven months after taking office, Governor Shapiro is already delivering on many of the goals he laid out on the campaign trail and in his budget address. Governor Shapiro signed into law a commonsense, bipartisan budget that will build safer communities by supporting the work of law enforcement and first responders, investing in our communities, promoting anti-violence initiatives, and pursuing smart reforms to keep people safe across the Commonwealth.
Governor Shapiro knows every Pennsylvanian deserves to be safe and feel safe in their community – and creating safe communities starts with ensuring police departments are well-staffed, well-funded, and well-equipped.
The bipartisan, commonsense budget includes:
- Sustainable Funding for the State Police: To ensure Pennsylvanians are and feel safe in their communities, this budget prioritizes public safety while making more funding available for our infrastructure needs.The Governor’s budget will sustainably fund the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) through the General Fund and reduce PSP’s reliance on the Motor License Fund (MLF), freeing up funding for road and bridge projects.
- Filling Crucial Vacancies: Creating safer communities starts with making sure local law enforcement are well-staffed. The budget allocates $16.4 million for four new PSP trooper cadet classes in 2023-24, which would hire and train 384 new troopers.
- Addressing Community Violence: Combatting violence is a crucial building block to creating real opportunity and advancing real freedom for Pennsylvanians. This budget makes record state funding investments in grants and technical assistance to address community violence throughout the Commonwealth, including $40 million through the successful Violence Intervention and Prevention program housed in the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), on top of funding at PCCD to reduce gun violence and make communities safer.
Read more about what people are saying about the budget’s investments in public safety and law enforcement:
Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Colonel Christopher Paris: “Governor Shapiro’s budget shows that public safety is a top priority, as it is for the citizens of Pennsylvania. The sustainable funding for PSP and the funding of additional cadet classes will make our communities safer and ensure our department is well-staffed, well-funded, and well-equipped.”
Scranton Police Chief Thomas Carroll: “I am very passionate about public service, and more importantly, about public safety. The difficulty of maintaining public safety increases when staffing shortfalls exist. Our dedicated officers will always face the challenges and cover those shortfalls, but it’s not sustainable. I, like my fellow public safety counterparts, am concerned about the impact of the shortfalls to our operations over time. For the first time in our history, we have developed a comprehensive recruiting initiative to motivate good people to accept the challenges of policing and join our forces. Governor, we appreciate you understanding the seriousness of our staffing needs and promoting law enforcement’s legitimacy.”
Pennsylvania State Troopers Association President David Kennedy: “Gov. Shapiro should be commended for making the public safety of Pennsylvanians one of his highest priorities. This budget reflects his commitment, and will go a long way toward helping troopers complete their mission and go home safe to their families. We look forward to working with the Governor and state lawmakers on getting even more done to provide law enforcement with the tools they need.”
###