[VT Philadelphia, PA] March 14, 2025, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker has presented her proposed $6.77 billion Fiscal Year 2026 budget and Five-Year Plan to the City Council, outlining significant investments aimed at transforming Philadelphia into “the safest, cleanest, and greenest big city in the nation, with access to economic opportunity for all.”
The “One Philly 2.0” budget proposal includes $2.30 billion in new operating investments through FY30, including debt service on $800 million in new borrowing for the Parker administration’s Housing Opportunities Made Easy (H.O.M.E.) Initiative to build or restore 30,000 housing units. Additionally, the plan allocates $1.47 billion in capital investments over six years.
“Philadelphians deserve a budget that propels our City forward,” Mayor Parker stated during the presentation. “This budget demonstrates my Administration’s ongoing, responsible overseeing of our City’s finances, while we continue to make Philadelphia the Safest, Cleanest, Greenest Big City in the Nation with Access to Economic Opportunity for All.”
Fiscal Health
The budget is being proposed at a time when Philadelphia’s finances remain stable but face heightened risks. The city has implemented several measures to prepare for future fiscal challenges:
- Budget Stabilization Reserve Fund: Expected to reach $280 million by the end of the Proposed Five-Year Plan.
- Improved Bond Ratings: S&P Global Ratings upgraded the City of Philadelphia to an ‘A+’ rating with a long-term Stable outlook, the highest combined credit ratings in decades and the second ratings upgrade during Mayor Parker’s administration.
- Pension Funding: The Fund has reached a 65 percent funding level, the highest in decades and an increase of more than 20 percentage points in just eight years. It’s projected to reach 80 percent in FY29 and 100 percent by FY33, potentially reducing annual general fund costs by more than $430 million.
- Federal Funding Reserve: A $95 million reserve has been established to give the City time to react to changes in federal policy.
Budget Director Sabrina Maynard noted, “Building a budget requires prioritization and trade-offs. This Proposed Plan makes critical investments while setting the City and future mayors up for long-term fiscal health, building reserves as the City navigates the expiration of COVID relief funds, federal uncertainty, and a legacy pension obligation bond balloon payment in the penultimate year of the Plan.”
Housing Investments
The Five-Year Plan includes $800 million in two borrowings for the H.O.M.E. Initiative to produce, preserve, and stabilize 30,000 housing units. Other housing investments include:
- Planning and Development: $11 million over five years for 32 new positions and consultant support to implement the housing plan.
- Licenses and Inspections (L&I): Expanded capacity through funding for an additional Clean and Seal crew and five additional code enforcement attorneys.
- Tangled Title: $300,000 annually in new expanded title investments, funded by a proposed $3 increase to the Document Recording Fee.
Public Safety Investments
The budget proposes $746 million in new operating and $289 million in capital funding for public safety initiatives:
- Forensics Lab: An additional $67 million over the Five-Year Plan for a new Forensics Lab in West Philadelphia and related costs.
- Police Department: $2.8 million to expand the Police Assisted Diversion unit in FY26 as a pilot program; $400,000 over the Plan to purchase new electric police bikes.
- Fire Department: $2.5 million for upgrading medic units to a higher service level; $300,000 for FEMA Assistance to Firefighters grant matching; $1.4 million for new technology costs, including ID machines, drones, bar scanners, and mobile devices.
- Prisons Department: $4.5 million annually for facility maintenance contracts; $750,000 annually for the Philadelphia Prison Violence Prevention Program; $4.9 million over five years to outfit Correctional Officers
