The IFO released an updated school district property tax forecast. The report projects revenues and the Act 1 index through FY 2027-28 and provides an overview of recent trends in school district funding.
Pursuant to Act 128 of 2020, the IFO issued a report that summarizes results from the Public School Employees Retirement System’s (PSERS) recent stress test report. Based on PSERS’ baseline projections, the IFO projects that from FY 2026-27 to FY 2054-55, the Commonwealth will use $45.8 billion in General Fund revenues (2.0%) for the state’s share of public school employer pension contributions. Relative to baseline projections, the report also summarizes the impact from scenarios that allow investment performance to exceed and fall short of assumptions.
The IFO released its initial revenue estimate for FY 2026-27. Click the hyperlink above to view the report and presentation.
The IFO will release its Initial Revenue Estimate on Wednesday, May 20th at 1:30 PM. The report will contain revisions to the FY 2025-26 estimate and an initial estimate for FY 2026-27. See the announcement for a link to register for the presentation.
The Commonwealth collected $6.72 billion in General Fund revenues for April, an increase of $509 million (+8.2%) compared to April 2025.
The IFO submitted an economic impact report for the U.S. Open in Allegheny County (June 2025) to the General Assembly. The analysis finds that economic activity related to the event generated $152.8 million in statewide spending and $10.2 million in select state and local taxes.
Director Knittel and Robyn Toth submitted an article for publication in the April 13, 2026 edition of Tax Notes State. It ranks states based on per capita sports wagers and considers whether state tax rates impact per capita betting. For 2026, state tax rates range from 7% (Nevada, Iowa) to 51% (New York, Oregon, New Hampshire, Rhode Island).
Deputy Director Stacey Knavel provided testimony to the House Education Committee on the Independent Fiscal Office’s Educational Tax Credit report released in January 2022.
This brief compares the cumulative and relative growth of the two largest revenue sources for state government (income and sales tax) to school district property tax levied by local units. Over the past decade, sales and income taxes expanded at nearly twice the rate as school district property tax.
Fiscal Analyst III Jesse Bushman provided a budget and economic update to the Education Policy and Leadership Center.