Bucks County Commissioners Approve $71 Tax Increase For 2026 Budget

Amid rising costs and a budget gap, the Bucks County Commissioners voted 2-1 to approve a 2.2 mill property tax increase.

In a rare split vote, Democratic commissioners Bob Harvie and Diane Ellis-Marseglia voted for the spending plan and tax hike, while Republican Commissioner Gene DiGirolamo voted against it.

The budget comes to roughly $517 million. With state and federal pass-through funds, grant programs, and remaining American Rescue Plan Act money counted, the county expects to oversee roughly $746.6 million in spending.

The tax hike, which brings the county’s millage rate for 2026 from 27.45 to 29.65 mills, will cost the average homeowner an additional $71.28 annually, or approximately $1.38 per week.

According to officials, the average county real estate tax bill currently sits at roughly $890 per year.

The commissioners said at a recent budget workshop that they were weighing slightly smaller a tax increase fill a $16.4 million deficit that could become an ongoing structural deficit.

“The nature of that deficit, it’s an operational deficit, which means that ongoing expenditures exceed revenues,” Bucks County Chief Financial Officer Jeannette Weaver said.

The tax increase will bring in enough to cover the deficit and provide a slight surplus to allow the county to address deferred maintenance projects and prepare for economic uncertainties, Harvie said.

The tax increase comes as local, county, and state governments are dealing with financial volatility.

The recent state budget impasse and federal government shutdown forced the county to draw $27 million from its fund balance to maintain mental health and human services. The county also provided a $4.6 million advance to Bucks County Community College to ensure fall semester operations and increased funding for food banks.

While the county expects reimbursement for some advances it provided, the recently passed state budget includes cuts to mental health funding.

Additionally, the county anticipates a multi-million dollar reduction in federal funds.

The county receives the largest share of its funding, 46 percent, from the state, local taxes at 32 percent, federal funds at 8 percent, and the remainder from departmental, court, and row offices fees and services.

“We are required to present a balanced budget,” said Ellis-Marseglia. “We cannot do what the federal government does and just keep taping it together for a few weeks at a time. And we cannot do what the federal government does and shuts down.”

“One of the things that sort of left out is the fact that there is a lot of deferred maintenance on projects we have here in the county in addition to the very unsettled situation of our economy as a nation,” said Harvie, the commissioners’ chairperson and a candidate for Congress.

Ellis-Marseglia noted the constraints facing county government as they planned the 2026 budget, noting that federal and state funding comes with mandates that require local spending through property taxes. She said the state has not provided alternative revenue options despite repeated requests from counties.

“We get money from the state and federal government, but it doesn’t come free. It comes with all kinds of mandates that we have to follow in order to use that money,” Ellis-Marseglia said.

Ellis-Marseglia shared concern about potential federal cuts to medical assistance programs and the impact of tariffs on county projects and residents.

“I worry about medical assistance, which we are all told is going to be cut. And we are going to have thousands of people in this county who no longer have insurance,” she said. “When they need physical or mental health, they’re going to have to rely on county funding.”

Ellis-Marseglia noted that tariffs are “having an incredible effect on all Americans” and will impact every county project.

Healthcare costs continue to drive budget pressures, with health insurance increases affecting county operations similar to challenges faced by residents and businesses throughout the region.

The 2026 budget includes increases to appropriations for Bucks County Community College and the free library system after years of flat funding, officials said.

Health, housing, and human services make up the largest portion of county spending at 57 percent of the total budget.

The county also expects to spend $3 million on required updates to the 9-1-1 radio system.

Several row offices are planning to spend less in 2026, including the coroner with a 10.6 percent decrease, the district attorney’s office with 3 percent less, and the sheriff’s office at 1.5 percent less.

The commissioners’ own offices will also see an 11.8 percent decrease. General services and community services are also planning to spend less. Spending is also projected to rise for corrections, emergency services, the health department, and human services.

Several offices are budgeting for increases, including the law department with a 19.6 percent increase, voter registration and the elections office at 14.6 percent, and purchasing and the mail room at 20 percent.

The courts are projecting a 6.1 percent increase in spending.

DiGirolamo did not comment on his budget vote during the commissioners’ meeting.