By Rachel Ravina
NORRISTOWN — County and municipal officials in Montgomery County are warning of impacts to local communities as the state and federal governments grapple with budgetary stalemates in Harrisburg and Washington, D.C.
The one-two punch has legislators unable to pass the Pennsylvania General Assembly’s 2025-26 fiscal year budget nearly four months after the slated June 30 deadline. The federal government shutdown began Oct. 1 and is approaching the one-month mark as cuts to federal food and energy assistance loom this weekend.
“While the leaders of the PA Senate and the U.S. Congress have abdicated their responsibility to provide for the most vulnerable among us, Montgomery County is using every tool in our power to ensure our neighbors don’t go hungry or cold this winter,” Montgomery County Commissioners’ Chairman Neil Makhija told MediaNews Group.
Makhija addressed the state and federal budget stalemates during a meeting earlier this month, where he noted the county has spent around $33 million “thus far to keep our operation running and to cover the state’s bills” amid the ongoing impasse. Citing figures from Oct. 9, he added the county’s lost roughly $110,000 in interest income.
“We can’t keep spending forever without getting the funds that are needed from the state, and this has come at a cost,” Makhija said, urging his constituents to contact their legislators, “particularly the state Senate to ensure they pass a budget as soon as possible because this is costing us, and that also affects our ability to plan for the future and provide for our residents.”
Federal and state grants accounted for 34.6 percent of revenue drivers in Montgomery County’s 2025 budget, per budget documents. Federal and state grants accounted for 20.1 percent of general fund revenue as of July 31.
Impact in Norristown
The Norristown Area School District already passed its $233.15 million operating budget for the 2025-26 academic year, which included a $4.2 million staffing plan for 54.5 positions. Those plans are contingent upon state funding, the amount of which has yet to be determined as lawmakers remain deadlocked. The school district had anticipated receiving approximately $78.3 million from the state and about $7.6 million at the federal level, according to budget documents.
“A lot of times, we’re being asked to make a lot of assumptions on state revenues, and things like that have some pretty deep implications for a school district. State funding has increased, particularly for a district like Norristown, and as it does increase, our need to have those dollars flow to us on time becomes more and more important,” Superintendent Christopher Dormer told MediaNews Group in August.
The Municipality of Norristown has begun its own budget proceedings. Norristown’s preliminary budget recorded roughly $44.8 million in revenues and roughly $48.1 million in expenditures as municipal officials contend with a potential $3.29 million budget shortfall.
“We’re always going to pass a balanced budget, so you know we’re looking at areas we can trim some fat, but we really want to keep our credit rating up,” Municipal Administrator Leonard Lightner said, adding that “we don’t really want to touch our reserves to balance the budget.”
Department heads shared their proposals to council members and area residents during a work session earlier this month. The proposed budget is slated to be presented Nov. 5 with a vote scheduled for early December.
“This is what we’re saying we would like to see in 2026 to help us provide the best services possible for the residents,” Lightner said. “But we also know that if that doesn’t happen, we might have to cut back on certain things, and if that’s the case, depending on how the state and feds move forward, and then in 2026, if there are grant opportunities, we will definitely pursue them.”
The municipality isn’t allocated specific federal and state funding dollars, according to Lightner, but it does get around $1.5 million in state aid pension.
“The state aid pension, it’s a standard for all municipalities for the most part, but from a budgetary standpoint, it doesn’t really affect us too much, but it really does help us pay close attention to what’s happening,” Lightner said.
There’s not a consistent number of dollars for each funding cycle, but Lightner clarified they do seek funding for projects related to federal and state environmental monies, as well as aiding projects within municipal departments.
“We do have some state grants, and again, as we look at federal grants, when we’re talking about EPA, DEP. In those larger-scale federal opportunities, we definitely need to pay close attention to it, especially when we look at partnerships and collaboration,” Lightner said. “How will this affect us if we’re looking to do larger-scale projects like infrastructure and other remediations when it comes to environmental issues?”
Norristown Municipal Council President Rebecca Smith noted interest with respect to funding programs such as community development block grants, small business assistance, as well as Norristown’s First Time Homebuyers Program.
“We’re required to a dollar amount, but we actually have no idea what those dollar amounts will be until there’s a federal budget,” Smith said.
Smith also expressed concern over the state of events happening outside her jurisdiction in the Philadelphia suburbs. As the standoffs continue at the state and federal levels, any lapse in services would “hit people” who “need the most help.”
SNAP cuts loom
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits are set to halt Saturday amid the federal government shutdown. There are around 85,000 people in Montgomery County experiencing food insecurity, according to 2023 figures from Feeding America, a roughly 66 percent increase calculated from 51,400 people in 2021.
Nearly 2 million Pennsylvanians are “at risk of losing SNAP benefits,” according to Gov. Josh Shapiro, including some 62,871 people in Montgomery County.
Additionally, those hoping to participate in the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ 2025-26 Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program will have to wait until Dec. 3 to apply, according to a state spokesperson, citing the federal government shutdown as the reason. Makhija estimated “nearly 6,800 families” could be impacted.
“Thousands of Montgomery County families are facing worsening crises this week due entirely to cynical politics being played by the federal government and the Pennsylvania Senate,” Makhija said in a statement to MediaNews Group.
“Months ago, the so-called ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ drastically cut SNAP benefits and healthcare coverage for our neediest families to provide tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans,” he continued. “Now Congress’ refusal to do their job and end this government shutdown threatens to put the most basic needs of our neighbors at risk: food and heat for their homes.”
In addition, Democrats and Republicans continued clashing over whether or not to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies amid fears of possible hikes to insurance premiums. U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean, D-4th Dist., warned in a town hall earlier this month that “millions of Americans will see their health care costs … more than double at the end of this year if Congress doesn’t act,” adding another layer of concern to area residents.
“It’s things that are definitely gonna hit them at the same time that we’re thinking about, do we or do we not do a tax increase? So that’s I think something that we all have to weigh because we have a budget to balance, but also our families may not get SNAP assistance … and suddenly will be without money that they rely on to feed their family,” Smith said.
“If they’re participating in the ACA, their health insurance premiums might go up by 20 percent,” she continued. “So like real needs of families, and costs going up for our residents in ways because of the federal and state budget impact that I think it affects how we weigh the appropriateness of budget increases, tax increases.”
