What you need to know about Pennsylvania’s neighborhood tax credits
By Staff Writer · Published 10/22/2026, 2:50:32 AM ET
Pennsylvania announced $71.6 million in support for 443 community projects on October 19. The program uses business tax credits to encourage contributions to local work.
Q: What did Pennsylvania approve?
A: The Department of Community and Economic Development announced $71,598,142 in Neighborhood Assistance Program support for 443 projects on October 19. Secretary Rick Siger announced the approvals in Lancaster. The department says the 2026–27 state budget provided $72 million for the program; that budget figure and the announced approvals describe different stages of the same funding process.
Q: How does the support reach community projects?
A: Businesses contribute to qualifying projects and receive state tax credits in return, giving nonprofits a way to attract private support. The agency’s program brochure explains that the tax credits themselves are not cash grants to the organizations. The October 19 release says credits can cover up to 95 percent of qualifying contributions, depending on the program component; it does not offer every contributor an automatic 95 percent credit.
Q: Which regions are included?
A: The department lists 81 projects in Central Pennsylvania, 48 in the Lehigh Valley and 69 in the Northeast. The other regional counts are 54 in the Northwest, 93 in the Southeast and 98 in the Southwest. Together, the six reported counts equal the announced 443 projects.
Q: What is the Lancaster project?
A: The announced approvals include $31,050 in program support for Lancaster Hub’s homeless outreach center. The department says the associated donations will expand help connecting residents with housing, employment, health care and basic necessities. Executive Director Paige McFarling described the organization as a first-time applicant in the department’s release.
Q: What education and child-care work is planned?
A: Lackawanna College plans to expand and update its Bethlehem Center using donations so it can train more than 250 students in technical and trade fields, according to the department. In Pike County, Green Trees Learning Center plans a Milford Borough location for 24 additional children. Its projected 25 percent reduction in the waiting list is an expected effect of that project, not a result the announcement says has already occurred.
Q: What housing, health-support and transportation projects are included?
A: Rebuilding Together Philadelphia plans repairs for 15 low-income homeowners in Northwest Philadelphia who are older than 62 or have a disability, the release says. Erie Cancer Wellness Center plans facility renovations for its nonmedical support services. Presbyterian SeniorCare Network plans an accessible van at its Washington campus to transport over 500 people with low incomes, including older adults and adults with disabilities; that project figure is separate from the network’s broader population of more than 7,500 older adults.
Q: Does the announcement open an application for individual residents?
A: The release announces project approvals, rather than a statewide application for a personal payment. It lists eligible project subjects such as housing, education, job training, crime prevention and community services, but gives no single resident-enrollment process or service-opening date for all 443 projects. Individual projects therefore need their own confirmed service and eligibility information.
What it means
The approvals identify projects supported through a tax-credit mechanism; they do not mean every described service is operating or that residents can claim a share of the statewide total. The practical next step depends on the particular organization’s project, its service rules and its implementation schedule.
Source
This State & Nation summary is based on Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development’s original release, dated 2026-10-19. The reporting and statistics above are attributed to that publication.