The Transit Authority of Warren County on Clark Street, Warren, is pictured.

The Transit Authority of Warren County stands to see an additional $231,766 in the budget proposed by Gov. Josh Shapiro.

With two months remaining before the deadline for state lawmakers to adopt the 2026 state budget, Democrats in Harrisburg are putting on a full-court press to secure additional transit aid that would help Warren County – though not as much as it will help bigger cities throughout the commonwealth.

During his budget address in February, Shapiro proposed a 1.75% increase in funding for transit systems across Pennsylvanians. It’s the first increase in the state share of public transit funding in more than a decade, according to the governor, and part of a five-year, $1.5 billion increase in funding for transit systems. The bill for 2026 would total more than $245 million.

As budget negotiations crawl toward an eventual end, Democrats representing urban areas are pushing hard to either keep or expand Shapiro’s mass transit funding increase.

On Tuesday, State Sen. Nikil Saval, D-Philadelphia. and state Sen. Lindsey M. Williams, D-Allegheny, introduced the Transit for All PA Funding Package, a suite of legislative proposals to help secure funds for transit agencies across Pennsylvania. Saval and Williams said Pennsylvania spends the least per capita of any state in the northeastern United States on mass transit.

They propose several new taxes and fees that would be dedicated to mass transit funding, including increasing the tax on rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft from 1.4% to 6%; an increase from $2 a day to $6.50 a day on rental vehicles and an increase from 3% to 5% on vehicle leases.

“Mobility is crucial to a community’s social and economic wellbeing and to a region’s health and vitality,” said Saval, who serves as Democratic Chair of the Senate’s Urban Affairs and Housing Committee and Chair of the Senate’s Philadelphia Delegation. “Our legislature’s ongoing neglect of public transit has led us to the brink of disaster, and we must explore every available option to bridge current funding gaps. The Transit for All PA Funding Package will create sustainable investments in our transit system, fortifying transit agencies to meet the challenges they face right now while simultaneously building a future in which they are able to fully meet the needs of the people who depend on them.”

Also introduced Tuesday is legislation sponsored by House Rep. Ed Neilson, D-Philadelphia, that simply supports Shapiro’s efforts to boost transit service funding.

“Governor Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget proposes a game-changing investment in our transportation infrastructure by injecting an estimated $292.5 million into mass transit next year,” Neilson wrote in his co-sponsorship memorandum. “This investment will help alleviate many of the service cuts and fare increases that every transit agency is facing, allowing many of our residents to still make it to their jobs, medical appointments, school, and everywhere in between.”