Governor Josh Shapiro secured a significant increase in the 2023-24 budget for the Municipal Assistance Program to help local governments on the frontlines of supporting their communities.

Harrisburg, PA – Today, Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Rick Siger announced new funding was awarded through the Municipal Assistance Program (MAP) to support local governments with implementing services including shared-service activities such as regionalization, consolidation or merging of services, shared personnel, high-impact projects that serve multiple municipalities, and boundary change efforts.

The 36 projects, spread across 23 counties in Pennsylvania, will receive a total of $1,688,659 in MAP funding.

During his first year in office, Governor Shapiro secured a $1.5 million increase — nearly 266 percent — in MAP funding to help local governments plan for and effectively implement a variety of services, improvements, and soundly managed development.

“Through the Municipal Assistance Program, we are now able to help more local governments with planning and also provide critical support to local emergency services,” said Secretary Rick Siger. “MAP provides funding to keep communities safer and help them best plan for the future.”

A full list of the approved projects can be found on the MAP website. Some of the approved projects include:

• Allegheny County – $120,000 to the Eastern Regional Mon Valley Police Department for employee salaries; information technology equipment and software; employee training and community relations activities.
• Lackawanna County – $75,000 to Lackawanna County for the North Pocono Regional Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Update. Lackawanna County will coordinate and administer the development of a multi-municipal comprehensive plan and zoning update for the North Pocono Planning Association, which consists of eight municipalities. This will be the third regional planning project administered by the county.
• Lancaster County – $122,500 to Lancaster City for the East End Small Area Plan. The East End Small Area Plan will guide redevelopment of the soon-to-be vacated Lancaster County Prison and its environs with a particular focus on the imminent need for affordable housing. Comprising an entire city block, the project is a rare opportunity for substantial infill development.
• Monroe County – $75,000 to Monroe County for the Monroe County Comprehensive Plan. The funding will be used to help hire a professional planning consultant to assist in Monroe County’s comprehensive plan update and specifically to facilitate public and stakeholder meetings, conduct a county-wide resident survey, and to convene regional meetings of local officials.
• Venango County – $25,000 to support the four-phase Community Heart and Soul process. The end product will be a Community Action Plan for planning and implementation of future community projects. Significant community engagement is planned as part of the process.
• York County – $57,589 to Lower Windsor Township to upgrade the security system in the township building, upgrade patrol vehicle technology for eight patrol cars for the police department, and to purchase a safety control signal for the fire department.

MAP provides technical resources and assistance for municipalities, consolidation, regional efforts as well as serving as a resource for local government officials, developers, and citizens interested in planning to improve, grow, and enhance communities.

For more information about the Municipal Assistance Program and the Department of Community and Economic Development, visit the DCED website, and be sure to stay up-to-date with all of our agency news on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Governor’s Office, ra-gvgovpress@pa.gov, 717.783.1116
Penny Ickes, DCED, dcedpress@pa.gov

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