Pittsburgh's 2026 Budget in Brief
Six things to know about how Pittsburgh plans to spend your money this year.
How big is the budget?
The City of Pittsburgh's proposed operating budget for fiscal year 2026 is $772.2M, up 5% ($36.7M) from last year. That works out to about $2,549 per resident for city services — police, fire, EMS, parks, public works, and more. Separately, the capital budget plans $112.3M in infrastructure spending this year as part of a six-year, $0.85B plan.
Where does the money come from?
2026 Revenue Breakdown
How the city's projected revenue builds up from its component sources.
The city expects $708.9M in revenue. The biggest source by far is tax revenue (80% of the total) — earned income tax, property tax, and various business taxes. The rest comes from state and federal aid, fees for city services, permits, fines, and interest earnings.
Where does the money go?
Public safety dominates the budget. Police, Fire, and EMS together account for 34% of all operating spending ($263.8M). The Bureau of Police alone is the single largest department. After public safety, the biggest spending areas are public works, parks, and general government operations.
What changed this year?
Biggest Increases
Biggest Decreases
The biggest dollar increase goes to the Bureau of Administration (Public Works) (+$11.4M, +80.1%). On the staffing side, the city is adding 76 new positions while eliminating 74 and shifting 8 between departments.
Who works for the city?
Largest departments by headcount
The city's workforce is budgeted at 3,548 full-time equivalent positions, a net change of -26 from 2025. The Bureau of Police is the largest employer, followed by Fire and Operations (public works).
What about big projects?
Beyond day-to-day operations, the capital budget funds infrastructure: road repairs, bridge rehabilitation, building renovations, vehicle replacements, and technology upgrades. The six-year plan totals $0.85B, funded through bonds, pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) from operating revenue, Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), and other sources.
About this data
All figures are extracted from the City of Pittsburgh's official FY2026 Operating and Capital Budget documents using automated table extraction. Population figure (302,971) is from the 2020 U.S. Census.
"Operating budget" covers day-to-day city expenses including salaries, supplies, and services. "Capital budget" covers long-term infrastructure investments. The two are separate funds.
This analysis was produced by Pittsburgh Budget Explorer, an independent project. For the underlying data and methodology, see the About page.