News & Brews February 16, 2026
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IFO: Shapiro is wrong to claim budget won’t raise taxes
When the non-partisan Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) basically tells you your fiscal claims are full of it, well, that’s not great. But that’s exactly what the IFO is saying about Gov. Josh Shapiro’s claim that his $53.3 billion budget proposal won’t raise taxes in the next five years. ABC27 reports, “Barring no new revenue streams, an IFO report last week found the state would spend $6.7 billion more than it will take in next year under the governor’s proposal…. Projections out to 2029-30 raise the deficit to $8.6 billion. [IFO Director Matthew] Knittel said that’s because spending growth outstrips revenue growth each year. ‘The deficit is such a magnitude now that it’s likely that a broad-based tax increase will be necessary at some point in the next five years,’ said Knittel.”
FIRE continues to defy partisan labels
The Inquirer has a profile of the Philadelphia-based Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), which, it says, went from “cancel culture watchdog to Trump antagonist.” It’s an interesting read, but here’s the thing: Anyone who argues that FIRE is “conservative” hasn’t really been following FIRE for the last two decades. The group is unapologetically pro-free-speech. And they’ve defended free speech for all sides—even speech they may vehemently disagree with.
Pa. is 3rd in nation for layoff notices
The progressive Pennsylvania Capital-Star reports that “about 4,000 Pennsylvania workers have received notices so far this year that they’ll be laid off. That puts the commonwealth third in the country, behind California and New Jersey, for the largest number of jobs eliminated or slated to be cut in 2026.” This is per “WARN Tracker, a website that aggregates layoff notices larger employers are required to file in each state.” (The requirement is per the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification—or WARN—Act.) “Among the companies laying off the largest numbers are Amazon Fresh, which reported it will cut 983 jobs as it closes six stores in the Philadelphia area, and the supermarket chain GIANT, which announced it will eliminate about 500 jobs early this year.”
Shapiro bashes ICE, but takes ICE-tied donations?
Gov. Shapiro is telling ICE to cancel plans for a detention center in Pennsylvania—and threatening to withhold state permits if the federal agency tries to proceed. Spotlight PA reports, “In a letter dated Feb. 12, Gov. Josh Shapiro told Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that her department’s record is reason enough to oppose planned ICE facilities in Berks and Schuylkill Counties.” But beyond this, he claims the “facilities will also jeopardize the health and safety of Pennsylvanians who live nearby.” Interestingly, POLITICO recently reported that CoreCivic, an ICE contractor and private prison company, has given dozens of donations to the Democrats Governors Association (DGA). Since 2020, DGA has given Shapiro more than $7.5 million, making them his biggest donor. So, will Shapiro refuse more DGA money in his re-election bid? Or is he fine criticizing ICE while using ICE-tied donations?
‘Teachers unions get desperate’
Wall Street Journal columnist Kim Strassel writes, “After decades of swaggering political power, of lording it over parents and legislatures, the education monopoly overplayed its hand during Covid, and the losses are piling up. The biggest government reform story in recent years has been the explosive growth of school choice.” Having lost their anti-school-choice battle in the court of public opinion, teachers’ unions are resorting to fighting school choice in the court of law. “The legal attacks vary, though most come down to a variant of the argument that choice somehow violates a state’s duty to provide a ‘uniform’ education.” Strassel argues that “Democrats will have to decide how much longer to stick with this unraveling cartel.”