The Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee today issued two subpoenas related to the expenditure of $1 million on Governor Josh Shapiro’s private residence in Abington Township.

The $1 million in security upgrades were announced in October following the arson attack on the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg in April. According to a letter from the Department of General Services and Pennsylvania State Police, upgrades include “erecting physical and visual barriers on the property, installing enhanced security technology, and other steps”.

In November, the committee announced that it was preparing to send subpoenas to Pennsylvania State Police and Abington Township for more specifics about the upgrades.

“This is about setting a precedent,” Senator Jarrett Coleman, Chairman of Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee, said in a statement. “No administration — Republican or Democrat — should be allowed to operate in the shadows when public funds are involved. Are we just going to give every future governor a blank check to spend on security without any oversight?”

No one in the General Assembly was informed about this until Coleman began asking questions of the administration in October, according to the Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee’s statement.

“Arguably we are in this position today because our laws and procedures do not address this situation. We as legislators can fix that,” Coleman said. “We need to evaluate if our laws as they are written today are enough to protect the governor and the taxpayers of Pennsylvania at the same time. I believe there is a place where those both can exist.”

“Through a thoughtful and thorough review of what’s happened, I believe we can ensure our laws and procedures are adequate to meet the needs of the governor, his family and that of the taxpayers,” Coleman said. “Oversight is not a partisan issue. It’s a constitutional responsibility.”

A third subpoena for information on Shapiro’s flight records was issued to Let’s Go Air Inc.

In response, Will Simons, spokesperson for Governor Shapiro, shared the following statement:

Following the assassination attempt on the Governor’s life and attack on the Governor’s Residence earlier this year, the Pennsylvania State Police and independent security experts conducted thorough reviews to pinpoint security failures, review protocols, identify gaps, and make concrete recommendations for improvements to the Governor’s security. As a direct result of those recommendations, security improvements have been put in place to keep the Governor and his family safe.

The Shapiro Administration has repeatedly responded to lawmakers’ inquiries on this matter and publicly released a substantial amount of information about the security improvements put in place by PSP without compromising those security protocols. While Governor Shapiro is speaking about political violence alongside the Republican Governor of Utah, Senator Coleman is once again showing clear disregard for the Governor and his family’s safety – leveling partisan attacks through the press instead of working in good faith to protect the Governor and future governors while carefully stewarding taxpayer dollars.

The committee authorized subpoenas to compel the production of documents by Friday, January 16, 2026 from the following entities:

Pennsylvania State Police

Subpoena directed to Commissioner Colonel Christopher Paris
Requested documents include:

• A copy of the May 2025 Independent Security Assessment of the governor’s residences.
• Contracts, invoices and communications related to construction and security work at the governor’s private home and a neighboring property.
• Body camera footage from State Police officers on the properties between Sept. 20 and Nov. 19, 2025.

Abington Township

Subpoena directed to Open Records Officer Tara Wehmeyer
Requested documents include:

• Permits, applications and zoning hearing transcripts related to work at the governor’s personal property.
• Communication records related to work undertaken at the property.

According to a September Spotlight PA article, more than $6 million in public dollars were spent on repairs to the Governor’s Residence over the previous four months.

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