PMPEI

What PMPEI does

PMPEI (Pennsylvania Municipal Planning Education Institute) is a Pennsylvania-based non-profit educational institute founded in 1992 to deliver standardized planning and zoning instruction to local municipal officials. It serves Pennsylvania's 2,500+ municipalities and counties, training the citizen planning commissioners (over 1,800 commissions), zoning hearing board members (~7,500 individuals), and zoning officials (1,200+) who administer the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code. The institute operates as an affiliate of the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs (PSAB) since November 2015, with its curriculum co-developed alongside the PA Chapter of the American Planning Association and Penn State Cooperative Extension.

The institute offers a portfolio of four core 10-hour instructor-led courses: Community Planning, Zoning, Subdivision & Land Development Review, and Zoning Administration. Delivery occurs in two models: Sponsored Courses (75-80% of offerings) hosted by local agencies at their preferred venues, and Open Enrollment Courses organized by PMPEI through PSAB's myaccount.boroughs.org platform. Three county-based Certificate Programs (Berks, Chester, Lycoming) recognize officials who complete three courses within two years. Courses also confer continuing education credits for attorneys (CLE), professional engineers, landscape architects, UCC code officials, land surveyors, geologists, and Certified Borough Officials. PMPEI runs 25-30 courses annually to 550-750 participants and has instructed roughly 12,000 officials since inception.

Revenue is generated primarily through course registration fees paid by individual participants or sponsoring agencies, with sponsors typically subsidizing a portion of costs. Continuing education credit fees, certificate fees, and the George Fasic Outstanding Planning Education Achievement Award program represent ancillary revenue streams. The institute is governed by a board of directors including a Chairman, Vice Chairman, and Treasurer, and operates with approximately 26 employees out of its Harrisburg, PA headquarters.

Name

PMPEI

Legal name

Pennsylvania Municipal Planning Education Institute

Website

https://pmpei.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

PMPEI is a Pennsylvania non-profit educational institute that delivers standardized 10-hour instructor-led planning and zoning courses to local municipal officials across the state's 2,500+ municipalities, operating as a PSAB affiliate since 2015.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Planning Education

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Project, Quality & Operations (PMP PDUs, Six Sigma, Quality CE) (EDAAALAM)

Keywords

• Municipal planning education
• Zoning administration training
• Subdivision land development
• Planning commissioner courses
• Continuing professional education

Headquarters

HQ city

Harrisburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Course Registration Fees: PMPEI generates revenue through course registration fees paid by participants. For Sponsored Courses, the sponsor collects fees and provides PMPEI with a single course payment. For Open Enrollment courses, registration is handled through PSAB's myaccount.boroughs.org platform. Additional fees are charged for continuing education credits (CLE, professional engineer credits, etc.) and certificates.
2. Certificate Program Fees: Certificate programs operated by consortiums (Berks, Chester, Lycoming counties) may charge registration fees at levels to make programs self-sustaining. Participants completing three courses within two years are eligible for certificates.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

PMPEI is a private educational institute that delivers instructor-led training courses on planning and zoning to Pennsylvania's municipal officials. Its core offering consists of four 10-hour courses (Community Planning, Zoning, Subdivision & Land Development Review, and Zoning Administration) taught statewide, plus three county-based Certificate Programs that recognize completion of three courses within two years. Courses are offered either as Sponsored Courses hosted by local agencies or as Open Enrollment Courses registered through the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs (PSAB).

Product overview

PMPEI is an educational institute offering a portfolio of four core 10-hour courses in planning and zoning for Pennsylvania municipal officials. The core courses are: Community Planning, Zoning, Subdivision & Land Development Review, and Zoning Administration. Beyond core courses, PMPEI partners with county planning commissions and educational institutions to offer three regional Certificate Programs (Berks, Chester, and Lycoming Counties) that recognize completion of three courses within two years. The institute also confers the George Fasic Outstanding Planning Education Achievement Award for completing all four core courses. Courses are offered as either Sponsored (organized by local agencies at locations of their choice) or Open Enrollment (organized by PMPEI at host municipalities), and all provide continuing education credits for attorneys, professional engineers, landscape architects, UCC code officials, land surveyors, and geologists.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Course in Community Planning

Quantifiable outcome

• 12,000+ planning and zoning officials trained since 1992
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs (PSAB)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1991PSAB is PMPEI's primary organizational partner. As of November 2015, PMPEI transitioned to an affiliate organization of PSAB, providing organized succession plan and ensuring high standards of PMPEI materials and training continue. PSAB handles course registration through myaccount.boroughs.org and provides administrative support.
• Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA-PA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1991APA-PA was a founding partner in establishing PMPEI in 1991. They continue to provide programming support and some subsidies for course sponsors. APA-PA is listed as supporting PMPEI programming.
• Penn State University Cooperative ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1991Penn State Cooperative Extension was a founding educational collaboration partner in establishing PMPEI in 1991. Originally joined with APA-PA and PA Department of Community Affairs to develop uniform planning instruction curriculum.
• PA Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormerly PA Department of Community Affairs (DCA) Municipal Training Division. Was a founding partner but left the group when it became DCED and has since been replaced by PSAB.
• Berks County Planning Commission and Albright College Center for Excellence in Local GovernmentminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCertificate program consortium that sponsors three PMPEI courses annually (Planning, Zoning, Subdivision/Land Development Review). Participants completing all three courses within two years receive a special certificate.
• Chester County Planning Commission, West Chester University, and Chester County 2020minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCertificate program consortium for Chester County. Sponsors three PMPEI courses annually and provides special award ceremonies to acknowledge participants who earn certificates.
• Lycoming County Planning CommissionminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCertificate program consortium for Lycoming County. Sponsors three PMPEI courses annually. Participants completing three courses within two years eligible for certificate.
• County Planning Departments (Various)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMultiple county planning departments serve as course hosts: Butler County, Chester County, Delaware County, Juniata County, Lackawanna County, Lehigh Valley Planning Commission, Lycoming County, Mifflin County, Montgomery County, Tri County Regional Planning Commission, and York County Planning Commission.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• International City/County Management Association (ICMA): ICMA provides training, certification, and professional development for local government managers and administrators across the U.S. It is the closest structural analog to PMPEI in the municipal training space, though focused on managers rather than planning/zoning officials specifically.
• Cornell Local Government Program: Cornell University's local government extension program provides training and education for municipal officials across New York State, mirroring PMPEI's university-extension model in a neighboring jurisdiction. It was a founding partner model for PMPEI via Penn State Cooperative Extension.
• Rutgers Center for Government Services: Rutgers CGS provides continuing education and certification programs for New Jersey municipal officials, including tax assessors, zoning officers, and planning board members. It is the closest state-level structural peer to PMPEI in a neighboring state, operating the same university-extension-style training model for municipal officials.

Others

• Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs (PSAB): PSAB is PMPEI's parent affiliate organization and a direct provider of municipal training (including the CBO certification). While not a direct competitor, it is a closely related ecosystem player providing complementary borough-official education and infrastructure.

Broad incumbents

• National Association of Counties (NACo): NACo is a national association providing training, certification, and resources for county officials across the U.S. It is a broader incumbent in the county-level municipal training space that PMPEI's county planning department partners also engage with.
• National League of Cities (NLC): NLC is a national association providing leadership training and resources for municipal elected officials and staff. It is a broader incumbent in the municipal training space that PMPEI's local officials also engage with for broader governance education.
• American Planning Association (APA): APA is the parent professional association for the U.S. planning field and a founding partner of PMPEI. It provides its own training, AICP certification, and continuing education for planners nationwide. APA is a broader incumbent whose PA Chapter directly supported PMPEI's creation and continues to subsidize its programming.

Emerging players

• Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA): GFOA provides training and certification (CPFO, CGFM) for government finance officers using a similar nonprofit, association-affiliated model. While focused on finance rather than planning, it shares PMPEI's structure of credit-approved professional development for municipal officials.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses1 record

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pmpei

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PMPEI