In 1926, the State Highway Patrol Training School was moved from the Hershey Inn to 19th and Swatara Streets, Harrisburg. The Highway Patrol at that time consisted of 46 Substations.

The State Police, in 1927, issued a regulation that prohibited any member from marrying without the Superintendent's approval. That same year saw the State Police establish a public radio station in Harrisburg, WBAK. In 1929, the Superintendent issued a General Order requiring all members of the Department to memorize the State Police Call of Honor.

The Highway Patrol merged with the State Police on June 29, 1937. The new Department was called the Pennsylvania Motor Police. In addition, the new Department administrator would be known as the Commissioner. The new Commissioner appointed himself as Colonel and his Deputy Commissioner as a Lieutenant Colonel. This represented the first time these ranks were used.

In February 1938, the Commissioner ordered 267 passenger cars painted white with black hoods and "Pennsylvania Motor Police" lettering on the doors. These cars became known to the public as "ghost cars."

In June 1939, legislation passed that added to the responsibility of the Pennsylvania Motor Police, the return of escaped convicts and parole violators. Other laws added the responsibility to the Motor Police for annual school bus inspection and inspection station supervision. During that same year, 150 men underwent training at Fort Indiantown Gap Military Reservation because the Hershey Training School was inadequate for the number of recruits.

The Commissioner created the Executive Service Section on February 5, 1942.

Act 52 of April 28, 1943, changed the name of the organization from the Pennsylvania Motor Police to the Pennsylvania State Police. The Department also became responsible for enforcing the Uniform Firearms Act that year.

In 1947, new laws authorized the State Police to assist the Department of Revenue in collecting the State's cigarette tax and enforcing the Fuel Use Tax. The Department of Revenue provided the State Police with cruiser type motor launches to patrol the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers and Lake Erie. Four men were assigned to each detail. A 1949 law authorized the State Police to inspect dry cleaning and dying plants.

The State Police dissolved the terms "Private First Class" and "Private Second Class" in favor of "Private" in 1953. That rank continued until 1956 when "Trooper" replaced the term. During the mid 1950s, the Retired State Police Association was formed.

On July 10, 1957, Act 360 provided for a mandatory retirement at 60 years of age, exclusive of the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner.

Chrome badges were replaced by gold badges in a leather case in 1959. Washable summer shirts were issued. Straw campaign hats were introduced for summer wear. New officers' caps with a gold braid and the "scrambled eggs" were issued. New black and gold patches were also issued.

A new State Police Academy in Hershey opened on March 2, 1960. The Academy was officially dedicated on June 13, 1960. The Academy in Hershey is still in operation.

On October 1, 1963, married men were permitted to apply for the State Police. On October 5, 1967, a new law (Act 140) eliminated the two-year enlistment process and provided for one enlistment until discharged or retired. That same year saw the establishment of an 18-month probationary period for Cadets and Troopers.

In October 1, 1971, the first female applicant was accepted as a Cadet in the Pennsylvania State Police. The Academy class containing the first female Troopers graduated on July 7, 1972.

The State Police received responsibility for administering the statewide Uniform Crime Report on July 1, 1973. The following year the State Police received a new radio communications system.

In compliance with the Civil Rights Act of 1969, a Consent Decree was entered into by the Department in 1974, with regard to hiring practices and promotional procedures. That same year saw the State Police Rodeo discontinued. The Rodeo had been a public relations aspect of the Department since 1934. In December of 1974, a new statewide radio system was formally dedicated.

A new State Police Department Headquarters building was dedicated on September 12, 1978. Department Headquarters no longer had to share its facilities with other State agencies.

Two UH-1B helicopters (Hueys), acquired through the Federal Military Surplus Property System from the Pennsylvania National Guard, were put into service in March 1979. Based at Harrisburg and Latrobe, the helicopters were to be used for disaster rescues and emergency medical transportation. Impetus for acquisition of the units was provided, in large part, by the loss of life in the 1977 Johnstown Flood.

The Department marked its 75th Anniversary with a memorial, honoring those persons killed in the line of duty, was dedicated at the Academy. The monument was paid for by contributions.

In June 1980, Department members were issued a new side arm, the .357 magnum Ruger, a stainless steel, four-inch barrel revolver. It was the first major change in State Police issued weaponry in its 75-year history.

The Pennsylvania State Police developed "Pennsylvania Crime Watch" in an effort to reduce and solve crime in December 1982. In July 1984, Pennsylvania was recognized by the National Crime Prevention Coalition as having the best State crime prevention program in the nation.

The Bureau of Professional Responsibility was created in 1985 to enforce the high standards of conduct among all State Police officers and employees.

Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers was created in the Bureau of Community Services in 1986. Crime Stoppers utilizes the news media and citizens to locate criminals who are sought by police. Rewards are offered for information that helps police locate the criminals.

Citing the need for the State Police to employ expertly trained officers versed in the most modern concepts available to manage potentially lethal incidents, the State Police announced the formation of a Special Emergency Response Team (S.E.R.T.). The team has members who are trained in tactical and negotiation responses. The first S.E.R.T. Team was organized in Eastern Pennsylvania in December 1986. A second S.E.R.T. Team was organized for Western Pennsylvania in June 1992.

The first group of Peer Contacts, part of the newly formed Member Assistance Program, completed their training in Hershey in September 1986. The training is designed to develop and refine the listening and helping skills of the peer contacts.

A new radio communication system was installed throughout the State replacing the Department's four-channel mobile radios with a system that has 32 separate channels. For the first time, patrol cars have the ability to communicate with local police jurisdictions as 11 channels were allocated to local and municipal police organizations.

The responsibility for enforcement of Pennsylvania's liquor laws was transferred to the Pennsylvania State Police in July 1987. A Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement was established as the Department welcomed 144 enforcement officers, 81 clerical personnel, and 2 attorneys who transferred from the Liquor Control Board.

On January 1, 1988, the Department unveiled the new uniform with a new shoulder patch and shirt. The patch, designed by a seven-member uniform committee, incorporates the keystone and the State's coat of arms encircled by a star burst. The star burst was part of the Department's first uniform designed by Major John C. Groome.

On January 8, 1988, the first three of fifteen Canine Drug Enforcement Teams completed their initial training period and became operational. The canines and their trainers respond to requests from State and local law enforcement agencies, schools, critical industries, and appropriate public sector agencies.