Post a commentHas the City Solicitor written an opinion as to whether the "memo of understanding" itself is illegal? Maybe she should before the BRT has an open meeting. The embarrassment will continue if the BRT has an open meeting and then finds the agreement is illegal. According to state law, only City Council with voter approval can change the BRT. The BRT and the Mayor can't!
I knew the deal was to good to be true! Another back door deal out in the open, that need public approvial, thouht they could pull one over on us! SHAMEFULL...........
Given the truly anti-Democratic practices in the BRT, to fire itself and turn the duties over the mayor while reform occurs, but without satisfying the mechanism for public comment is and odd bone to stick in the Ink's craw. The BRT violates the Sunshine Act all the time. The City Controller, Butkovitz, violates the legal requirement to audit every city department every year with nary a meek press protest, even garnering an endorsement from one of the two local papers. Public hearings should be performed, but the result will be predictable -- blow up the BRT is the consensus. It's corrupt, patronage, outdated, and unable to give anything resembling normal public service. There are BRT employees on the Public School budget, sapping $4 million from Philly public schools that could be used now. Those employees are all at the polls, violating the civil service regs that they should rightly fall under. That is really egregious. But it's true that Philly has to figure out what the Sunshine Act says and means.
What Shelly Smith needs to investigate at my request is how the BRT will be allowed to not implement AVI in violation of the state law that requires all property tax assessments to be based on some objective criteria. That violates my pocket book, my direct need for the rule of law. Bill Green is trying to delay reforms using any means necessary, and Brett Mandel should sue the BRT for not implementing AVI to satisfy state law. Green is trying to preserve the machine, instead of fixing the basics. Shields needs to be savvy about this.
I agree with anti-tax. City Council only - has the authority to act
in this matter. Councilman Green told the Solicitor in City Council hearings that the document only had three signatures. Holding a hearing on this with input for all sounds like a circus conundrum. CleanupPhilly makes a request of the Solicitor - how? He or she hogs up the comment space, but has no human name for the request? Does he want to bring Brett back? He/she should request if the assessmwent move is a power grab, instead.
I agree with anti-tax. City Council only - has the authority to act
in this matter. Councilman Green told the Solicitor in City Council hearings that the document only had three signatures. Holding a hearing on this with input for all sounds like a circus conundrum. CleanupPhilly makes a request of the Solicitor - how? He or she hogs up the comment space, but has no human name for the request? Does he want to bring Brett back? He/she should request if the assessmwent move is a power grab, instead.
Green's just playing politics. His game is to pretend to reform, delay the entire process, this will garner favor with the Democratic machine, and the machine will back him in his race for mayor against Mr. Potato Head.
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