Ackerman Requests $75 to $110 million from City
Schools Superintendent Arlene Ackerman just made her formal funding request of City Council and Mayor Nutter -- $75 million to $110 million.
Ackerman Requests $75 to $110 million from City
Catherine Lucey
Schools Superintendent Arlene Ackerman just made her formal funding request of City Council and Mayor Nutter -- $75 million to $110 million.
Ackerman said those funds would restore full-day kindergarten, transportation services and lower class sizes. The school district -- which faces a $629 million funding shortfall in the coming fiscal year -- will be forced to make major cuts without additional funds.
It's not yet clear how the city would provide those funds. One option would be to raise property taxes to increase revenue. Another would be to shift more of the current property tax revenue to the schools, which would open up a hole in the city's general fund. But no definite funding options have been discussed at today's hearing.
Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell said that she wasn't sure what Council will do. She noted that in a private meeting with Council leaders and Ackerman, Mayor Nutter said he supported the district's request, but he didn't say how he'd like to provide the revenue.
Asked if she would support a tax increase to provide the funds, Blackwell said she couldn't say.
"At this point with numbers moving all around, I don' think everyone is prpared to make that kind of decision," she said.
The city is currently projected to provide $776 million in tax funding, as well as a $39 million grant to the district for the financial year starting July 1 – about 30 percent of the district’s $2.8 billion budget. Next year’s budget is far less than the $3.2 billion budget for the current year, which means major cuts to programs and staffing are planned.
LoL...the pathetically underperforming Philly SD is an abyss into which tax dollars go to die. I dont blame the teachers, I blame the parents, SD administration and society for letting the SD become nothing more than a surrogate "babysitter".— Citizenc92
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Another property tax increase? C'mon enough is enough....there needs to be a full investigation of the misuse of funds in the PSD. This is criminal. How does 55 million become 75 - 110 million? Someone needs to intervene on behalf of the taxpayers.- @SpeakPhilly.com - Someone has, in PA his name is Corbett and in NJ, his name is Christie.— Citizenc92
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- Thought it was only gonna be $50 - 55 million? Which still would've been too much. See give em' an inch & they'll take a mile. The answer should be NO!If these dopes in city hall approve any sort of tax increase for this, pull the other guys lever in November - don't care if their DEM, REP or IND. The PSD is just gonna have to cut back or do one h&ll of a fund raising campaign.— Kennedy
- not one more dime with over a 50% dropout rate and on average a 4th grade reading level upon graduation and with three decades of just throwing money at the problem what do we have for our money?
— XDRUM - Citizenc92 - Corbett didn't cut the funding. The cuts are from the one-time stimulus that the PSD failed to acknowledge was ONE-TIME. Instead Ackerman and the rest of the criminals funneled the money to their friends. Regardless as Philly has less and less taxpayers the problem is only going to get worse. It's time to have major cuts to welfare and then maybe then the lazy peeps living off the system will actually get a job.— ResponsibleAmerican
- So, for 25,000 per student, the SD is paying a million for every 40 students. That's scandalous. Where is that money going? that is obscene.— xkarivalis
- WTF.......raise property taxes AGAIN?
— The_Unknown-Poster - ^ I hear ya & even then they have to cheat to get the test scores up (see the Inqy's piece for last month) That's the thing, 3 Billion dollars & the schools are still violent WAR ZONES w/ 35% drop out rates.— Kennedy
- Great, maybe Nutter can raise taxes a third time on the payers for services we don't use, like the alternative and Renaissance schools, and heck as far as those who pay most of the wage, property and business taxes are concerned, the entire District.— bullrun
- I guess there is no back-up to support the request either that someone can review? I think there needs to be justification. I love Nutter supports the request, but has no idea how to provide the money. how can you support somethin you know you cannot providefor? that is a complete opposite thought process.— reddog44
- I consider the threat of reducing kindergarten to be the political ploy used to justify a tax increase -- right up there with closing rec centers. If City Council wishes to redirect current spending to help the school district, I am fine with that, but I do not want to see another tax increase for the SD on top of the real estate tax they just passed.— Mark in Mount Airy
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David Gambacorta spent a small eternity writing about cops, drug dealers and serial killers. Now he’s writing about power and politics – which sometimes reminds him of the old crime beat. He joined the Daily News in 2005. And yes, he knows you’re not quite sure how to pronounce his last name. E-mail tips to gambacd@phillynews.com
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Jan Ransom, a native New Yorker, joined the Daily News in 2010 after graduating from Howard University. She has since written about the difficulty of filing police complaints, tax deadbeats and life after violent home invasions. She joined the Daily News City Hall Bureau in 2011 and has plunged headfirst into reporting on administration budget battles and City Council shenanigans. E-mail tips to ransomj@phillynews.com
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Sean Collins Walsh is from Bucks County and went to Northwestern University. He joined the Daily News copy desk in 2012 and now covers the Nutter administration. Before that, he interned at papers including The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News and The Seattle Times. E-mail tips to walshSE@phillynews.com
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