Nutter Asks BRT Board to Resign, Offers Legislative Reforms

Saying he needed to "restore trust" in the Board of Revision of Taxes, Mayor Nutter today called on the seven BRT board members to voluntarily resign their positions.

Nutter said he had personally spoken to board Chairwoman Charlesretta Meade about the request. "She listened very attentively," he said. But he added "I do not know at the moment what any one of the members may or may not do."

Nutter also announced that he is sending two pieces of legislation to City Council that would impact the BRT's finances. The first ordinance would strip BRT board members of their salaries. The second would move the BRT funding from the agency to the city Finance Director.

"The time for change has arrived," said Nutter, who said these steps were just the beginning of his moves to reform the BRT. He repeated that he plans to work with City Council to overhaul or dispand the agency.

An Inquirer series this week has raised questions about the management of the BRT and the accuracy of assessments. The agency last week provided the mayor with a new set of “actual value” property assessments, but it isn’t clear when these assessments will take effect.

The city currently uses a "fractional" system, assessing Philadelphia's 450,000 residential and 125,000 commercial properties at 32 percent of their value and then applying a tax rate. In the actual-value system, approved by the BRT in July, properties will be assessed at 100 percent of their value but taxed at a lower rate.

Nutter's five-year financial plan, designed to close a $1.4 billion deficit, calls for a two-year increase in the city's property-tax rate: a 19 percent increase on July 1 and a 14.5 percent increase in July 2010.

Posted by Catherine Lucey @ 10:48 AM Permalink | 1 comment

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Chris Brennan, a native Philadelphian and graduate of Temple University, joined the Daily News in 1999. He has written about SEPTA, the Philadelphia School District, the legalization of casino gambling, state government, the mayor, the governor, City Council and political campaigns.

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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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Catherine Lucey joined the Daily News in 2002 and has written about murderous drug gangs, political protesters and Harry Potter. After covering the 2007 mayoral election, she moved over to the City Hall bureau where she has been reporting on the Nutter administration.

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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.

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