Nutter: City Budget Deficit "Grave & Worsening"
Mayor Nutter just announced that the deficit in the city's five-year financial plan, which stood at $1 billion in November, is now "grave and worsening."
Nutter: City Budget Deficit "Grave & Worsening"
Chris Brennan
Mayor Nutter just announced that the deficit in the city's five-year financial plan, which stood at $1 billion in November, is now "grave and worsening." After closing that gap, Nutter said, the city finds itself with a new $1 billion deficit. That is the result of what the mayor called the "global recession," which has reduced the amount of money the city takes in for real estate transfer taxes and wage taxes and has created losses in the city's pension fund.
Nutter spoke of balancing brag-worthy city services with a "unwavering commitment to sound fiscal practices, starting with living within our means." He also called on the city, including the four municipal unions to work together and accept the "shared pain" of the financial crisis.
“We cannot spend what we don’t have," Nutter said. "We cannot use one-time fiscal gimmicks. And we will not play games with our fiscal books.”
Nutter said all city agencies will now be called on to draw up budgets for the coming fiscal year with proposals to cut 10 percent, 20 percent and 30 percent. That will enable Nutter and his staff to travel around the city for "community budget workshops" where residents can set priorities for where the money gets spent.
Nutter also apologized for the speed his administration used to close the $1 billion gap in November and promised that he has heard the wide-spread city criticism that followed in a series of town hall meetings. "We could have and should have done better and you deserve more," Nutter said.
Responding to media questions, Nutter said he was not going to "pre-judge" whether the city will need to raise taxes and fees and lay off more employees. He repeatedly used the phrase: "Everything is on the table."
Nutter also has a warning for city residents who call for employee lay-offs on a grand scale. "Everyone wants quality service and no employees," he said. That’s absurd." And he pointed out that the city doesn't have the luxury of some critics with a "myopic" focus on single issues, which sounded like a pointed observation about critics who have decried attempts to close library branches.
Comments (61)
Comment removed.
belisarius: and how do you fund the 21K that the employee you speak of has already earned? it's a future expense and you're talking about eliminating future contributions to the fund. Kinda like saying that we'll keep paying social security to everyone who has ever contributed, but not for anyone just starting to work and no one has to pay social security tax.— Valley Twin- Comment removed.
- belisarius - What you are describing about the pensions is unlawful, they can change new employees only not current or retirees.— killjoy
- Comment removed.
- BFlint, you are an idiot. Do you really think consolidating firehouses is the answer? We've had 4 fire deaths so far this year-how is closing more companies and making the response times LONGER going to solve the budget problem? It's obvious you don't live here-or if you do, you probably are one of the mindless drones that work for city hall.— Genghis
- it's not as easy as the "collect the back taxes" and "cut pensions" people seem to think. CleanupPhilly: you always (in EVERY article on the city, no matter what the topic) talk abou the $522M owed according to Hallwatch. if you subtract properties owned by RDA, PHA, PHDC, SEPTA, and other non-taxable entities, how much is left? of that, how much is actually collectable? Want to sell the deadbeat properties at sheriff's sale? (a) who's going to staff the sheriff's sale after you cut staffing levels there and at the law office and (b) got any buyers in mind for a run down house in North PhillY? As far as the "pensions should be abolished" advocates: pensions are part of a contract with employees and retirees. Yeah, you can phase them out and put new employees on defined contribution plans, but people that are current retirees and employees have to be bought out. Where is that money going to come from?— Valley Twin
- Comment removed.
- Here's an idea to save money all over the city. Start using chain gangs to clean up the city. They are nothing but a burden on society anyway so why not make use of them and cancel those contracts.— killjoy
- Oh and Fire Goode Jr and his $90k a year girlfriend, I mean employee. Go EAGLES!— K_Ball
- When the electorate is dominated by ignorance and uneducated to the point that Philly has become... we still have 1. City workers and politicians given cars paid for by tax payers; 2. Bloated city govt that is over-staffed and over-compensated; 3. The wealthy moved out of Philly when their votes did not count due to corruption of voters by union bosses and sleazy Democrats. CUT SPENDING, CUT CITY WORKFORCE, ELIMINATE BENEFITS AND PERKS to POLITICIANS and CUT WAGE TAX IN HALF. That will spur a healthy economy and get taxpayers back into the city.— BFlint
- Maybe if the people in this city stopped walking into the election Booth to pull the democratic lever no matter who's on the ballot things could change in the city. I say if you voted to re-elect John Street we should increase your taxes to help us get out of this mess he created!— K_Ball
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- The Brothers and Sisters are running this city. I wonder how much they spend trying to take our gun rights. They hire people that don't work, they make decisions on how many votes it will get them. The schools suck, the Fire Dept once the best in the nation sucks, they don't plow small streets (need an ambulance tough), they don't pick up leaves but want You to plant trees. they don't pick up Christmas Trees, the police seem to arrive after the fact, they want to do away with the property tax rebate on new homes (the only reason builders invest here, crime is up, everybody has a gun except the honest citizen and I could go on. Well one more, they recieve all their tax income from Northeast and South Philly but spend it on North and West Philly— cwoulfe2000
- LJL: I understand your point - I should have been more specific, as the solution defies party labels. Part of the problem is that many in the GOP are closet liberals. My real point is that people need to stop voting for liberals. Liberal tax and spend policies cause the problem. Conservative freedom and tax cut policies solve it.— davesju93
- Property tax collection (which seems to be the most popular suggestion on here) is not that easy...we aren't in the middle ages, so there are no debtors' prisons, so people don;t face particularly harsh consequences for failing to pay- particularly people who have on their hands a house on which they owe more than its worth (which is not nearly as big a problem in Philadelphia as elsewhere), and who would be better off if the house was taken off their hands via foreclosure/bankruptcy, etc...moreover, properties that are repossessed and sold va sherif sales would do little to address the problem, because that would require new buyers available who could pay the taxes on them, and in case you haven't noticed, there is not exactly a glut of buyers in the real estate market. Since I relocated for work, I have paid close attention to Philadelphia (where my entire family lives) from afar, and must say that Nutter is doing exactly what we elected him to do... be upfront about the city's problems and provide realistic solutions. The city is in the same situation as a person in over his head with credit card debt- to dig himself out, he has to sacrifice, spend less, prioritize his costs and save more. It is unfortunate only that Michael Nutter was not in office when times were good- the city's situation would likely not be as dire.
- I thought things would get better with Mayor Nutter in office, but now all of a sudden, Philly has a BIG problem. Why did they wait til almost the end of the year or beginning of the new year that they are now saying we have a bigger problem? We always had a problem in the city of Philadelphia, but how does Mayor Nutter give some of his staff a raise and at the time he said we have a problem and now he saying we have a BIGGER problem. Take those raises back and help the city. These people in City Hall are already making more money for the little bit of job they do.— Tom5576
- REDUCE BY 50% OR MORE THE PENSION COST GOING FORWARD. OR BETTER YET STOP THE PENSION PLAN AND CREATE A 401 WITH HAVE THE BENEFITS GOING FORWARD. IF WE ARE NOT LOOKING AT THIS ISSUE, WE WILL NOT SOLVE THE BUDGET PROBLEM. IN ADDITION ABOLISH THE DROP PROGRAM. ASK THE ELECTED OFFICIALS THAT CLAWED ON BOARD TO REMOVE THEMSELVES FROM THE BENEFITS. HARASS THE ELECTED OFFICIALS EVERYDAY ABOUT THE DROP PROGRAM.— MCKAEK
- Yea Raise taxes. Make the people who actually pay taxes fund the services of those who don't. The Fire cuts were all in areas of which ay taxes while other areas were saved. Cut from all areas of the city, not just the tax paying areas.— jn3
- Comment removed.
- relaxnguy....ease up on that red bull dude.— TrblyVexed
- BFlint why don't you pay more taxes or have your benefits reduced? Why go after the workers when, we have uncollected taxes? How much do the Eagales, Flyers, Phillies, and Sixers owe? What abou this stupid tax abatement?— vicman
- Street got two terms for the same reason Nutter got elected. This city is a one-party town - if you aren't a Democrat, don't bother running for office. And as long as it stays that way, NOTHING will change.— SpruceMoose
- Move to the Suburbs!— relaxnguy
- ruddjb is totally on point. When it comes to Philadelphia, our folks are quick to attack when things are bad. No one has accepted the fact that we're in a financial crisis, ACROSS THE COUNTRY. It's like, "Ok fine, we're in a bad situation, but don't you touch ANYTHING that effects my personal life in any way!" EVERY SINGLE PERSON is going to have to accept that things will be cut. We will ALL have to feel the hurt. Stop attacking, and use that energy to help the Mayor move forward.— DLTPhilly
- Here is a thought... Why don't some of you lazy people work with Mayor Nutter and stop crying about the pool and library closings. I guess it is a lot to ask for people to walk a few extra blocks or maybe use SEPTA to get there. I don't know of many places with pools and libraries everywhere you look. Maybe he should just raise taxes so eveyone can have what they want. Then maybe we'll see how long people want those pools, libraries, and firehouses.— pat28
- Move to the Suburbs!— relaxnguy
- Does he really think the unions are going to step up? Please....Maybe Fumo could shake down some more comapanies to come up with the money.— TrblyVexed
- Comment removed.
- the deficit is doubled in 2 weeks??? The city services are not that great as it is now, how can you cut anymore. I just moved out of the city due to crime and now i am selling it, not renting it. Why pay this city anymore $ to take away from the hard working joe! Bad enough we still have to pay wage taxes, which will increase to cover up the issues that have been covered up for so long. shame on you NUTTER!— relaxnguy
- I'm thankful to our Mayor for making the hard choices in this difficult time. I feel confident in our City's future with his leadership. Also, like he said, "Everyone wants quality service and no employees, that’s absurd."— EAvila
- The city services suck as it is. I cannot believe thaT DEFICIT CAN DOUBLE in amatter of 2 weeks. I hope my house sells so i can stop paying taxes into the hands of the corrupt. Bad enough I have to pay wage taxes....which will probably go up! Shame on NUTTER!— relaxnguy
- The city services suck as it is. I cannot believe thaT DEFICIT CAN DOUBLE in amatter of 2 weeks. I hope my house sells so i can stop paying taxes into the hands of the corrupt. Bad enough I have to pay wage taxes....which will probably go up! Shame on NUTTER!— relaxnguy
- the city servcies are null to south phila. I pray my house sells quick so i can avoid dumping anymore cash into this city. Bad enough i have to pay wage taxes....which wil probably go up since the deficit was just doubled. Shame on you NUTTER!— relaxnguy
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- The common denominator here is that all Philly mayors for a very long time have been liberal democrats. The solution, while painful, is clear: stop electing Democrats, elect fiscally sound Republicans (or Democrats too if there are any who are fiscally responsible), and restore fiscal sanity to the city by cutting tax rates and removing wasteful spending. If the city electorate cannot do this, then it needs to be quiet and accept the consequences.— davesju93
- Comment removed.
- i know the show has been on for a while but i never saw it before has anyone seen Parking Wars about the PPA? If this does not scare any reasonable person from evey coming to Philly then all the murders will. why on earth would they allow them to tape the scum bag PPA. I could not believe the joy they got from giving people parking tickets. what great marketing program to increase tourism by showing them the very ugly side of philly. no wonder the deficit went from 1 bill to 2 bill in weeks. maybe if they write more tickets they can close it. After watching that show I can not understand why any sane reasonable person would ever visit philly.— give me liberty or death
- i know the show has been on for a while but i never saw it before has anyone seen Parking Wars about the PPA? If this does not scare any reasonable person from evey coming to Philly then all the murders will. why on earth would they allow them to tape the scum bag PPA. I could not believe the joy they got from giving people parking tickets. what great marketing program to increase tourism by showing them the very ugly side of philly. no wonder the deficit went from 1 bill to 2 bill in weeks. maybe if they write more tickets they can close it. After watching that show I can not understand why any sane reasonable person would ever visit philly.— give me liberty or death
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- "That will enable Nutter and his staff to travel around the city for "community budget workshops" where residents can set priorities for where the money gets spent." ------ And here I thought Nutter had learned from his last budget tour. He had previously said that there is an advocate for every service the city provides.. indicating that there is no way to make everyone happy. However these "workshops" appear to have that goal in mind, even though it is impossible.— Politburo
- Comment removed.
- Comment removed.
- Wow, Sad ... Maybe it is time to layoff some workers.— mijou6
- We can eliminate 35% of the city workers and NO SERVICES would be affected. The city must STOP SPENDING, ELIMINATE WASTEFUL programs, reduce benefits to city workers and retirees, consolidate fire houses, privatize trash/garbage/recycling and reduce the tax burden on the taxpayers. All can be done.— BFlint
SpeakPhilly and anon are 100% correct!— Earl J- Comment removed.
- Why must services always be slashed the deepest? Residence #s may have deminished 25% since 1960 but city govt has tripled or, in the case of city hall, grown more than 900% since 1960. Why isn't city hall, city council & the DAs office trimming the fat they've accumulated in the past 48 years? Why hasn't the city been redistricted to better reflect the lessening population which would result in fewer members of council & a considerable reduction in staff? Why hasn't the tax abatement been suspended until the fiscal crisis is resolved? Why aren't the hands of tax cheaters being held to the flame to collect the monies due? These are just a few "off the top of my head" suggestions. I'm sure folks out there wiser than I can add even more that are even better. The bottom line is that Philadelphia's population will continue to wane proportional to the reduction in services and the city will be hard pressed to attract anyone to relocate here, a city that is quickly becoming one that no longer cares to provide fundamental services to those who work, live & pay taxes here.— Jayel4
- Hi, I'm from Philadelphia. I'm known for electing a mayor, heralding his arrival, and then giving him less than a year to fix 40 years of corruption. I also wanted to fire our football coach 6 weeks ago even though he got us within 1 game of the Super Bowl 5 out of the last 10 years. I'm sure when our mayor and football coach are doing better I will change my tune, because I'm from Philadelphia, I'm a fairweather friend.— ruddjb
- Comment removed.
- Interesting. Well, i guess I better stop ducking my red light traffic violation that I owe. I can't beleive it was $100 and it is now $175. The city needs it money - gotta start somewhere.— The Drummer
- The city is facing a serious budget deficit. (Like most other cities.) It should seriously determine exactly how much it owes and look for financing.— david wayne
- Comment removed.
- HOW does the City find itself with DOUBLE the gap in just two weeks? HOW?— anon
I know how they can save $90,000
1
Popular Posts
About this blog
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. E-mail tips to brennac@phillynews.com
Follow Chris on Twitter
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
Follow Dave on Twitter.
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
Follow Jan on Twitter
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
Follow Sean on Twitter
Follow Chris on Twitter
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
Follow Dave on Twitter.
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
Follow Jan on Twitter
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
Follow Sean on Twitter
Search this blog:
Blog Roll
Classifieds:
Site Services:
Partners: