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Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Nutter Talks Budget In Harrisburg With Philly Members

Our man in Harrisburg, John Baer, just caught up with Mayor Nutter, who spent the day in Harrisburg today on his quest for legislative authority to raise the city sales tax and extend payments into the city pension fund.

Nutter’s meetings included GOP state Rep. John Perzel as well as state Senators Shirley Kitchen, Anthony Hardy Williams and Vincent Hughes. Nutter said he met with members of the Philly delegation because it is important to "maintain a presence and supply information."

Nutter said that with the fiscal year beginning tomorrow, “this all becomes much more real, a little more intense and the consequences become more dire."

Nutter is looking for a temporary 1 cent increase to the city sales tax and some changes to how the city pays into the pension fund.
 

 

 

Posted by Catherine Lucey @ 4:42 PM  Permalink | 5 comments
Comments   
Posted 12:16 AM, 07/01/2009
CleanupPhilly
If it is only now becoming "more real, a little more intense, and the consequences more dire," then we have our answer, don't we? Nutter seems to have known all along what the answer will be. Plus, can he really be the city's full time lobbyist in H-burg, or won't he have to come back at some point and run the city? Can we talk about Plan B now in all seriousness? How about let's write about the need for the city to foreclose on properties that owe the $522 million in overdue property taxes, take the BRT out of the PSD budget, pass AVI with a new millage, and basically get it in gear? Can we forget about plastic freaking bags now and have a Council that can do the heavy lifting, or should Nutter ask Perzel to simply write some legislation to take over the assessments and collections functions of the city and put them in the hands of the state, like he did with the now-solvent PPA?
Posted 12:31 AM, 07/01/2009
CleanupPhilly
How about let's get the mayor to fix the collection of the $1 billion in forfeit bail owed the city, and get the RDA and city to sell the assets to buyers by listing properties held for more than a year for sale like any normal seller would, in a newspaper with a real estate agent? Not just a few properties, all of it. PHA has to sell what it can't use or fix, and pay property taxes. Let the market correct the blight that it can, which is likely most of it in Philly, where the real estate market is holding. Certainly it's time to collect overdue property taxes of over $1,500 owed or if it has been owed for more than two years. Why are there still properties where tens of thousands are owed on buildings many people want to buy but the city won't foreclose? There's no need to wait to put the actual value initiative in place and doing so will force Council to finally address the millage and not worry so much about losing state highway money with cell phone bans. 2009 was a high water mark of city political rot. City Council partied through the hurricane, and you won't be able to ever find their bodies.
Posted 01:32 AM, 07/01/2009
CleanupPhilly
Harrisburg has a duty to deny harmful sales tax hikes during a recession, especially since City Council has ignored doing one little thing to correct the city's budget crisis. Ditto pension payment and pension refis -- if City Council can't be bothered to end the pension de-funding DROP, they must not really need a pension delay or refi.
Posted 01:34 AM, 07/01/2009
CleanupPhilly
We do realize that California is going through the same budget crisis, but they are seriously considering ending their main welfare program, among other much more serious cuts and changes to the bloated CA state government budget?
Posted 01:55 AM, 07/01/2009
CleanupPhilly
Stop the tax hikes during a recession. It's not too late to make your voice heard about the PA income tax hike: http://www.stoppataxhike.com/
5 comments
About Chris Brennan and Catherine Lucey
PhillyClout
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.

Catherine Lucey joined the Daily News in 2002. Since then she has written about murderous drug gangs, political protesters and Harry Potter. For the past two years, she covered the 2007 mayoral election. Now that the battle is over, she has moved down to the City Hall bureau where she will report on the Nutter administration.

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Catherine Lucey
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