Nutter in Harrisburg Today, Hoping For Budget Action
Get inside the halls of Philadelphia power with PhillyClout: Inside City Hall, the blog by the Philadelphia Daily News' city hall reporters.
Nutter in Harrisburg Today, Hoping For Budget Action
Catherine Lucey
Mayor Nutter is spending the day in Harrisburg today, hoping that the state House of Representatives will vote on legislation that would provide budget relief for the city.
To avoid massive cuts and layoffs, Philly needs state lawmakers to approve legislation that would allow the city to raise the sales tax temporarily and to defer some pension payments, moves that are worth $700 million over five years.
But the legislation -- House Bill 1828 -- has stalled amid union protests over pension-reform amendments added to the bill by the state Senate. The state House delayed a vote last week, promising to revise the legislation. Members of the House have been trying to find a way to modify the pension amendments and still get Philly the needed relief. They are expected to vote this afternoon, but those plans could change.
Chris Brennan is covering the action out in Harrisburg and we'll keep you posted as things develop.
Because of the delays in Harrisburg, the city has started moving forward with the "Plan C" doomsday budget, which cuts 3,000 jobs and slashes services. Most of the cuts would take effect Oct. 2, if Harrisburg doesn't act. Today signs are going up at libraries and recreation centers notifying users that the facilities may be closed Oct. 2.
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
