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Tuesday, August 4, 2009
House gives preliminary nod to Philly tax, pension bill

The state House today gave preliminary approval to a bill to allow Philadelphia to increase its sales tax and defer pension payments, the first step toward easing the city's fiscal crisis.

But the legislation must still receive a final vote in the House and it was not clear when that will be.

The city asked Harrisburg for a bill that would include two elements key to the budget City Council approved last month: a one-cent increase in the city sales tax and a two-year delay in payments to the city pension fund. Mayor Nutter, who is in Harrisburg today meeting with lawmakers, also asked the General Assembly to approve structural changes to the fund.

It also was not clear when the state Senate would consider the bill, or if the majority Republicans in that chamber would support the measure. Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R., Delaware) said yesterday legislators and the governor must agree on the 2010 budget before the Senate will consider what he called "the Philadelphia bailout legislation."

 

Click here for Philly.com's politics page.

Posted by Amy Worden @ 3:30 PM  Permalink | 32 comments
Comments   
Comment removed.
Posted 04:09 PM, 08/04/2009
rhawnhurst
I hope these measures are denied...Philadelphia has not done anything substantial to par back its bloated local government...or collect money its due....read the comments on the philly.com pages and there is plenty we could do to raise revenue without increasing the sales tax. Wish some of the posters on this site were running Philadelphia instead of the hacks in there now. Now is the perfect time for change...real substantial change.
Posted 04:13 PM, 08/04/2009
DennisR
Amy, I need to correct you. Its not the first step to easing the city's fiscal crisis but its first step to help to delay the city's fiscal crisis. Without an adjoining plan to grow the revenues or cut costs we will be back here again and mybe in worst situation in a few years. its been said elephants never forget and politicians never learn from experiences.
Posted 04:21 PM, 08/04/2009
FMT
Rawnhurst, if the posters on this site were running the city...from their crybaby bunkers in the 'burbs...we'd be in deeper trouble. This tax hike sucks, but is better than the alternative and at least gives us some breathing room to deal with the other revenue-raising ideas. Just be happy you aren't in Chicago, with 10% sales tax on everything!
Posted 04:21 PM, 08/04/2009
amd804
Oh goody, I'll pay a higher sales tax so employees like Latrice Bryant can have their pays restored to ridiculously high amounts. I'm disgusted with the way this city operates anymore.
Comment removed.
Posted 04:27 PM, 08/04/2009
jersey girl
How about doing away with all overtime? That's the first thing my job did when the financial crisis hit.
Posted 04:36 PM, 08/04/2009
sdls1603
If Latrice Bryant was the only person Philadelphia taxpayer money went to we wouldn't be in a fiscal crisis. Why don't you go out on trash day and look at the guy breaking his back to haul away your refuse and tell him you don't need him because he's just part of a bloated government and doesn't deserve a "bailout." I, for one, don't want to live in a city where there are 1000 less cops, no rec centers, one library and bi-weekley trash pick-up. But if you aren't willing to kick in a penny on the dollar to keep that from happening, have fun dodging bullets and dysentery in the new Philadelphia.
Posted 04:47 PM, 08/04/2009
feudi
I respect and honor those city employees who work hard and actually earn their pay. I have no respect, NONE, for the hundreds of patronage workers who straggle into work by 10 AM and are out by 2 PM. I have no respect for city workers who don't pay their taxes or their utility bills. What makes taxpayers angry is getting ripped off by drones, incompetents, and arrogant pols like Fumo and the Pay for Play Gang.
Posted 04:57 PM, 08/04/2009
C.Jackal
Dear Amy -- its not a one cent increase in the tax -- its a one percent, from 7% to 8%. I know accuracy is not a core competency of the Inquirer, but this is a rather important issue.
Posted 04:59 PM, 08/04/2009
DonQ
Is that tax hike temporary? I mean, Does Nutter plan to depress Philadelphia's small businesses permanently? Make the sales tax higher, and people will cross the bridge to buy a soda.
Posted 05:19 PM, 08/04/2009
doo dah man
remember, there is no prison fence around the city. you and your money can leave whenever you want. it's the ultimate vote.
Posted 05:19 PM, 08/04/2009
longdistancerunner
I lot to occasionally shop in the city but if they raise their sales tax another one percent I will avoid the city like the plague. A two percent difference between buying an item in the burbs as opposed to the city is huge for me.
Posted 05:23 PM, 08/04/2009
rlc18940
If Nutter and City Council want more money to spend then they should raise the property tax rate which has remained stagnant and unchanged in over 20 years. It is unacceptable to have others pay for city services through an increased sales tax especially given all the non resident wage taxese the city gets. Raise the property tax rate or cut spending.
Posted 05:24 PM, 08/04/2009
anon
Bastids! This just shouldn't be allowed.
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About Commonwealth Confidential
Commonwealth Confidential gives you regularly updated coverage of the state legislature, the governor and the workings of the state bureaucracy. It is also the place to turn for news of this year's races for governor and U.S. Senate. It is written by correspondents in the Inquirer's Harrisburg bureau, based right in the statehouse, and by the newspaper's far-flung campaign reporters.

Mario F. Cattabiani (left) has covered state government and politics from Harrisburg since 1994, the last six years for the Inquirer. In July, he was ranked by PolitickerPa.com as No. 1 among the "Most Powerful Political Reporters" in Pennsylvania.

Angela Couloumbis (center) joined The Philadelphia Inquirer in 1998, and has covered government and politics in New Jersey, Philadelphia and throughout Pennsylvania, including Gov. Rendell’s 2006 race against former Pittsburgh Steeler Lynn Swann.

Amy Worden (right) joined the Inquirer in 2000 and has covered governors, gubernatorial races, U.S. Senate races and three presidential campaigns. When not covering politics she can be found filing dispatches from disaster scenes or digging into local stories of national import.

Thomas FitzgeraldThomas Fitzgerald joined The Philadelphia Inquirer in 2000, and has covered Harrisburg as well as city, state and national politics for the newspaper. He was a “boy on the bus” in the 2004 presidential campaign and during primary contests in 2000 and 1996.

Tom Infield Tom Infield, a long-time reporter and editor at The Inquirer, has covered politics from many corners of Pennsylvania. He grew up in Pittsburgh, previously worked in Mercer and Lancaster counties, and has lived in both Philadelphia and its suburbs. He has closely followed campaigns for governor and U.S. Senate, as well as Philadelphia mayoral races.

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