Heard in the Hall

Council acts to whack BRT pay

As anticipated, a bill was introduced on Mayor Nutter's behalf in City Council Thursday morning that would slash the pay of Board of Revision of Taxes members from about $70,000 a year to $18,000, which appears to be the minimum permissible by state law.

26 comments

Council acts to whack BRT pay

POSTED: Thursday, April 8, 2010, 11:25 AM

Patrick Kerkstra

The attack on the board's pay is one of several steps the administration has pursued since the BRT broke off a cooperative management agreement it struck with Mayor Nutter last fall.

No hearing has been scheduled on the bill, but Council President Anna Verna was confident that the bill could pass council. Democratic Majority Leader Marian Tasco introduced the bill at Verna's request, and she in turn offered the bill at Nutter's request. It would take at least a few weeks before the bill could become an ordinance.

It is possible that the bill would be set aside, however, if the BRT is convinced to renew the agreement, which had an initial term of only six months. U.S. Rep. Bob Brady has made inquiries into the impasse, but it is not clear that he is actively brokering negotiations between the agency and the Nutter administration.

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26 comments

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Comments (26)

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:48 AM, 04/08/2010

It'll never happen.

— JStocker

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0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:01 PM, 04/08/2010

they might be able to keep thier pay, provided they give up all thier power and authority, so that they would be legally prohibited from doing thier job. THE ONLY WAY THEY CAN KEEP THIER PAY IS IF THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO DO ANY WORK. Holy $hit this is awesome.

— Mackey Dingo

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:01 PM, 04/08/2010

No "negotiations". End the BRT NOW! Then abolish the Philadelphia Parking Authority.

— feudi

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0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:16 PM, 04/08/2010

I'm actually surprised that only Bob Brady has stepped in. BRT board members are patronage positions, so these people are well connected to get these high paying do nothing positions. It won't be long before more people, who have an interest in keeping this system in place, also try and get involved.

— barlowjames

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:21 PM, 04/08/2010

If there were EVER a Council bill that needs to be passed, this is IT.

— tonyS

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:37 PM, 04/08/2010

This is all a delay tactic. Give some weeks for the dust to setle on this mater, and all will go back to its ugly self. Too much backroom politics involved.

— DonQ

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:43 PM, 04/08/2010

Pass the pay reductions whether they give in or not. $18k for a part time job is still a sweet deal. If they don't like it, they can quit! As far as Brady's involvement, he's the head of the Philly democratic party. It makes sense for him to be involved.

— PhillyKev72

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0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 1:20 PM, 04/08/2010

Cphilly who could trust your "insights" given your Repub lenses. You can send a property to sheriff's sale but it takes money to process each property. It's a cost outside of any money that comes back from liens collected in the sale. Where in any of this do you get the idea that nutter is bound by anything brady might say or do? Oh, I forgot. You're in charge of smearing Dems with your smelly Repub brush. Any chance you're really a Schmidt in sheep's clothing?

— Pangloss

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 1:58 PM, 04/08/2010

The reason Brady is involved is because the future of the corrupt Phila Dem party is on the line here. Nobody got a BRT job without a Brady "okay". That means that how the BRT operated was at the direction of the Dem party. This dust up is nothing more than an interparty fight. I would bet that any member of the BRT has enough dirt on Brady and gang to make real trouble. They likely have dirt on Nutter too. This is getting very interesting.

— p.e.poole

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 2:13 PM, 04/08/2010

You're right, pangloss. Just let that $500 million disappear instead of taking an active approach, even if it does cost something to process each property. While you're at it, there are lots of lonely trees out there that need a good hug.

— stefek23