City Hall green lights Mayor Parker's $6.8B budget
Philadelphia legislators signed off Thursday on Mayor Cherelle Parker's $6.8 billion budget, including her centerpiece housing initiative.
Why it matters: Parker's plan makes big promises, including cuts to business and wage taxes, no tax increases for property owners, and more homes.
But it all comes with a big price tag, despite lingering questions about the potential loss of future federal funding.
By the numbers: Under the plan, overall spending will increase nearly 7.5% over last fiscal year. The new fiscal year starts July 1.
🏘️ Inside the plan: Legislators gave the green light to borrow $800 million for Parker's Housing Opportunities Made Easy initiative, which aims to build and preserve 30,000 housing units.
The initiative will fund a variety of new housing programs while expanding some existing ones.
Plus: The legislation allows the Parker admin to fast-track the sale of up to 1,000 parcels of city-owned land without legislative approval, which has bogged down some land sales.
💰Tax cuts: Workers in the city — both residents and non-residents — will see their wage taxes decline modestly over five years.
The intrigue: Businesses are the biggest winners. They'll see the city's business income and receipts tax (BIRT) slashed over 13 years.
BIRT's gross receipts portion will steadily decline until it's eliminated in 2039. Meanwhile, BIRT's net income portion will be cut by more than half by then.
The fine print: Due to legal challenges, the city is eliminating a BIRT tax break on the first $100,000 in gross receipts, which will hurt small businesses.
The big picture: Parker and her vision for the city appear to be winning over Philadelphians.
A Pew poll released this week found Parker enjoyed a 63% approval rating at the start of the year.
What else: City council approved legislation that will:
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