Mayor Nutter has put forth his plan to fix Philadelphia's financial crisis. It includes some cuts, increases in property and sales taxes, and changes to the pension fund. City Council proposes increasing the wage tax. We discuss the possible choices for dealing with the city's deficit and the public's willingness to confront them. Our guests are JEFF SHIELDS, Staff Writer for the Philadelphia Inquirer and LARRY EICHEL, Project Director of the Philadelphia Research Initiative.
Audio Report: NPR's Radio Times
Please allow me to correct a previous statement. The city of Philadelphia's 5 year budget shortfall is not $1 billion as I had previously reported. It is actually $1.4 billion, as is reported in the audio discussion above.
The balance between tax revenues and government services is front and center. As expected the same individuals who loath personal taxes (property and wage taxes) are strong supporters of corporate taxes. (Who would have thought it so?)
I was happy to hear the store owner call in and make note that the sales taxes upon his store translates into behavioral changes by the public who is averse to paying higher sales taxes. When faced with paying the 7% sales tax for Philadelphia - they often go outside of the city so that they can get more for their money.
The pattern is clear. The brewing tax revolts are happening at the local level. The federal taxation issue is a related but lagging conflict. Most Americans are not within the 5% of high income earners that are targeted for soaking by the federal government. Since most of us receive our vital services of fire, police, education and street maintenance from the local government - the services from and taxes paid to these entities have a more prescient effect upon our daily lives.
Mark my words - there will be more "Tea Parties" around the nation and there will be little grounds to dismiss them as "racists".
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