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Why and how we should make voting easier

  By Elections and Voting, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

Yesterday I joined a group of political activists who met with the leadership of the Committee of Seventy to urge the group to take the lead in pushing some new efforts to make it easier for people to vote. We hope a number of new initiatives will come out of our conversations, including greater efforts on the part of our city and state government and public and private businesses organizations like PGW, the Water Department, Comcast, and Verizon to inform citizens about when and how to register to vote and about when and where to vote. Continue reading

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Rally for the estate tax

  By Taxation

There will be a vote in the Senate on Thursday on the Estate Tax. As an excellent editorial in the Inquirer on Monday pointed out, ending the Estate Tax makes no sense. The Estate Tax only taxes a tiny proportion of people in this country. It takes a relatively small proportion of the estates of people until those estates get very large. It is an important source of federal revenue. And, one thing the Inquirer editorial did not point it, it is critical if we want to prevent a hereditary oligarchy—rule by the rich–from arising in the United States. (I know, sometimes it seems we have an oligarchy already. But a hereditary oligarchy would be worse.) Here is the plan, which I just got from Craig Kaufman and Jeff Garis of PA Action: Continue reading

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Sad day for the PA Constitution

  By Love and Sex, Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives voted yesterday in favor of a PA Constitutional Amendment that would not only ban gay marriage but could be interpreted to deny both gays and straights domestic partnership benefits. What do you say about this outrageous action? The legislators who voted for it know that they are, for the first time in our history, inserting a provision that discriminates against a group of people into our constitution. They know how ridiculous it is to say that people who want to the right to marry are a threat to the institution of marriage. They know gay and lesbian friends and family members who are appalled by what they are doing. They don’t care. They are pandering to their political base and hoping to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot that will drive up turnout among the intolerant minority. Talking won’t do it. We need to… Continue reading

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Hearing on the housing trust fund

  By Housing, Philadelphia

Council Hearings are being held today (Wednesday, June 7)) and tomorrow (Thursday, June 8 ) on three ordinances related to the Housing Trust Fund, which remains in danger. Here is some information on the hearing, the ordinances that will be considered, and my view of those ordinances. I urge you to contact your council members and all the at-large council members to express your views on these bill. You can find phone, fax and email contact information for Council members on my website. Or you can use the Hallwatch Faxbank Service to send a fax to all council members who represent you. Continue reading

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The "debate" over housing reorganization

  By Housing

 The “debate” over the reorganization of the city’s three agencies that deal with housing is showing Philadelphia politics at its worst. A struggle over housing agencies is taking place right now. Yet we know very little about the details of the plan the Mayor will propose. And thus there has been no serious discussion of the benefits and costs of that plan or alternatives to it. Councilwoman Blackwell has been fighting the plan but not by offering her own perspective on how our housing agencies should be organized. Instead she has been using the budget to hold the Housing Trust Fund and other housing dollars hostage. Continue reading

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Housing trust fund shenanigans, continued

  By Housing, Philadelphia

As I previously reported, the budget passed by Council a week and a half ago included an amendment, sponsored by Jannie Blackwell, that transferred Housing Trust Fund money from one line item to another, thereby blocking expenditures of Housing Trust Funds on the creation of affordable housing in the next Fiscal Year. Early last week, Councilman Darrell Clarke introduced a transfer amendment that would move the money back. After a meeting of the advisory committee on the Trust Fund, Councilwoman Blackwell promised to vote for the transfer amendment. And then new threats to the fund arose. Continue reading

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What we lost today and why

  By Philadelphia, Social Justice, Taxation

Today Council voted 11 to 4 to delay the Cohen Working Families Wage Tax Rebate for three years. It was supposed to start in 2010 and is no delayed until 2013. Since the program ramps up gradually, final implementation will be in 2018. Keynes said that, in the long run we are all dead. Certainly by the time we get to 2018, many of the working poor and middle class people alive today who could benefit from a reduction in their wage taxes will be dead. Whether the Tax Rebate program will ever go into effect is now an open question. Unless we build the political will and find the politicians to support the wage tax rebate, it is not unlikely that every there is a budget shortfall our politicians may well decide to turn to put off the wage tax rebate again. After the vote, some Council members suggested… Continue reading

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Against slots

  By Casinos, Economic Development, Health Care, Philadelphia

 I  was at the rally against Casino’s today and have to say I was impressed by how well it was organized and conducted. It was at the same spot where the first transit rally was held a few years ago. Not that long after the first transit rally we brought 4000 people from across the state. Given what I saw today, the anti-casino rally in Harrisburg will easily exceed 4000. This movement has been a long time coming. But as I will explain in this and some future posts, I am glad it is here. Continue reading

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A talk with Brett Mandel, part 1

  By Philadelphia, Taxation

Because of his effective proselytization on behalf of the job-killing business privilege tax—a name he invented—Brett Mandel of Philadelphia Forward is not the most well liked person in progressive circles. I myself have disagreed with him about the BPT, at least in part. (This is a subject for another time but, in brief, my view is that the BPT is an awful tax from a progressive point of view and should be eliminated. But we have to replace the revenues we get from the BPT with an alternative unless and until eliminating it–and taking other steps to revive the Philadelphia economy–brings in the revenues we need to provide essential city services.) But Brett is both a friend of mine and a progressive on practically all issues as well as being a impressive thinker and activist. He is also a Neighborhood Networks member and co-leader in our Center City group. Recently… Continue reading