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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

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Don't balance the budget on the poor

  By Economic Development, Philadelphia, Progressive Politics, Social Justice

 The latest budget deal between Mayor Street and City Council leaders calls on Council to enact an ordinance delaying implementation of the Working Families Wage Tax Rebate for two years. This rebate was the last major proposal introduced by the late Councilman David Cohen. Continue reading

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Housing trust fund shenanigans

  By Housing, Philadelphia

 A Jannie Blackwell amendment was added to the Fiscal Year 2007 budget which had its first reading last Thursday. The amendment transfers all of the Housing Trust Fund dollars from the “Purchase of Services” (class 200) account to the “Personal Services” (class 100) account. The transfer means that the $9.8 million in the Housing Trust Fund will not be available for the creation or rehabilitation of affordable housing or for homelessness prevention. This amendment is, in multiples sense, an abuse of trust. Continue reading

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Bob Casey for Senate

  By Pennsylvania, US

The Case Against Casey in the Primary I have long thought that the mahoffs of the Democratic Party were making moral, strategic, and tactical mistakes in supporting Bob Casey for Senate. The moral issue is clear. I do not subscribe to the view that lifestyle and liberties issues like feminism, abortion, civil liberties, civil rights for African Americans, gay rights, stem cell research and gun control are distractions from the economic concerns that animated the New Deal coalition. While I would agree that our focus on these issues in the last thirty years has cost us politically, I would argue that the cost has been worth it. When historians look back at the last third of the twentieth century the will be impressed by the incredible strides we have made in making this country more tolerant and inclusive. And they will note that feminism has brought about the most incredible,… Continue reading

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A Republican utopia: the future of progressive politics, part 4

  By Health Care, Politics, Progressive Politics

I have, in parts two and three of this series, lambasted Governor Rendell and progressives like myself for, among other things, not defending a liberal / progressive vision of a good political community So it seems incumbent on me to present a vision for our politics. I am going to try to do that—in the next post in this series. I will do it in a very tentative way, as I really don’t have anything all that new to present or an especially good way of presenting it. Before I present a positive vision, I want to do something a little different. Sometimes, the best way to identify—and fight for—your own agenda is to look at what your opponents want to create and figure out why you oppose it. So, let’s begin by imagining the kind of country right-wing Republicans are in the process of creating right now. A day… Continue reading

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Improving transit

  By Philadelphia, Transportation

Two weeks ago, the front page of the Inquirer’s Sunday Currents section published a piece by Randall O’Toole entitled “SEPTA out of loop on transit needs.” A copy of the article is available on my website. The article starts out reasonably enough by pointing out that SEPTA is not serving suburban commuters very well. It continues by pointing out that because the Philadelphia suburbs have been developing in a sprawling low-density fashion, it will be difficult for public transit to meet the needs of those commuters. These are reasonable points that any serious transit planner and advocate should consider. But the piece goes downhill from here. Even if you don’t know the author and his history, the article quickly reveals his ideological biases. It soon becomes evident that it is an analysis of public transit and urban planning from the standpoint of someone for whom sprawling suburban development and the… Continue reading