Four Reasons Why Fans of Good Government Should Oppose PGW Sale
Originally published in Newsworks, November, 2014. Also published in PhillyLabor.Com and presented as testimony of Philadelphia City Council o November 14, 2014. A Those who support the principles of good government are up in arms because Philadelphia City Council decided not to hold hearings or vote on Mayor Nutter’s proposal to sell Philadelphia Gas Works. They have a point: We do need a broad discussion of the future of PGW in the city. Council President Darrell Clarke has called those hearings for this week. They give us an opportunity to evaluate the mayor’s proposal from the perspective of those same principles of good government. Seen in that light, rather than being a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to fix our long-term pension funding problem, the sale of PGW violates most of the principles of good government. Transparency One central principle, transparency, requires that, before a mayor or council acts on a proposal, we… Continue reading