PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — City Council in the coming week will vote on a resolution to bring back the Tax Reform Commission, which released its last report more than 20 years ago.
Voters approved creating the Tax Reform Commission in 2002, and it did its work quickly. Within a year, it spent a half-million dollars producing eight key recommendations, none of which was fully realized.
They included eliminating the business privilege tax by 2014 and reducing the wage tax to 3.25% for residents and non-residents. A new tax assessment system would be simplified with safeguards against large, unexpected increases and a taxpayer’s advocate would represent property owners in assessment appeals.
All good ideas but still just ideas.
Still, Council President Kenyatta Johnson thinks it’s worth reviving.
“Are there any other alternative ways for us to raise funds to make sure we are growing our economy, but most importantly addressing poverty by producing jobs, recruiting businesses?” he said. “That’s the key way for us to erase the stigma of being the number one big city when it comes to reducing poverty.”