City Council makes a calculated move to win public support

Not to be outflanked by the “people’s budget” mayor, City Council President Anna Verna announced this afternoon that council will hold a few public forums of its own. In a statement released this afternoon, Verna went out of her way to signal that the public will have a role the council’s budget.

“Because citizens deserve to have their voices heard, we in Council have worked very hard to make the process transparent and inclusive as we possible could.”

The first neighborhood budget hearing is scheduled:

Wednesday, April 1from 5:00p.m.-8:00p.m. in Temple University’s Ritter Hall.

This hearing was requested by Councilmembers Darrell Clarke and Maria Quinoes-Sanchez.

Details on several other neighborhood budget hearings will be announced shortly, according to Verna’s statement.

I’ve never seen “civic engagement” used as a battering ram as council tries to earn the same “will of the people” merit badge that Mayor Michael Nutter says the basis for his proposed 2010 spending plan.

In addition to the neighborhood meetings, city council begins nearly 6 weeks of budget hearings in city hall. Each individual hearing will discuss a specific part of the budget such as the Youth Commission or Philadelphia Prisons.

Click Here for a list of council budget hearings.

In addition, budget hearing marathon, city council wants you to know that you’re invited to watch to see which of them passes out from exhaustion first. Here’s more from Verna’s statement:

“To allow for citizens to observe the process firsthand and to maximize public participation, the following steps have been initiated.
*All hearings held in City Hall will be televised live on the City’s municipal government access  station, Comcast Channel 64.

*Video and audio versions will also be streamed live via the City’s website. (Go to City Council’s homepage at www.phila.gov and click on “View live sessions of Council”; then choose video and audio or just audio)

*All hearings will be rebroadcast on Channel 64 at 8:00 p.m. on the day of the hearing.

*Several days, including a Saturday session, have been designated to received personal testimony from the public. (Not including neighborhood hearings.)

*Citizens can submit testimony in writing at any time throughout the process.  Testimony should be emailed to sharon.c.ortiz@phila.gov, who will distribute it to Councilmembers and ensure that it is included in the record.”

Oh, If you’re not aware, this is no ordinary budget cycle for Philadelphia. The stakes are high as both the mayor and the council are both trying to find just the right mix of spending cuts and tax hikes keep the masses from throwing library books through the windows of city hall. The projects that if current funding levels were maintained, and with lower tax revenues expected, the city would overspend $1 billion over the next five years. So, this is what the mayor and council are both trying avoid.