The Philadelphia City Council held its first budget hearings yesterday and it was not a pleasant event for the mayor’s staff. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Patrick Kerkstra reports council appeared concerned over Mayor Michael Nutter’s choice of tax hikes.

The Nutter administration has proposed a temporary increase in the property and sales taxes, arguing that raising the wage tax or business taxes - even in the short term - would do long-term damage to the local economy.

But there is deep opposition on Council to property-tax hikes. Members indicated yesterday that they would prefer just about any revenue-raising alternative. They said the city should consider increasing the wage tax, or a longer-term hike in the sales tax, or perhaps a reworking of business taxes to target large, out-of-town firms that do business in the city.

The next council hearing on the budget is Tuesday, March 31when the focus will be on the city’s capital budget. The first chance the public will get to air their concerns is set for Wednesday, April 1 at session planned at Temple University’s Ritter Hall.

To download a copy of the council’s hearing schedule click here.