You have to give it to Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell. Not only does he deny any wrong-doing in handing out no-bid contracts in Harrisburg, he defends himself by telling WHYY’s Marty Moss-Coane that his administration steered a contract to a bidder he preferred while he was Philadelphia’s mayor.
Here’s what he said on Radio Times:
When I [...]

A bill granting Philadelphia the ability to impose a temporary one-percent sales tax and defer its pension contributions passed the Pennsylvania Senate this afternoon by a 38 to 9 vote.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter issued this statement tonight.
The main goal of this legislation is to provide $700 million in financial recovery for Philadelphia through a temporary [...]

Laying the blame squarely on the the Pennsylvania Legislature, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter announced more budget cuts yesterday. The reason the city’s fiances are tied to the state is because Philadelphia is already operating in the new fiscal year and it was counting on state approval of a city sales tax hike. Nutter says every [...]

I am back from my vacation and from my week helping Radio Times out. The big story this week locally has got to be the racial discrimination allegations related to The Valley Club in Huntingdon Valley. This is just outside of Philadelphia.
Here’s what we know. 65 kids from a summer camp were properly registered as [...]

Next month, the State of Indiana will outlaw “sham retirements” in which a public employee will retire for a short period and then return to work. This practice allows the workers to begin collecting their monthly pension and get their full salary. Here’s an excerpt from The Times newspaper in Munster, Indiana.
A new state law, [...]

What did she say? That pretty much sums up local reaction to a comment Anna Verna made about why a really high sales tax in Philly could be a good thing.
“The surrounding counties would be the beneficiary of the sales tax (hike), because if you live in Philadelphia and have to buy a large item, [...]

The Philadelphia City Council approved Mayor Michael Nutter’s $3.8 billion spending plan for fiscal 2010 which begins July 1. The budget’s keeps intact much of the Mayor’s original budget with one exception - a five year sales tax hike. The budget process is not over though. The Pennsylvania Legislature and the Governor both have to [...]

It’s Our Money blogger Ben Waxman hosts an important discussion tonight on Philadelphia taxes. The forum will give you a better understanding how a proposed five-year sales tax increase in Philly will impact both retail sales and city revenues. The sales tax hike is part of the City’s proposed 2010 budget that aims to close [...]

Some of the best minds on local tax policy will gather next week to ponder whether Philadelphia can raise its sales tax rate without also triggering a steep decline in business activity. The timing of this discussion is - right on - because even though the Mayor and City Council have agreed on a budget [...]

The Mayor and City Council in Philadelphia hope that yesterday’s budget compromise will give them a “unified voice” as they seek state legislative approval for key components of the city spending plan.
State Approval Needed to:
Allow the City of Philadelphia raise its sales tax one penny for five years.
Allow the City to delay contributions into its [...]