Nutter vetoes $4 surcharge on Philly parking tickets

Philadelphia City Council will be greeted with a veto message from Mayor Michael Nutter when it returns to regular meetings Thursday.

Nutter has vetoed a bill that would have put a $4 surcharge on parking tickets. Half of that sum would have gone to enforcing taxi and limo regulations while $2 would have been dedicated to the city’s park system.

Even though the Philadelphia Parking Authority attorney says the plan is legal, Nutter says it isn’t.

“It’s illegal, the city solicitor is the attorney for the city of Philadelphia and that’s the opinion I am going to follow,” Nutter said. “The parking authority is entitled to their opinion.”

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Parks and recreation department head Michael DiBerardinis says the decision won’t hurt his department since his budget never counted on the extra money.

“We would have liked more money, as would all operating departments, but it is what it is,” he said Tuesday. “We’re operating right now on our approved budget that was approved in the spring by city council and enacted on July first.”

The mayor is not saying what he would do if City Council overrides his veto.

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