PICA Chairman Katz Questions Nutter's Long-Range Budget
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Former mayoral candidate Sam Katz, now settled in to his new role as head of the Pennsylvania Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority, is already raising questions about Mayor Nutter's new long-range budget.
Katz has sent a letter to Mayor Nutter and Council President Anna Verna about Nutter's long-range budget, known as the five-year plan. Katz is concerned that the plan includes the planned rollback of last year's temporary 9.9 percent property tax hike, but doesn't explain why revenues beyond that remain at current levels.
"So I have asked them to address this aspect of the plan that would not address the reasonableness test."
Katz says PICA won't approve any five year plan that is not reasonable. Nutter's finance director last week told council that by the time the tax hike expires, property values will have been reassessed to reflect market changes of the past decade. That, he said, could result in a 20-percent increase in revenues.
Reported by Mike Dunn, KYW Newsradio
