City Council unanimously passed Bill No. 200016 on February 27th, which would give city wage tax refunds to low-income workers in Philadelphia. Can you take a minute to contact Mayor Kenney and urge him to sign the bill?

You can email him at james.kenney@phila.gov
Or call him at (215) 686-2181
Or send a tweet to @PhillyMayor

Here’s a sample message for emails or phone calls:
Dear Mayor Kenney:  Please sign Bill No. 200016, which would give wage tax refunds to very low-income workers in Philadelphia. Research shows that for every dollar of tax credits given back to low income workers, $1.58 is returned to the local economy. These refunds are likely to be re-spent in our neighborhoods, supporting small businesses. This policy should be part of Philadelphia’s strategy to attack poverty and inequality.  Thank you!

And here’s a sample tweet:
.@PhillyMayor please sign Bill 200016 to give wage tax refunds to low-income workers. This is an equitable development policy that allows workers earning low wages to benefit from a growing city. Thank you! #EquitablePhilly

Background
PACDC testified in support of this bill, championed by Councilmember Allan Domb, that would put as much as $538.21 back into the pockets of a single parent with two kids earning up to $27,750.  You can see a breakdown of income limits and rebate amount by marital status and household size here.

Putting money back into the pockets of our lowest-income workers is exactly the kind of equitable development policy Philadelphia needs.  Low-wage workers will benefit from a growing city experiencing strong tax revenue collection, and those dollars are likely to be re-spent in our neighborhoods on necessities like food, clothing, transportation.  In fact, research shows that every $1 returned to low- income workers under a federal tax credit returned $1.58 to the local economy.

Bill No. 200016 passed City Council’s Committee on Finance unanimously on February 18th, and cleared final passage on February 27th by a vote of 16-0.  It was co-sponsored by Councilmembers Quiñones Sánchez, Green, Parker, Johnson, Gauthier, Jones, Squilla, Oh, Thomas, Gilmore Richardson and Bass, and has the support of Council President Clarke. A previous version of the bill was passed unanimously by City Council in December 2019, but was pocket-vetoed by Mayor Kenney.  PACDC is urging Mayor Kenney to sign this bill now that it has reached his desk.

We applaud Councilmember Domb, and all of the bill co-sponsors, for working to advance this bill again in 2020!