Philly’s $6.8 billion budget by the numbers

Philadelphia City Council approved budget legislation Thursday, moving Mayor Cherelle Parker’s $6.82 billion spending plan and several priorities across the finish line. 

The big-ticket item in this year’s budget – one that drew out private and public negotiations – was Parker’s Housing Opportunities Made Easy initiative, a $2 billion plan focused on creating and preserving 30,000 units of housing, backed by a massive bond.

Here’s a breakdown of the $6.8 billion budget and some of the major figures: 

• $800 million bond for the H.O.M.E. initiative, which includes two $400 million bond offerings to support new and expanded housing programs

• 13,500 new units and 16,500 preserved units of housing are set to be funded through the housing initiative

• $112 million for the Turn the Key program to offer cheap city-owned land to developers willing to build homes for first-time, low-income homebuyers 

• $84 million for the basic systems repair program for homeowners in need of home repair grants

• $50.7 million for One Philly Mortgage, a program for first-time home buyers who might not otherwise qualify for conventional mortgages 

• $50 million for the Philly First Home program, a first-time homeowner program that helps cover down payments and closing costs for mortgages up to $250,000 

• 15-1 vote, with Councilmember Kendra Brooks, a Working Families Party member, voting against all the spending and taxation plans. She voted in favor of the housing plan, making that vote unanimous. 

• 3.74% wage tax, which will come down from 3.75% starting on July 1 for Philadelphia residents

• 3.43% wage tax for commuters, a decrease from 3.44%

• 3.578% real estate transfer tax, an increase from 3.278% 

• 5.71% business income tax, a decrease from 5.81%

• 0.141% tax on gross revenue, a decrease from 0.1415%

• $40 million in grants and technical assistance for small businesses as they navigate the loss of a tax break that allowed them to exclude their first $100,000 in revenue from taxation under the business income tax

• $67 million for a new Forensic Science Center

• $30 million to Vision Zero to improve road safety

• $550 million in reserves for labor contracts, following District Council 33 voting this week to authorize a strike for city workers they represent 
• $98 million in additional spending after City Council approved amendments to Parker’s original budget proposal. The measures include the creation of the Office of Prison Oversight, as well as an additional $23 million for “economic stimulus” and nearly $10 million for the Department of Planning and Development. Parker said stimulus funds are expected to go toward community organizations and programs that “the city of Philadelphia doesn’t have the capacity to do.”