Repeal of the Cohen Wage Tax Rebate

By MB -
From our friends at the Fair Share Coalition
On Thursday, June 14, at Noon, in Room 400, City Hall, City Council's Committee of the Whole will vote on Bill 120174, the repeal of the Cohen wage tax rebate law. 
Since 2004, Philadelphia has had wage tax relief for low and moderate income workers, similar to the federal Earned Income Tax Credit and state Tax Back/Tax Forgiveness programs. But, the start date of the law has continuously been postponed, so that it is not scheduled to begin until 2016.

Under the law, for example, a two-parent, two-child family with a household income up to $34,250 would be eligible to receive some of their wage taxes back. So would a one-parent, three-child family with an income up to $37,250. The law, championed by the late Councilman David Cohen, is the first and still only progressive wage tax legislation ever passed in Philadelphia.
If you support the tax credit, you can do the following:

  • call your District Councilperson and all At-Large Councilpeople today and urge them to Vote No this Thursday, June 14, on Bill 120174. You can find their phone numbers here: http://www.phila.gov/citycouncil/CouncilMembers.html.5 City Council members have so far stated they will oppose the repeal. 9 votes are needed to STOP the repeal.
  • On Thursday, June 14, at Noon, come to City Council, Room 400, City Hall, and demand that City Council NOT REPEAL wage tax relief for lower-income Philadelphians. Your presence is critical to stopping this attack on working families in Philadelphia.
  • If the repeal bill is voted out of Committee this Thursday, June 14, it will be up for final passage in City Council on Thursday, June 21, at 10 AM. Your calls to City Council members would then continue to be needed through Wednesday, June 20 and your presence in City Council on Thursday, June 21 at 10 AM would be crucial to defeating this tax increase targeted to working class Philadelphians.

For more information, contact Sherrie Cohen, of the Fair Share Coalition, at 215-620-3396 or email sherriecohen@comcast.net.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PathWays PA E-Newsletter: August 6, 2012

By -
Image
Federal Policy Updates  CONGRESS IN AGREEMENT TO WORK ON A 6-MONTH CONTINUING RESOLUTION Last week House and Senate leaders announced that a deal has been reached to pass a 6-month continuing resolution to fund the federal government through next spring. Details of the agreement have not yet been made public, but the continuing resolution will reportedly fund federal agencies at current spending levels. With both chambers of Congress on summer recess, a vote on the agreement will likely be held in September, before the end of the fiscal year. If this agreement is enacted it will ensure that the government will not be shutdown at the end of September when the current spending plan ends. HELP MOVE THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT FORWARD The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) needs to be reauthorized to ensure the continuation of vital, life-saving programs and laws. It was the first piece of American legislation that recognized the pervasive nature of domestic violence,
Read more

Mini-Budget Update-Supporting the American Community Survey

By MB -
Image
(via The Census Project ) Next Tuesday, June 19 is an important date to mark on your calendar. The Congressional Joint Economic Committee is holding a public hearing on the economic impact of eliminating the American Community Survey (ACS) at 2:30 p.m., in Room 210 of the Canon House Office Building. Witnesses that will be speaking in opposition to the move to eliminate the ACS are Vincent Barabba, former director of the Census Bureau in two GOP administrations and Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Association of General Contractors and also representing the National Association of Business Economists. It is very important that we pack the congressional hearing room! If you cannot come, please urge your colleages to come. If you represent a non-DC organization contact your friends in Washington and urge them to attend. Also on Tuesday of next week some of our congressional supporters will be holding a noon press conference in the so-called House Triangle right outside the Cap
Read more

Overlooked and Undercounted: Struggling to Make Ends Meet in Pennsylvania

By -
Image
Census data tells us that 13% of Pennsylvania households live in poverty. In reality, even more households don’t have the income they need to reach self-sufficiency. One in four Pennsylvania households – over 846,000 – lack enough income to cover just the necessities. Since 1997, PathWays PA has worked with Dr. Diana Pearce and the University of Washington to calculate  The Self-Sufficiency Standard for Pennsylvania . Over the last 23 years,  The Self-Sufficiency Standard of Pennsylvania  has documented the continuing increase in the real cost of living, illuminating the economic crunch experienced by so many families today. Since 2010, PathWays PA and the University of Washington have also issued three versions of the  Overlooked and Undercounted  report, which looks at the number of households living above and below self-sufficiency. You can now use the interactive materials below to find out what it takes to be self-sufficient in your county. Click here  to read the 2020 O
Read more