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From YouTube: Mayor Kenney’s Revised FY21 Budget Address
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A
Hello
for
nearly
30
years,
I've
had
the
honor
of
serving
the
residents
of
Philadelphia
first
as
an
at-large
member,
City
Council,
and
then
for
the
past
four
and
a
half
years
as
mayor.
My
years
in
government
have
often
been
challenging
yet
they've
always
been
rewarding,
but
I
can
say
with
certainty
that
I
am
never
faced
as
difficult.
In
fact,
as
painful
the
period
is
the
one
in
which
we
find
ourselves.
Today,
less
than
two
months
ago,
I
submitted
a
budget
and
five-year
plan
to
City
Council.
A
That
budget
was
ambitious,
increasing
funding
for
the
school
district,
a
new
scholarship
program
for
Community
College
of
Philadelphia,
expanded
street
sweeping
and
paving,
and
much
more.
At
the
same
time,
that
budget
was
fiscally
prudent,
with
no
tax
increases
and
with
funds
set
aside
to
prepare
for
a
possible
economic
downturn.
But,
as
you
all
know,
the
ink
was
barely
dry
on
the
spending
plan
when
the
impact
of
kovat
19
hit
the
city,
the
nation
and
the
world,
and
now,
with
the
impact
of
the
virus,
requiring
a
stay
at
home,
odor
and
the
closing
of
non-essential
businesses.
A
We
face
an
economic
downturn
that
will
equal
and
probably
exceed
the
worst
of
the
Great
Recession
of
2008,
so
even
as
our
operational
departments
rushed
to
respond
to
the
virus,
I
directed
our
finance
and
budget
directors
to
start
the
budget
process
all
over
again,
they
developed
a
new
plan
that
addresses
the
unfortunate
economic
reality
we
now
face.
This
reality
includes
a
dramatic
decline
in
tax
collections
from
the
shutdown
of
business
activity
and
the
resulting
drop
in
wages.
A
At
this
time,
there's
no
guarantee
from
the
federal
government
that
any
money
appropriated
by
Congress
will
be
allowed
to
replace
lost
revenue.
From
this
crisis,
we
face
a
slowing
of
real
estate
activity
and
new
businesses,
as
well
as
an
erosion
in
the
ability
of
existing
businesses
and
many
individuals
to
pay
their
taxes.
All
of
this
will
come
as
fixed
costs
like
health
care
and
pension
expenses,
increase
and
demand
for
city
services
grows,
and
those
in
turn
will
cause
further
stress
on
our
budget.
A
The
result
of
all
this
is
that
we
are
now
facing
a
deficit
of
649
million
dollars
in
the
coming
fiscal
year.
You
got
it
649.
By
contrast,
the
city
projected
a
108
million
dollar
deficit
and
thousand
nine
after
the
recession
hit.
Our
current
revenue
loss
is
five
times
that
said
this
many
times
we
are
legally
prohibited
from
carrying
a
deficit
as
they
do
in
Washington.
A
We
must
make
difficult
decisions
to
close
this
huge
gap
and
because
of
the
legal
requirements
of
our
budget
cycle,
we
must
make
those
decisions
now
so
today,
I
sent
City
Council
a
budget,
the
pear
city
services,
down
to
the
most
essential,
imposes
layoffs
on
hundreds
of
workers
and
reduces
or
eliminates
some
programs
that
are
simply
no
longer
affordable.
This
is
not
what
I
want
for
our
residents
and
I
understand.
If
this
leaves
many
of
you
angry
frankly,
I'm
angry
and
disappointed
too.
But
after
that
anger
fades,
we
must
remember
exactly
what
we
are
dealing
with.
A
What
we
have
is
both
a
global
pandemic
and
an
economic
catastrophe.
We
must
address
both
with
bold
decisions
so
that
this
government
operates
within
its
means.
At
the
same
time,
we
must
continue
addressing
other
challenges
like
gun,
violence,
poverty
and
the
opioid
epidemic,
and
we
must
transform
our
priorities
to
best
meet
the
needs
of
philadelphians,
particularly
our
most
vulnerable
residents.
Under
this
new
reality,
we
hope
that
by
focusing
on
core
services
and
maintaining
fiscal
stability,
we
will
be
able
to
rebound
as
quickly
as
possible.
I
want
everyone
to
understand
how
these
decisions
were
made.
A
We
didn't
just
blindly
chop
away
at
programs
and
services
or
tell
departments
they
must
take
the
same
level
of
cuts.
We
did
this
in
a
thoughtful,
deliberative
and
collaborative
way.
We
created
this
spending
plan
by
setting
clear
priorities.
We
will
keep
all
Philadelphians
safe,
healthy
and
educated,
while
maintaining
core
principle
services
that
our
residents
rely
on
daily.
Our
priorities
have
been
guided
by
three
principles.
First
is
learning
from
our
experiences
in
the
Great
Recession.
A
One
such
lesson
was
that
funding
cuts
for
essential
services,
like
Public
Safety,
take
years
to
recover
from
another
lesson
learned,
was
that
Philadelphians
cared
deeply
about
their
neighborhood
facilities.
The
second
guiding
principle
is
ensuring
that
these
decisions
were
made
through
a
lens
of
racial
equity.
We
needed
to
intentionally
limit
the
impact
of
service
delays
or
cuts
on
people
of
color,
who
are
disproportionately
impacted
by
the
virus
and
already
suffering
from
decades
of
systemic
inequality.
The
third
principle
is
a
commitment
to
leverage
federal
state
and
philanthropic
resources.
A
We
intend
to
reduce
our
own
spending
by
partnering
with
others
in
order
to
help
fund
or
deliver
services
with
those
clear
priorities
and
guiding
principles.
We
sat
down
over
the
course
of
the
last
few
weeks
and
made
some
truly
painful
decisions
on
what
to
include
and
exclude
from
the
spending
plan.
The
budget
we
have
sent
the
City
Council
proposes
general
fund
spending
to
be
four
point:
nine
billion,
which
is
a
three
hundred
and
forty-one
million
dollar,
decrease
over
the
original
five
point:
two
billion
dollar
budget
for
our
substantial
kovat
19
response
costs.
A
This
budget
factors
in
federal
reimbursements
that
the
city
has
a
reasonable
expectation
of
receiving
to
maximize
revenues.
We
will
delay
scheduled
reductions
in
the
business
and
resident
wage
tax
rates
until
fiscal
year,
2024
that
will
save
almost
20
million
dollars
in
fiscal
year.
Twenty
one
and
the
minimize
tax
delinquency
will
be
ramping
up
our
outreach
to
taxpayers
and
offering
affordable
payment
schedules
for
those
who
are
struggling.
I
wish
those
actions
alone
would
get
us
to
a
balanced
budget,
but
they
don't.
A
We
still
need
to
cut
services,
generate
efficiencies
and
expand
revenue
sources
before
spelling
those
out.
I
first
want
to
point
out
what
services
are
not
facing
significant
impacts.
There
will
be
no
police
or
fire
layoffs.
There
will
be
no
reduction
in
emergency
medical
services.
All
fire
stations
will
remain
open.
All
health
centers
will
remain
open.
All
recreation
centers
will
remain
open
and
all
libraries
will
remain
open.
Phl,
pre-k
and
Community
Schools
will
be
maintained
at
current
funding
levels
using
local
and
federal
funding.
A
We
will
prioritize
keeping
philadelphians
in
their
home
by
focusing
on
basic
system
repairs,
preventing
mortgage
foreclosure
and
support
for
renters
and
weekly
residential
trash
collection
and
single
stream.
Recycling
will
continue
with
some
adjustments
with
those
facilities
and
services
prioritize.
We
proposed
adjusting
our
spending
in
other
areas
by
adhering
to
the
principles
I
mentioned
earlier.
In
the
lean
times,
we
will
be
responsible
stewards
of
your
tax
dollars.
This
means
we
will
reduce
overtime
across
government,
including
for
police
and
fire
departments.
A
We
will
delay
and
reduce
our
plans
to
invest
in
vehicles,
technology
and
other
equipment,
things
that
help
our
government
run.
We
will
reduce
hours
and
programming
in
our
libraries
and
rec
centers.
We
will
reduce
our
support
for
special
events,
nonprofits
and
the
arts.
We
will
reduce
the
use
of
local
tax
dollars
for
economic
and
workforce
development
for
affordable
housing
and
homelessness
prevention
and
assistance.
This
is
possible
since
federal
funds
have
been
approved
to
support
those
areas,
including
directors
assistant
to
businesses,
individuals
and
unemployed
workers.
A
We
have
also
identified
a
few
ways
to
increase
revenues,
although
with
the
economy
almost
entirely
shut
down,
there
are
limited
options.
For
example,
we
propose
small
increases
to
certain
licenses
and
permits
and
an
increase
in
the
cost
of
commercial
traffic
government.
As
I
mentioned
earlier,
we
will
put
on
hold
our
plans
to
reduce
business
tax
rates
and
wage
tax
rates
for
Philadelphia
residents.
We
will
see
great
increases
for
the
non-resident
portion
of
the
wage
tax
and
for
the
parking
tax.
A
We
will
work
hard
and
creatively
to
find
efficiencies
and
cost
savings
across
the
government,
including
delivering
service
improvements
through
technology.
We
will
eliminate
the
1%
discount
for
paying
real
estate
taxes
earlier,
and
we
propose
increasing
the
rate
of
the
school
district
portion
of
the
real
estate
tax.
This
will
enable
the
district
to
avoid
draconian
cuts
that
we
know
will
set
our
kids
back
years
and
harm
the
future
prosperity
of
our
city.
Now
I
come
to
what
is
truly
the
most
painful
part
of
this
bare-bones
budget.
A
The
greatest
single
expense
for
the
city
is
employee
wages
and
benefits
to
reduce
labor
costs.
Within
the
executive
branch
we
have
as
a
first
step,
frozen
all
hiring
a
new
staff
except
in
positions,
critical
for
fighting,
kovat,
19
and
other
urgent
needs.
We
have
mandated
that
the
salaries
of
all
exempt
employees
earning
over
$35,000
be
cut
on
a
sliding
scale,
and
this
includes
my
own
salary
also,
but
to
reach
the
level
of
cost
reductions
that
are
now
necessary.
Even
that
is
not
enough.
There's
no
way
to
sugarcoat
this.
A
We
will
have
to
reduce
the
size
of
the
city
workforce
by
eliminating
job
and
only
filling
the
most
critical
vacancies.
We
will,
by
June
1st
begin
the
first
phase
of
stamp
reductions
in
the
executive
branch
by
eliminating
hundreds
of
positions
through
both
layoffs
and
not
filling
vacancies.
This
includes
many
seasonal,
temporary
and
part-time
positions
and
by
the
end
of
August
there
will
be
additional
layoffs.
A
Those
are
directly
impacted
by
this
workforce
reduction.
I
pledge
to
you
that
we
will
offer
resources
and
support
to
help
you
through
this
I
want
to
thank
the
local
elected
officials
and
leaders
of
the
city's
independent
offices
who
understood
the
enormity
of
the
fiscal
challenges
that
we
face
with
several
proposing
reductions
to
their
budgets.
At
this
time
we
don't
know
when
the
crisis
went,
but
I
do
know,
we
are
doing
everything
in
our
power
to
save
lives
and
restart
the
economy
safely.
By
making
the
tough
decisions.
A
Now
we
can
maintain
our
commitment
to
helping
all
philadelphians
reach
their
potential.
The
weeks
months
and
years
ahead
will
be
difficult
and
the
world
we
return
to
will
be
different.
Yet
I
know
that
the
spirit
in
grid
of
Philadelphia
will
help
us
rise
to
meet
this
momentous
now
challenge
and
together
we
will
build
a
healthier,
safer
and
stronger
City.
As
I
said
in
my
letter
to
Philadelphia's
last
month,
we
have
much
time
to
go
before
the
crisis
eases
before
we
reclaim
our
lives,
but
I
believe
that
this
budget
is
a
bowl
road
map.
A
To
get
to
that
point,
like
you,
I,
yearn
for
the
day
when
all
these
restrictions
our
thing
of
the
past,
when
the
threat
of
this
insidious
virus
is
gone.
When
we
get
to
that
day,
we
will
stop
and
remember
the
sacrifice,
the
loss
and
the
pain
of
this
time.
We
will
realize
that
the
silence
which
now
pervades
our
streets
was
not
by
any
means
a
sign
of
defeat.
Rather,
it
was
the
abundant
evidence
of
our
resilience.