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When city leaders proposed a $2.8 billion tax cut for businesses, faith-based activists pushed back — with a moral argument instead of an economic one.
Overview:
An interfaith social justice coalition, Philly POWER — the acronym stands for People Organizing for Economic and Environmental Rights — believes the city's push to cut taxes for businesses leaves less money for social needs and will make the city even more unaffordable for low-income people.
Like many big cities, Philadelphia is facing a housing affordability crisis. With property taxes rising, especially in Black and working-class neighborhoods, the basic life principle — work hard and earn a livable wage to pay for safe, affordable, quality housing — has not come to fruition for many Philadelphians.
But a group of clergy and activists believes the problem stems from moral failure, not simple economics. They point to a $2.8 billion tax cut that city leaders want to give to Philadelphia businesses as Exhibit A. And they are taking their argument to the public.
For an entire week, more than… churches in Philadelphia have held multiple, high-profile press conferences, urging city leaders to keep the Business Income and Receipts Tax (BIRT), one of the key sources of revenue being phased out. Getting rid of the tax, they say, will drain the city’s coffers, make housing even less affordable, and force it to balance its budget on the backs of working-class and poor residents.
Tax Challenged in Court
Faith leaders say a moral city budget prioritizes people, not corporations. Every tax dollar given away to Big Business, they say, is one less dollar for housing, schools, and the social safety net that low-income households depend on.
“When you take that much money out of the equation, it has to come from somewhere else,” said An Tran, a Germantown resident and member of POWER Interfaith at their November 10 rally. “And we know where ‘somewhere else’ usually means in Philadelphia — it’s the poor, it’s the working people, the Black and brown families already hanging on by a thread.”
This is a man-made, fabricated crisis.
Rev. Dr. Gregory Edwards, executive director of POWER Interfaith
But city leaders, including Mayor Cherelle Parker, are worried they may not prevail in a lawsuit that challenges the tax break as unconstitutional. The Massachusetts-based medical device manufacturer Zoll Medical Corp., which does business in Philadelphia, sued to have the tax repealed.
Based on calculations by the Pennsylvania Policy Center, cutting BIRT, along with other business taxes, will cost the city an estimated $2.8 billion over 12 years. The removal of significant dollars from the city budget will force residents to shoulder a larger share of the burden.
‘Tax Breaks to Corporations’
In a statement, Rev. Dr. Gregory Edwards, executive director of POWER Interfaith, compared the city’s “unconscionable” tax cut proposal to families and children going hungry during the recent federal government shutdown.
As people suffer, “our city leaders are handing out tax breaks to corporations,” he said. “Philadelphia City Council is accelerating a crisis that’s already pushing poor and working people to the brink. We need them to act now — not for big business, but for the families that struggle to survive.”
“This is a man-made, fabricated crisis,” he said.
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Rev. Dr. Sharon Sobukwe, associate pastor for social justice at Salt and Light Church in Philadelphia, said a POWER Interfaith survey found that 30% of respondents struggle to pay property taxes or monthly rent. Those who can pay find they are using a disproportionate percentage of their total monthly income.
With more than 4,700 members, POWER Interfaith is the state’s largest multiracial, multifaith, multigenerational organization. Their mission is to fight for racial and economic justice, a healthy planet, and a stronger democracy.
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