The big question today, as City Council gathers for their final session of 2010, is will the legislation to reform the embattled Board of Revision of Taxes secure final passage?
If approved by voters, the legislation would create an assessment body under the mayor's supervision and an independent assessment appeals board effective Sept. 30. The reform effort comes after a series of stories in the Philadelphia Inquirer that detailed inaccurate assessments and mismanagement at the agency.
But City Hall insiders wonder if Council anger over Mayor Nutter's immediate plans for 76 BRT patronage hires could derail the legislation. Nutter this week announced that those workers -- who are paid by the school district and may do political work – must shift to the city civil service.
It was a message many Council members weren't happy about. Last week during committee hearings, several Council members raised concerns about protecting those workers.
We'll keep you posted on how it goes down today.