?Friday, March 6, 2009 Volume 125, No. 33 Price 75¢
Resident survey: Fees OK, not cuts
But Council has doubts on findings
Across America Commentary Op-Ed City & Region Action Line Tribune Staff Report Higher taxes and service fees ? including a fee for trash collection ? may be the answer to the city?s budget crunch, according to a survey of residents released this week. Council members said Thursday they would be hesitant to raise taxes or fees based on the survey results. The report, a summary of the findings culled from four community workshops held by the Penn Project for Civic Engagement and WHYY, were presented Wednesday to Mayor Michael Nutter and Council members W. Wilson Goode Jr., Anna C. Verna, Maria Quinones-Sanchez, Blondell Reynolds-Brown, Bill Green, Joan Krajewski, Brian O?Neill, Jannie Blackwell and Donna Reed Miller. Nutter seemed to hint at the possibility that higher taxes are in the offing. ?The one thing I?m convinced of is we will not be able to just make cuts to get a billion out of the upcoming five years of budgets,? he said. ?I think that is virtually impossible.? Initial feedback indicated that many residents would be willing to pay higher taxes and fees rather than see service cuts, said Chris Satullo, executive director of news and civic dialogue at WHYY. ?People were passionate about service cuts,? he said. ?Frequently what they decided to do was raise taxes.? Participants said they would be willing to pay higher amusement and parking taxes along with an increase in the wage tax. Most would prefer not to see higher real estate or sales taxes, he said, and would like to see trash fees raised only as last resort. Many also wanted to see the city ask nonprofit groups to make payments in lieu of taxes. The idea of creating a $5 fee for Council ? Page 3C
Jury to decide Sen. Fumo?s fate
Larry Miller Tribune Staff Writer The federal corruption trial of Vincent J. Fumo moved into its final phase this week when the jury was charged to begin its deliberations and decide if the former state senator is guilty or not. Deliberations began on Thursday morning and there?s no telling how long the jury could take before a verdict is reached. The trial began in October 2008. Fumo is facing a 137count indictment alleging that the senator defrauded a nonprof-
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Superintendent
pushes for reform
Arlene Ackerman says students will be protected, seeks more input
Eric Mayes Tribune Staff Writer Student opposition to sweeping school reform has already begun to melt, according to Superintendent Arlene Ackerman this week as she took her plan to the community. ?Once they heard that they were going to get some say so in it, once they heard what was going to come to them ? they were OK with it,? Ackerman said. But Ackerman may have to clear more hurdles than she realizes as she fleshes out her plan. Some members of the Philadelphia Student Union recently said that many of their doubts have been assuaged after a meeting with the superintendent. One of them was Markeeta Hudgens, 17, a junior at Overbrook High School, who, in the days since meeting with Ackerman, seems to have changed her mind. ?We?re definitely opposing it,? Hudgens said this week. ?She really went around our questions.? Hudgens was quick to point out that the student union did not oppose Ackerman personally but wanted to make sure students have the best schools possible. The president of the teachers? union, Jerry Jordan, could not be reached on Wednesday for comment. At the time of the report?s release, he called the superintendent?s plan irresponsible. ?It is irresponsible for the School District of Philadelphia to talk about dismissing the staff and dumping struggling schools on outside managers and charter operators without first implementing programs proven time and again to raise student achievement,? Jordan said. ?The district?s new strategic plan is one more attempt by the administration to shift the blame for consistently under-resourcing schools to the teachers and staff.? Ackerman was confident the district?s teachers would recognize the value of the changes she?s proposed. Ackerman ? Page 3C it organization, obstructed justice by destroying electronic evidence and used state employees for his personal and political benefits, costing taxpayers more than $3 million. He is also accused of filing Vincent Fumo false tax returns. ?This is a case about greed, power and an overwhelming Fumo ? Page 3C Tomorrow Cloudy high: 64º low: 48º Student opposition to sweeping school reform has already begun to melt, according to Superintendent Arlene Ackerman this week during a meeting with The Philadelphia Tribune editorial board. ? PHOTO BY ABDUL SULAYMAN/TRIBUNE STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Sunday Mostly Cloudy high: 68º low: 52º ENTERTAINMENT
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A history of Blacks in the Cabinet
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Reforming health care takes its first steps
Obama welcomes ideas from his skeptics, allies
Liz Sidoti WASHINGTON ? President Obama summoned allies, skeptics and health-care figures of all stripes to the White House on Thursday to debate ideas for overhauling the nation?s costly system and declared, ?The status quo is the one option that is not on the table.? The big Washington session ? Obama called it a health-care summit ? and meetings to follow around the country show the new president?s push for universal health-care coverage will be more open and inclusive than the Clinton administration?s failed attempt of 15 years ago. ?In this effort, every voice has to be heard. Every idea must be considered. ... There should be no sacred cows,? Obama said as he opened his White House forum on what he calls the greatest threat to the U.S. economy ? rising health-care costs. Mindful that opponents derailed the Clinton plan, Obama also issued a warning: ?Those who seek to block any reform at all, any reform at any cost, will not prevail this time around.? The U.S. system is the world?s costliest; the country spends some $2.4 trillion a year on health care. It leaves an estimated 48 million people uninsured, and many others lack adequate insurance. Although he wants coverage for all, the president suggested a willingness to compromise. That, too, was a break from President Clinton?s posture in the 1990s when he promised to veto any health-care measure that didn?t give him what he sought. This time, Obama said, ?Each of us must accept that none of us will get everything we want, and no proposal for reform will be perfect.? And, he said, ?While everyone has a right to take part in this discussion, no one has the right to take it over.? At the same time, he blasted ?those who say we should defer health-care reform once again? even though, unlike the last time, there?s widespread agreement that something needs to be done. He also called health-care reform both a moral imperative and now a fiscal imperative because of its huge stress on Health care ? Page 4C
Group protests school closing
The Coalition to Save William Penn High School held a spirited protest rally in front of the school led by state Rep. W. Curtis Thomas, who said the community was not notified of the School District?s intentions and opposes those plans. ? PHOTO BY ABDUL SULAYMAN / TRIBUNE STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
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Rep. Thomas against plans to close William Penn High School
Larry Miller Tribune Staff Writer The proposed closing of William Penn High School was met by a coalition of community groups along with state Rep. W. Curtis Thomas this week, who protested outside the building on Thursday. The group, which calls itself the Coalition to Save William Penn High School, held a spirited protest rally of about 20 to 25 people led by Thomas, who said the community was not notified of the School District?s intentions and fully opposes those plans. Barack Obama ?Our coalition is here to oppose any and all plans to close William Penn High School,? Thomas said. ?Many of us learned about the district?s intentions by reading the local newspapers. The coalition recommends that the district reform its planning process to timely disseminate information to the public about plans to close a school and include community input before the decision is made.? The announcement to close Penn came last Wednesday when School Reform Commission Protest ? Page 3C The Philadelphia Tribune, a reflection of you. The Philadelphia Tribune
