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Philadelphia Council Seeks Big Cuts in Wage Taxes and Business Profits Levies Starting This Year

Official:Amending Title 19 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Finance, Taxes and Collections," to provide for tax rate reductions of the Wage and Earnings Tax for Philadelphia Residents and the Tax on Net Profits Earned in Businesses, Professions or Other Activities for Philadelphia Residents.

Sponsor: Councilmember Oh

Introduced: January 21, 2016

: Committee on Finance

business finance taxation

No one voted on this bill

This bill was introduced in the 2016–2019 Council term and when that term ran out. The public record shows no committee vote and no floor vote at any stage, so no member of Council ever went on record for or against it.

That is not unusual here. Of the 8,465 bills introduced between 2000 and 2025, 1,624 lapsed without a single recorded vote. Ninety percent of bills that became law carry a roll call. Three percent of lapsed bills do. How this works.

Plain-Language Summary

This bill proposes to reduce tax rates for Philadelphia residents and businesses. The Wage and Earnings Tax would decrease by up to 2.0344% and the Tax on Net Profits Earned in Businesses, Professions or Other Activities would also decrease by a similar percentage.

What This Bill Does

AI-written. Every figure is checked against the bill text.

Reduces the Wage and Earnings Tax rate for Philadelphia residents by up to 2.0344%.
Reduces the Tax on Net Profits Earned in Businesses, Professions or Other Activities for Philadelphia residents by a similar percentage.
Amends Title 19 of The Philadelphia Code to change the tax rates in Title 19-1502, Imposition of Tax.
Applies these tax rate reductions retroactively to January 1, 1950, with the exception of the rates that have already been reduced in the past.