Philadelphia mayor Cherelle Parker (Parker campaign photo)
As the Pennsylvania General Assembly negotiates the next fiscal budget, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker made an appearance in Harrisburg on Monday to highlight her administration’s priorities, while also making a push for the state Legislature to invest in the state’s biggest city.
Parker, a former English teacher and state legislator, said she was “unapologetic” about her advocacy for public education. She said she worked with Democrats and Republicans to increase funding for the Philadelphia School District.
“We’ve increased that to $129 million over the life of our five year plan. I am happy about that,” Parker said at the Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon. “But we need the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and our General Assembly to act.”
The specific ask Parker is making of the legislature is $242 million this year and $1.4 billion over the next seven years in adequacy funding.
“Students in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the city of Philadelphia, they deserve it. We’ve enhanced our local share, and Philadelphia has already gotten it done. We need the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to act,” Parker said.
As the state budget deadline approaches, the issue of funding public education vs charter schools has returned to the forefront of discussion for the state Legislature.
Parker said that her ask for the city’s schools has support from Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, traditional public school advocates, charter school advocates, and the city’s superintendent of schools.
“We will not allow anyone to pit us against each other,” Parker said. “There are no divisions in Philadelphia to take advantage of.”
On June 14, Parker signed her first budget since being sworn in earlier this year. She said the $6.37 billion “One Philly” budget contains $2 billion in new investments, $800 million in operating, and $1.2 billion in capital improvements over the five year plan.
“Philadelphia’s fiscal stability as a result of our budget, it passed, but we are also on sound fiscal footing,” Parker said. She noted the city recently received a credit upgrade rating to A+ from Fitch.
She said in her budget she followed through on a campaign promise not to include any new taxes on Philadelphians.
Parker, who represented the 200th District in the state House from 2005 to 2015, credited her tenure in the Legislature with setting her up to serve in her current role.
“I want you to know that when I was traveling here and we are on the turnpike coming, I really did feel like this was a homecoming,” Parker said. “So much of the work that I have been able to do in the city of Philadelphia as a member of council, and now as mayor, so much of it started during my tenure here as a member of the Pennsylvania House.”
During the Q&A portion of the program, Parker was asked about taking a “seriously neutral position on expanding school choice” for students in low performing schools and what is preventing her from taking sides on this debate. She said in her prior experience leading the Philadelphia House delegation it was important for legislators to not be “handcuffed” during budget negotiations.
Parker said that education is a broad based issue and referenced the Commonwealth Court’s decision deeming the state’s school funding formula to be unconstitutional. Her position appears to differ from her predecessor Jim Kenney, who was not viewed as an ally to charter schools.
“But for us to take a position, either for or against something you know as significant as what you describe, it doesn’t help us and our Philadelphia delegation,” Parker said.
Parker was also asked about Gov. Josh Shapiro’s transportation funding plan during the Q&A.
“Southeastern Pennsylvania doesn’t move without an investment in mass transit,” Parker said, explaining that around 40% of the state’s revenue comes from Philadelphia and the suburban counties surrounding it that use SEPTA.
Shapiro’s budget proposal includes a $283 million boost in transit funding across the state.
Parker said although she’s not at the budget table, she thinks it’s a “no brainer” to increase funding to help SEPTA and added an increase in mass transit statewide will help all communities throughout the commonwealth.
Like public education, she also said her budget included an increase in local share for mass transit funding.
“We just increased our budget by $117 million, so if anybody was saying Philadelphia is not paying its fair share, I want you to have the numbers accurately,” Parker said, referring to its increase in mass transit funding.
Parker also addressed the issue of public safety in Philadelphia.
“You can’t mention Philadelphia without someone talking about public safety,” Parker said. “That’s the major issue.”
She said the city’s comprehensive safety plan has already seen some positive results, pointing to data from the Center for American Progress that found violent crime and homicides are down in the city in the first four months of the year.
“This Mayor won’t rest until people who live, work and play, and our stakeholders in the city of Philadelphia feel safe in the city of Philadelphia,” she said.
At the beginning of Parker’s address, she asked for a moment of silence to honor the Philadelphia police officer who was shot in the line of duty on Saturday, who remains in critical condition. Officials held a news conference on Monday to provide an update of the status of the police officer’s condition and release a timeline of the events.
Pennsylvania Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) will be the featured speaker for the next Pennsylvania Press Club luncheon in July.
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