Tax reform legislation passes City Council committee, would exempt first $100k in city business receipts

A bill that would make changes to the City of Philadelphia’s tax structure was approved Monday by City Council’s Committee on Finance, as the Daily News reported. If passed by Council, the measure would be phased into practice during a three-year period starting in fiscal year 2015.
The bill, introduced by Council members Bill Green and Maria Quiñones Sanchez, as discussed in our Q&A with her Friday, would exempt the first $100,000 in business receipts from both the gross and net income portions, a move aimed at startups and small businesses based in the city.
“This represents a higher tax reduction than [other] plans for a gross receipts reduction,” Sanchez told Technically Philly.

Additionally, to aid exporting businesses, taxes would only be paid on services and products sold within the city. The bill has evolved from earlier legislation put forth by Green and Sanchez that was put through a working group with administration and business community input.
The two bills would eventually amount to $70 million in tax relief, the Inquirer reported.
Another measure that earned committee approval, introduced by Councilman Jim Kenney and supported by Green and Sanhchez, would repeal the city’s business privilege license for businesses starting in fiscal year 2014. A lifetime license is $300 and $50 for a given year.
“This is the biggest impact in tax reforms done in the history of the city of Philadelphia in one single day,” Green told the Daily News.