Executive Summary
For Immediate Release:
June 4, 2012
Contact: Brian Dries
215-686-8869
Sales Tax Revenues Post Sixth Consecutive Monthly Increase Over Prior Year
Controller Alan Butkovitz’ economic report also reviews Recovery.gov’s latest ARRA funding for the City of Philadelphia
April 2012 Monthly Economic Report
PHILADELPHIA – City Controller Alan Butkovitz today issued his latest economic report that indicated the $20.1 million sales tax collection for April 2012 marked the sixth consecutive monthly increase over the prior year. April’s collection was about $400,000 more than in April 2011.
While monthly collections in the first four months of the current FY12 fell behind the previous year’s revenues, the increased revenues since November 2011 have kept the City on pace to meeting its current fiscal year estimate of $250 million. To meet this estimate, May and June’s collections will also need to slightly exceed collections from the same two months of last year, which were $22.7 million and $20.5 million, respectively.
Along with highlighting sales tax collections, the Controller’s April 2012 economic report reviewed the latest Recovery.gov quarterly report of the American Recovery Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for funds received directly by the City of Philadelphia. The Recovery.gov report showed that the City, as the prime recipient, still had 17 projects that were not completed but were still receiving funds.
These open projects accounted for a total award amount of $206 million, with about $130 million, or 63 percent that had been received so far by the City. One of the top ARRA awarded projects that’s less than 50 percent completed is the $43.9 million Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2, which is recorded as creating 56 jobs through the construction of 256 new multi-family affordable housing units.
Other top awarded projects that are not completed but still receiving funds include the following:
Awarded Amount
Jobs Created
Brief Description
$25 million
10
EnergyWorks: scale up the region’s energy retrofit market by enhancing retrofit lending programs
$21.5 million
47
Homelessness Prevention & Rapid Re-Housing Services
$19.5 million
40
Construct an improved transportation structure and facilities to screen passengers’ baggage for security at airport
$15 million
60
Establish policy and reform systems to improve food and physical activities in communities, schools, worksites, etc.
$14 million
6
Energy Efficiency & Conservation: replace traffic signals with LEDs, RFID readers to support city recycling program, etc.
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