Philadelphia Councilwoman Helen Gym is joining city advocates demanding the Philadelphia Parking Authority stop lobbying against a deal that would help the city's public school funding.
The PPA is working on Senate Bill 984-- a bill that gives regulations to ridesharing companies, like Uber and Lyft. Under the original draft, regulations were designed to bring money back into Philadelphia schools.
However, the bill has recently been modified to redirect the initial $4 million in revenue gained to the PPA, according to public school advocates. The advocates say school revenue has declined from $13.9 million to a projected $8 million in the 2017 fiscal year.
Councilwoman Gym, a public poverty and public education supporter, says forward movement on the bill would continue the cycle of putting children's education second.
"The new provisions of this bill show that the Parking Authority has once again cut a deal that appears to provide resources for our children but, in actuality, promises the District mere leftovers once PPA has taken its cut," said Gym.
We reached out to PPA spokesperson Martin O'Rourke for comment but have not yet heard back from him.
