Philadelphia Research Initiative

The Philadelphia research initiative provides timely, impartial research and analysis that help Philadelphia’s citizens and leaders understand and address key issues facing the city.

LATEST RESEARCH:

Philadelphia 2013: The State of the City Report and Quiz

This annual study presents a multi-dimensional, fact-based portrait of America’s fifth-largest city through 81 graphics and interactive charts. It compares Philadelphia to a group of nine other major cities on household income, crime, educational attainment, public transit use, cost of living, poverty, and more. It also provides a neighborhood-by-neighborhood look at income, poverty, home sales, crime and ethnic diversity in Philadelphia. Take the interactive quiz using data from the report.

AVI: The Shift in the Tax Burden 

As proposed, the Actual Value Initiative (AVI), Philadelphia’s sweeping property tax overhaul, is revenue neutral. The plan is to raise the same amount of revenue through real estate taxes, $1.2 billion, in 2014 as in 2013. This report estimates the potential impact of the Actual Value Initiative on the allocation of the city’s tax burden by categories of property.

Event Summary- Philadelphia Taxes: Past, Present, Future

Pew and the Center on Regional Politics co-hosted the symposium, "Philadelphia Taxes: Past, Present, Future," bringing together tax-policy experts, business and community leaders, government officials, and a group of bi-partisan city and state elected officials to discuss Philadelphia's local taxes.