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Kenney Threatens to Veto Abatement Bill

Mayor Jim Kenney has threatened a pocket veto of City Council’s reform of the 10-year property tax abatement if changes aren’t made to push the implementation back until at least the end of 2020.

In an unprecedented move, the mayor sent a letter to all members warning that if the implementation date is not pushed back, he would kill the bill.

“I look forward to signing this bill if it is amended with that later implementation date,” the letter reads. “Please know that if Council were to pass this bill as currently proposed I will not sign it, and it will not become law.”

Usually, if the mayor does not sign a piece of legislation, it will eventually still become law without his signature.

But because this is the end of a four-year City Council term, and all legislation dies when new councilmembers are seated, any bills passed in these final two Council sessions will not become law without Kenney’s explicit approval.

Mayor Kenney has never vetoed a City Council bill, in stark contrast to his predecessor who clashed with Council openly and frequently. Technically, he is not threatening to do so now, but the move is still seen as unusually aggressive.

The reform bill would phase effectively halve the 10-year property tax abatement for new residential construction. It would phase the value of the incentive out over the decade of the incentive, so a full abatement would only be received in the first year. In year two, 90% of a property’s assessed value would be abated and by the tenth year, only 10% of the value would be abated.

https://billypenn.com/2019/12/05/vet...batement-bill/