Mayor Cherelle Parker and the School District of Philadelphia now say no teachers, counselors or other educational staff will need to be reassigned, if City Council goes along with her proposed $1 rideshare tax.

After Superintendent Tony Watlington Sr. unveiled plans to slash 340 positions — with displaced employees being transferred to fill vacancies — Parker offered the $1 fee, up from the 20-cent levy incorporated into her initial municipal budget plan.

In late March, Parker and Watlington said the tax revenue, combined with fiscal maneuvering from the district, would save 240 jobs, leaving 100 still on the chopping block. The mayor revealed Wednesday that Watlington’s team has adjusted their budget to avoid any school-based personnel cuts.

Flanked by school administrators, labor leaders, education advocates and others, Parker made the announcement at a City Hall news conference that resembled a rally to build support for the contested tax, amid lobbying and negotiations with lawmakers.

“Our children deserve stability,” Parker said. “It’s worth the fight. I won’t give up. I’m not going to stop because our children are worth it.”

Her remarks came ahead of a Council budget hearing on tax legislation scheduled for Tuesday, April 21. The next day, school district leaders are expected to testify in front of legislators. Council and the Parker administration must reach a budget agreement before the new fiscal year begins July 1.

More than 50 states, counties and municipalities impose a surcharge on rideshare trips, according to Parker’s office.

However, her proposal is different,  Uber and Lyft say, because the tax would be on top of a 1.4% fee the companies already pay to the Philadelphia Parking Authority.

“Everywhere in the world, rideshare taxes are consumer taxes paid by riders – raising prices, reducing demand, and ultimately lowering driver earnings – and the administration knows this, which is why their proposal explicitly requires the tax to be collected from passengers, not absorbed by companies,” Uber spokesperson Jazmin Kay said Wednesday in a statement.

Uber is projecting a 4.5% drop in driver earnings if Philadelphia adopts the $1 charge.

Lyft Public Policy Manager Angeline Jefferson told Metro that the proposal “disproportionately harms riders in low-income areas and transportation deserts.” More than 60% of trips begin or end in a low-income neighborhood, according to the company.

“I can’t stop those firms from delivering their messages, and I can’t beat them,” Parker told reporters. “They’re multibillion-dollar tech companies, and they have a right to say whatever they say to justify their actions.

“If they pass the dollar on to the riders, that is their decision. They don’t have to do it.”

Her administration estimates that the fee will bring in $48 million a year. Parker’s budget also includes a change in the use and occupancy tax that would generate an additional $2.4 million from cell towers, with the revenue going to the public school system.

Watlington said spending reductions will still be necessary to address the district’s $300 million budget deficit, which his team says stems from the expiration of federal COVID-19 relief funding.

The district intends to eliminate 220 substitute teachers assigned to specific buildings, implement central office cuts (including a hiring freeze), and closely review all contracts, school representatives have said.

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