May 23, 2013 The Honorable Bill Green Chair, City Council Committee on Finance City Hall, Room

312 Philadelphia, PA 19107 Dear Councilman Green: The Committee of Seventy is writing to support Bill No. 130123, which would require charitable entities exempt from city property taxes to file sworn annual statements with the Office of Property Assessment. We hope you will accept this letter and enter it into the public record of todays public hearing. This bill is focused on how to best assure that tax-exempt entities are using their properties in a manner that justifies their tax-exemption. This seems perfectly fair to us. City property taxpayers virtually all of whom have received the first of what will become annual assessments to determine their yearly real estate tax payments deserve this assurance. The Office of Property Assessments website provides instructions for applying for a property tax exemption and also the process by which OPA will review the initial application. The website does not make clear how, or even if, OPA reviews whether entities once found qualified for tax exemption continue to deserve that status from one year to the next. The proposed bill would create a mandatory annual process for tax-exempt entities to file, and OPA to review, documents certifying the continued status of tax-exempt properties. It would also require additional applications for claims of additional tax-exempt property, or additional portions of taxexempt property. We believe there is value in having tax-exempt entities appropriately accountable for their tax exemptions on an annual basis. While not a required part of the bill, we strongly urge OPA to make the completed annual filings, and the outcome of its review, transparent on its website. While the AVI map available through AxisPhilly shows the assessed values and exemption amounts when a viewer hovers over a tax-exempt parcel, the property owner is not listed. Going forward, we believe the public should know which entities are receiving property tax exemptions. We do have an immediate concern. According to a story published yesterday by WHYY/NewsWorks, many applications and other documentation pertaining to tax-exempt properties are missing. This is very disconcerting and we urge OPA to take every step possible to correct this in the future. Fortunately,
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another benefit of the new requirements contained in Bill No. 130123 is that it will result in fresh documentation from every tax-exempt entity. The Committee of Seventy appreciates the chance to express its thoughts today. We look forward to the outcome of your deliberations. Sincerely,

Zack Stalberg President and CEO

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