Mayor Parker doubles down on rideshare tax plan for Philly schools

Despite criticism from Uber and mixed reactions from city residents and leaders, Mayor Cherelle Parker doubled down on her plan to tax rideshares to generate money for Philadelphia public schools.

During a City Hall press conference on Wednesday, April 15, Parker provided an update on her plan to help close a $300 million budget gap in the Philadelphia School District that could result in the loss of hundreds of jobs.

The presser occurred a month after Parker announced an initial proposal to tax rideshares in Philadelphia at 20 cents per ride as part of her $6.9 billion city budget plan for 2027. Under her initial plan, the tax would generate $9.6 million per year for the School District of Philadelphia.

During another announcement on March 23, however, Parker amended her initial proposal and said she was increasing the tax to $1 per ride. According to Parker, the increase would generate $50.4 million in new recurring revenue for the school district.

Parker said in March that the additional funding would save approximately 240 positions within the school district, including 130 teachers, 55 student climate staff and 55 other school-based positions. On Wednesday, April 15, however, Parker announced that the school district and its finance team made adjustments that would save every single job but only if her plan to generate recurring revenue for the school district was approved.

“If these taxes are enacted and approved by our council, this will be the largest new recurring local revenue source for the School District of Philadelphia since we enacted the sales tax and the cigarette tax,” Mayor Parker said on Wednesday. “And that was $120 million in annual revenue from the sales tax and $83 million respectively and I think our children and the School District of Philadelphia are worth it.”

Parker also said the tax would be applied to rideshare companies, rather than individual drivers.

Uber had already said in response to the 20 cents per ride tax proposal, however, that the cost would be passed along to riders.

Ahead of Parker’s announcement in late March, Jazmin Kay, an Uber spokesperson, sent a statement speaking out against the mayor’s proposal.

“The 5x hike of the Mayor’s proposed rideshare tax will hurt drivers and hit everyday Philadelphians, making rides less affordable and threatening critical access to jobs, healthcare, and essential services,” Kay wrote. “This double tax worsens Philadelphia’s affordability and transportation crisis, even though rideshare already provides millions to city schools annually through existing taxes.”

During the announcement in late March, NBC10’s Lauren Mayk asked the mayor about the potential financial impact the rideshare tax could have on riders and whether or not Philadelphians could afford it.

Parker began her answer describing Uber’s history in Philadelphia and its impact on the taxicab industry. She then reiterated her point that it would be up to the rideshare companies to decide how they would handle the tax.

“Again, I’m not responsible for how the company decides that it wants to adjust to this $1 tax. It’s not my responsibility to decide what it does,” she said at the time.

During her press conference on April 15, Parker argued that other major cities, including New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco already had a rideshare tax in place and that Philadelphia would be the 52^nd local government in the nation to do so if her plan is implemented.

“The city of San Francisco, the home of Uber and Lyft, they’ve had a rideshare tax since 2020,” Mayor Parker said. “So wait a minute. This is 2026, the industry, it’s thriving, it’s bustling, and we’re excited about business thriving and bustling in the city of Philadelphia. We are open for business here. But how dare you tell me, as mayor of this city, to tell the people in this city, that we cannot and should not enact what is one of the most limited powers that we have. And that is to decide how we will drive revenue to the School District of Philadelphia.”

City Council held a hearing on Parker’s spending plan back on March 24. During the meeting, councilmembers heard testimony from members of the mayor’s administration, including department heads and independently elected offices.

If approved, the rideshare tax would take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.