The stimulus is now a big chunk in Philadelphia

This article was originally published in The Notebook. In August 2020, The Notebook became Chalkbeat Philadelphia.

Philadelphia gets its revenue from three major sources: local, state and federal. Traditionally, the federal share was always the smallest, usually between 10 and 12 percent.

However, for the past two years federal stimulus dollars have become a major part of the District’s revenue – boosting the total federal share to about 23 percent. The state has used some of these dollars to replace part of what would have been its own contribution.

Most of the stimulus money is scheduled to go away after this year. Unless state revenue soars for 2011-12, Philadelphia will be facing deep revenue declines. Chief Business Officer Michael Masch estimated in a budget presentation that the shortfall for Philadelphia in 2011-12 could reach $247 million.

With the introduction of federal stimulus dollars, the state and local shares have dropped sharply since 2008-09. In 2010-11, the local funding share was down to only 27 percent, state funding to 47 percent, recurring federal 12 percent, and the federal stimulus another 11 percent.