PILOTS would improve the overall livability of the city, both for people who are affiliated with these institutions and those who are not. “Currently it doesn’t seem like everyone who lives in Philadelphia is having the same access to public assistance services. That’s something I think PILOTS could change,” added Rodriguez.

The debate heated up on Tuesday, March 30, as hundreds of students, community members and leaders took to the streets in University City to demand PILOTs as nearby Philadelphia public schools still struggle with providing non-hazardous environments for children to learn amid the slow return from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Students have for years called on the wealthy private university to make payments in lieu of taxes, called PILOTs, to the city. Recently, faculty and staff members joined them. The $10 million per year outlined in Tuesday’s pledge is lower than the estimated $40 million per year that PILOT advocates requested, and significantly lower than what the university would owe the city if it were subject to property taxes.

Faced with a multi-stakeholder force that has been advocating strongly for the University of Pennsylvania to make regular payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTS) to Philadelphia public schools, Penn has made a concession worth about a quarter of what had been asked for in dollars, and even less than that in terms of a permanent commitment.

“This victory is a testament to the strength of the movement by public school teachers, parents, and students for equitable funding for their schools,” said executive director of Philadelphia Jobs With Justice Devan Spear.

The Penn for PILOTS movement, as well as other organizations including Jobs for Justice, had estimated that if Penn paid property taxes on its holdings, it would owe the city about $100 million a year. The groups proposed that Penn pay 40% of what it would owe, or about $40 million annually. It also proposed that all the money go into an educational equity fund dedicated to the school district. … Crediting the “power of mobilization” for the gift, Penn for PILOTS, in a statement, said that “the chronic underfunding of the Philadelphia public schools cannot be resolved with a limited commitment of ten annual payments; it requires a system of public finance that ensures that the city’s wealthiest institutions pay their fair share every year in perpetuity.”

“We know anything we give can’t compare at all with the magnitude that Penn paying PILOTs [payments in lieu of taxes] would have,” said Keri Zhang, editor and chief of the student-run Penn yearbook. “Hopefully, we can make some small steps that build toward real impact.”

More than 1,000 faculty and staff members at the University of Pennsylvania are calling on the Board of Trustees to pay a portion of what the university would owe in property taxes to the city of Philadelphia if the institution paid property taxes.

More than 1,000 faculty and staff members are urging Penn to pay 40% of what it would owe in property taxes to the Philadelphia public schools as a matter of social, economic and racial justice.