City Council is weighing two bills that would reach into two very different parts of daily life: the robot that brings your dinner, and the subscription you forgot you signed up for.
Both bills were introduced at Council’s stated meeting on Thursday, October 29. The first, Bill 260927 from Councilmember Jim Harrity, would create an Automated Services Displacement Tax on services performed in the city by machines instead of people, including delivery robots and driverless vehicles.
The rates, as introduced, are 5% of the gross cost or 50 cents, whichever is greater, for delivery services; 5% or $1, whichever is greater, for transportation services such as robotaxis; and 3% for autonomous freight vehicles, based on miles traveled within the city. Companies would have to register with the city and file quarterly reports. Those rates could still change as the bill moves through committee.
Harrity frames the tax as a jobs measure, not just a revenue measure. The city loses wage tax and business income tax revenue when a machine does work a person used to do, and the bill would send its revenue to the Zero Fare Program, which offers free SEPTA rides to low-income residents. “This isn’t about tax. This is about keeping jobs that my neighbors are doing right now,” Harrity said at the October 29 meeting.
The machines in question are already here, or close to it. Avride, the company that operates delivery robots for Uber Eats, rolled its devices out in Philadelphia in March. Waymo has been testing driverless cars in the city since July 2025, though its driverless service is not yet permitted to operate here.
The second bill, Bill 260925 from Councilmember Rue Landau, would set restrictions on businesses that offer automatic renewal or continuous service deals to consumers. The bill’s title frames it as a cancellation of recurring memberships measure. Further details on how those restrictions would work have not yet been released, and they will come as the bill moves through committee.
Both bills now head to committee hearings. Council’s next stated meeting is Thursday, November 12.
