One national expert who reviewed the report said it was clear the city should not settle for minor tweaks in BRT operations.
"There's no way to redeem it. It's just got to be put in the toilet and flushed away," said Peter Davis, a national expert on property-tax systems.
"Whatever it takes, the system must be rebuilt in order to restore the public trust in local government," said Davis, a Kansas-based consultant who's done work for Philadelphia's suburban counties.
Charlesretta Meade, the BRT's chairwoman, and other board members did not respond to requests for comment.
The report is no guarantee that city leaders will actually tackle the prickly issue of fixing the agency, which for decades has served as a source of well-paying board posts for the politically connected, and patronage jobs for the party faithful.
About 80 BRT positions are reserved for clerical workers and funded by the city school district, a maneuver that allows those workers to hold city jobs but still be active in politics.
Most of those jobs are under the control of U.S. Rep. Robert A. Brady, the city's influential Democratic leader. Brady declined to comment.
In an interview yesterday, Nutter cautioned that the city has to move carefully - a contrast to his stern words of the spring, when he promised "massive change."
"This is a significant undertaking. This is not somebody trying to operate a water-ice stand," Nutter said.
"We're only going to get one opportunity to do this well and do this right, and we should be guided by that principle first."
Yet the leader of a watchdog group said nothing is likely to change without a strong push from Nutter.
