Pittsburgh City Council banged the bumpers of power brokers from here to Harrisburg yesterday with a vote to keep the parking tax at 45 percent despite state law that demands a reduction.

Council's 8-1 final vote, with only Councilman William Peduto in the negative, sends a binding ordinance preserving the tax to Mayor Luke Ravenstahl for his approval or veto. He said he would consult with General Assembly members next week before deciding how to proceed.

He may get an earful, especially from suburban legislators whose constituents don't live in the city, but park there.

"An illegal act by the city is unenforceable," said state Rep. John Maher, R-Upper St. Clair. "Pursuing this avenue in this manner is effectively unenforceable theatrics that could have grave consequences should [state-mandated oversight agencies] exercise their responsibility."

That responsibility includes approving or rejecting city budgets, starting with a vote by the Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority likely to occur next week.

The group potentially could withhold tens of millions of dollars in taxing powers authorized by the state financial recovery plan.

The legislation by Councilman Jim Motznik would cancel plans, made law in a 2004 tax shift package, to lower the tax to 40 percent next year, and then gradually to 35 percent by 2010. Instead of lowering the tax, the legislation would have the city redirect some parking revenue to reducing its debt and pension obligations.

Mr. Motznik said he was addressing a wrong started this year, when lot operators failed to lower rates when the tax dipped from 50 percent. "The parking public should've realized the savings. They did not," he said. So he's "not voting to reduce the parking tax, period."

Alco Parking President Merrill Stabile, whose company is the city's largest private lot operator, said the public has benefited by avoiding rate hikes, and will continue to see stable prices if the tax keeps dropping.

"Mr. Motznik needs to trade his high-school equivalency diploma for a lesson in economics," said Mr. Stabile. "If for some reason the city should prevail, then rates will absolutely go up."

Mr. Motznik is a Seton-La Salle High School graduate.

The legislation now goes to Mr. Ravenstahl, who has 10 days to sign it, veto it or let it become law without his signature.

It would take six council members to override a veto.

Early next week Mr. Ravenstahl will travel to Harrisburg to "speak to legislators there to learn their perspective on the parking tax issue," said press secretary Alecia Sirk.

State Sen. Jim Ferlo, D-Highland Park, has introduced legislation to let the city keep the tax at 45 percent, but said last week that the council bill may hurt his chances of negotiating passage with Republicans.

Mr. Motznik said he plans to go to Harrisburg to talk with Sen. John Pippy, R-Moon, who has been open to considering Mr. Ferlo's bill, and Sen. Jane Orie, R-McCandless, who has been critical. Both are keys to getting the GOP-led Senate to consider it.

The mayor's proposed budget calls for the tax cut. If the ICA approves that budget with the tax cut, and council then approves one without it, the stage could be set for a confrontation.

The ICA has the power to withhold tens of millions of dollars in revenue the city gets from taxing powers granted in the tax shift. ICA Chair Barbara McNees said there's as yet no talk of exercising that power.

"Our position right now on the ICA is that we have to follow what the state law says," she said. Any effort to change that law might be stymied by the waning legislative year. "The timing of trying to get it done in the fall session is probably not going to happen."

A legal opinion provided to council in December, signed by Solicitor George Specter, found that the city's charter doesn't permit it to ignore the state-mandated tax cut.

The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership was "disappointed" with council's action, said President and Chief Executive Officer Michael Edwards.

The advocacy group issued a statement last week that it wants the tax cuts to continue on schedule.

"We encourage the [Pittsburgh] Parking Authority and private operators to pass along the savings from that tax reduction to the Downtown consumer," he said.

Currently, parkers at the lot across Grant Street from the City-County Building pay $22 for any stay longer than 90 minutes. Of that, operator InterPark gets $15.17 and the city gets 45 percent of that, or $6.83.

A tax cut to 40 percent, if fully passed on to the consumer, would shave 76 cents from the bill.

Council also gave final approval to a mayoral proposal to hold an online auction to try to identify the cheapest supplier of energy for city government facilities, traffic lights and street lamps. The auction is likely to occur next month.