Before packing up ahead of the Nov. 6 election, the General Assembly threw the city of Harrisburg the much-needed lifeline it had refused earlier this year.

The Senate and House both gave overwhelming approval to a bill that extends the capital city’s enhanced taxing authority for five years before it leaves Act 47 status at the end of this year.

The push, shepherded by Rep. Patty Kim, D-Dauphin County, and two of her Republican colleagues, means that the Capital City can continue charging residents a 2 percent earned income tax and retain its tripled local services tax, which amounts to $156, on people who work in Harrisburg.

This will help the city to continue addressing its long-standing structural budget deficit.

This legislation now goes to the governor for enactment and would keep higher local services tax of $156 that people who work in the city pay as well as a 2 percent earned income tax on residents in place for five years.

In return, the city gave up the ability to impose a commuter tax on the thousands who work in the city but don’t live there, and it accepts the oversight of a state-appointed five-member Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority.

One author of the bill, Rep. Tom Mehaffie, R-Dauphin County, notes that in five years, the city will have cut its annual debt service from $10 million to $5 million as it pays down its debt.

At the same time, the Legislature will be receiving regular reports from the new authority to make sure the city is keeping its fiscal house in order. And the authority will be able to recommend future changes based on the effectiveness of the city’s efforts.

The handful of lawmakers opposing the extension rightly argue that piecemeal legislation targeting one locale or constituency over another can be bad policy. They wanted to wait until an update to Act 47 is completed — but there’s no telling how long that could be.

Meanwhile, Harrisburg couldn’t wait. If its extraordinary taxing powers had expired as scheduled, the city would have slipped right back into insolvency just when it seemed to be turning the corner.

Loss of the taxing authority would have cost the city $12 million a year — about 20 percent of its budget — when it exited Act 47.

In fact, back in June, Mayor Eric Papenfuse declared a fiscal crisis after the legislature refused to consider the city’s request for the taxing extension

The bill is an all-too-rare example of compromise that works for everyone, and by working together across the aisle — and between the legislative chambers — a thorny issue has been resolved in a way that benefits all parties without anyone suffering major political pain.

It’s an example lawmakers could profit from in so many other areas.

—Penn Live

Erie’s decline registers in the big numbers — thousands of jobs and people siphoned away; persistent, lagging unemployment and wage rates.

It also declares itself in the little things: weedy, unkempt lawns. Trash-strewn streets. Porches crammed with crumby furniture or dead, rusting appliances.

Slovenly maintenance is an annoyance and a drag on the property values of citizens who maintain safe, tidy properties. Its cleanup is also a central piece of Erie’s economic recovery.

Erie’s comprehensive plan, Erie Refocused, stresses blight removal as one key to reversing the city’s slide and shoring up the real estate market. But for too long the existing code enforcement mechanisms have proven to be incapable of achieving in a timely fashion what should be simple fixes.

That is why it is so important that Erie City Council has finally adopted the new quality-of-life ticketing program. The new ordinance enables code enforcement officers to issue a notice akin to a traffic ticket when code violations are visible on the exterior of a private property and demand action.

Andy Zimmerman, Erie’s code enforcement manager, said officers will be flexible and first issue a warning directing property owners to fix the problem within 24 hours or up to 30 days. Those who do not comply could face a $25 fine. If problems persist, code enforcement officers can pursue a remedy in district court.

The willingness to exercise patience with residents is welcome. But issuing warnings should not come at the price of action. We need to accelerate improvement, not maintain the status quo.

Zimmerman said new software is needed and possibly new hand-held devices. Code enforcement officers acquired new tablets in 2016 to allow them to work in the field. If those devices are not suited to this work, city leaders should quickly obtain the equipment needed.

Momentum is coalescing at a convincing pace to chart a new Erie economy supported by so-called “ends and meds,” tourism, advanced manufacturing and innovative startups. The city needs to look the part.