Got a blog that makes no money? [Even as little as $50] Philadelphia wants $300, thank you very much.

For the past three years, Marilyn Bess has operated MS Philly Organic, a small, low-traffic blog that features occasional posts about green living, out of her Manayunk home. Between her blog and infrequent contributions to ehow.com, over the last few years she says she's made about $50. To Bess, her website is a hobby. To the city of Philadelphia, it's a potential moneymaker, and the city wants its cut.

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In May, the city sent Bess a letter demanding that she pay $300, the price of a business privilege license.

"The real kick in the pants is that I don't even have a full-time job, so for the city to tell me to pony up $300 for a business privilege license, pay wage tax, business privilege tax, net profits tax on a handful of money is outrageous," Bess says.

It would be one thing if Bess' website were, well, an actual business, or if the amount of money the city wanted didn't outpace her earnings six-fold. Sure, the city has its rules; and yes, cash-strapped cities can't very well ignore potential sources of income. But at the same time, there must be some room for discretion and common sense.

When Bess pressed her case to officials with the city's now-closed tax amnesty program, she says, "I was told to hire an accountant."

She's not alone. After dutifully reporting even the smallest profits on their tax filings this year, a number — though no one knows exactly what that number is — of Philadelphia bloggers were dispatched letters informing them that they owe $300 for a privilege license, plus taxes on any profits they made.

You know, this just seems like a stupid fee. It's hard to believe that when the city codified this law they didn't include a lower limit. Yet apparently, "as long as there's the potential for it to be lucrative," Philly bloggers need to pay the city $300.

Of course, every blog is a potential money maker so technically any blogger must pay for the business privilege license. The good news though is that the $300 is a lifetime license. Bloggers also have the option of paying $50 a year.

While I certainly think anyone who makes a substantial amount of money from their business should pay taxes, the vast majority of bloggers don't make any money from their blogs, and of those who do, only a tiny fraction make anywhere near enough for the blog to be considered a business.

As it is now, this is the very model of a regressive tax. I certainly hope other cities don't follow Philadelphia's lead.

I would also think that if the city wants to increase tax revenues, there are probably large corporations operating within the city who aren't paying their fair share for city services.