COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON LAW AND GOVERNMENT - - - Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Thursday, June 8, 2000 9:25 a.m. - - - Campaign Finance Reform Legislation: Bill No. 000356 Bill No. 000357 Res. No. 000380 PRESENT: COUNCILMAN DAVID COHEN, Chair COUNCILMAN ANGEL L. ORTIZ, Vice Chair COUNCILMAN W. WILSON GOODE, JR. COUNCILMAN RICHARD T. MARIANO COUNCILMAN FRANK RIZZO - - - VINCENT VARALLO ASSOCIATES, INC. Registered Professional Reporters Eleven Penn Center, Suite 600 Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215) 561-2220 2 6/8/00 LAW & GOV'T - CAMPAIGN FINANCE P R O C E E D I N G S
The Committee on Law and Government is now in session with respect to Bill No.'s 000356, 000357 and Resolution No. 6 000380, all relating to campaign finance reform. The Chair is going to call on Councilman Ortiz, the vice chairman of the committee and one of the two chief sponsors of the legislation.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'd like to begin by reading into the record an editorial in today's Philadelphia Inquirer. "As Philadelphians gape at the tens of millions Jon S. Corzine is spending in New Jersey, they should also cringe at the $27 million that John Street and his rivals spent last year for the office of mayor. "It's no consolation that he and his opponents were last running the traditional way -- spending other people's money rather than their own. "Sure, some of the money was from friends who just want good government, but much of 3 6/8/00 LAW & GOV'T - CAMPAIGN FINANCE it was meant to buy access and influence. Some contributors hit the $100,000. "As this money game pulls elected officials toward special interests, it poisons public confidence mark in their leaders. "Yet Philadelphia is not the norm of the nation's ten largest cities. Only Philadelphia and San Antonio have no limits on campaign contributions. It's time to clean up this mess, a goal that City Council can advance today. "The city needs sensible limits on campaign checks and matching funds as the carrot to get candidates to abide by spending limits. City Councilman Angel Ortiz and James Kenney recently introduced such a plan for mayoral and council races. They have been honing it based on local feedback and on testimony about other cities' experience. "In any year, an individual could give a candidate for city office, excluding judgeships, up to $1,000 for a primary and the same for a general elections. Political action committees (PACs) could give $5,000 per election per year, no 4 6/8/00 LAW & GOV'T - CAMPAIGN FINANCE more than 5- and 6-figure checks. "A mayoral candidate who wanted matching funds would have to limit total spending to 4 million -- half in the primary season, half for the general election. That's plenty for getting one's message across. 8 million. "Council candidates would be limited per election to $200,000 for at-large seats or $125,000 for district seats. This system of matching funds and spending limits will require a change in the City Charter, which supporters hope will be on the November ballot. "Some folks look at the City's pressing needs and complaints that Philadelphia can't afford the more than $1 million a year that the initiative will cost. But in light of all the temptations to wave tax dollars on political pals, from pinstripe patronage to expensive holes in the ground, it's the status quo that's unaffordable. "Other critics object in principle that a lowly politician couldn't possibly deserve a subsidy from the public till. That notion gets things backwards. " Today's hearing will be recessed until o'clock on Thursday. Jim Kenney and I had a 6 conversation with Mayor Street yesterday in which 7 the Mayor expressed an interest to work together 8 to be able to look at campaign finance reform and 9 come to an amenable and supportable bill so that everybody would be on the same page, and perhaps we could go forward with this most meaningful of legislation. We are trying to change the rules, we are trying to play by new lines in the old ballfield. I think the conversation between the Mayor and myself and Jim Kenney is a positive beginning. And at his request, we are recessing this hearing until next Thursday, at 9 o'clock, when we will take up the amendments that we have proposed. And we will be meeting with Mayor Street, I think, on Monday, right Jimmy? Monday. So I think we have come a long way towards achieving the goal of putting Philadelphia back on good financial footing in terms of its campaigns, political campaigns. I would hate to 6 6/8/00 LAW & GOV'T - CAMPAIGN FINANCE see a Jon S. Corzine run in the City of Philadelphia and buying any seat, whether it be committee person or anything else. So, David, I think we should stand in recess until o'clock on Thursday next. 7
Yes. I think this 8 shows that City Council is always ready to sit 9 down and discuss with the Administration. We hope the same will be true on a reciprocal basis on all issues. The committee will stand in recess until 9 a.m., a week from today, June 15th. Thank you all. (Adjourned at 9:33 a.m.) - - - 7 C E R T I F I C A T E I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing proceedings of the Council of the City of Philadelphia of Thursday, June 8, 2000, were reported fully and accurately by me, and that this is a correct transcript of same. RE: COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON LAW AND GOVERNMENT BILL NO.'s 000356, 357, RES. NO. 000380 __________________________________, JOSEPHINE CARDILLO, Registered Professional Reporter