Committee of the Whole, April 15, 2026

COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wednesday, April 15, 2026 10:11 a.m. PRESENT: COUNCIL PRESIDENT KENYATTA JOHNSON COUNCILWOMAN NINA AHMAD COUNCILWOMAN CINDY BASS COUNCILWOMAN KENDRA BROOKS COUNCILMAN MICHAEL DRISCOLL COUNCILWOMAN JAMIE GAUTHIER COUNCILWOMAN KATHERINE GILMORE RICHARDSON COUNCILMAN JIM HARRITY COUNCILMAN CURTIS JONES, JR. COUNCILWOMAN RUE LANDAU COUNCILWOMAN QUETCY M. LOZADA COUNCILMAN NICOLAS O'ROURKE COUNCILMAN ANTHONY PHILLIPS COUNCILMAN MARK SQUILLA COUNCILMAN ISAIAH THOMAS COUNCILMAN JEFFREY YOUNG, JR. BILLS: 260199, 260200, 260201, 260202, 260203, 260204, 260205, 260206, 260208, 260209, 260295 RESOLUTION: 260227, 260253, 260254, 260255, 260256 - - -

This is the hearing of the Committee of the Whole regarding Bill Nos. 260199, 260200, 260201, 260202, 260203, 260204, 260205, 260206, 260208, 260209, 260295 and Resolution Nos. 260227, 260253, 260254, 260255 and 260256. Ms. Loughead, will you please call the roll to take attendance.

Councilmember Squilla. (No response.)

Councilmember Gauthier. (No response.)

Councilmember Jones. (No response.)

Councilmember Young. (No response.)

Councilmember Driscoll.

Present.

Councilmember Lozada.

Present.

Councilmember Bass.

Present.

Councilmember Phillips.

Present.

Councilmember O'Neill. (No response.)

Councilmember Gilmore Richardson.

Present.

Councilmember Thomas. (No response.)

Councilmember Harrity.

Present.

Councilmember Ahmad.

Present.

Councilmember Landau.

Present.

Councilmember Brooks. (No response.)

Councilmember O'Rourke.

Present.

Council President Johnson. (No response.)

Thank you. A quorum of the committee is present and this hearing is now called to order. Ms. Loughead, will you please read the titles of the bills and the resolutions.

Bill No. 10 260199, an Ordinance adopting the Operating Budget for Fiscal Year 2027. Bill No. 260200, an Ordinance to adopt a Fiscal Year 2027 Capital Budget. Bill No. 260201, an Ordinance to adopt a Capital Program for the six Fiscal Years, 2027-2032 inclusive. Bill No. 260202, an Ordinance amending Chapter 19-2400 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Hotel Room Rental Tax," by providing for an additional excise tax on hotel room rentals, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 260203, an Ordinance amending Subcode "A" (The Philadelphia Administrative Code) of Title 4 of The Philadelphia Code (The Building, Construction and Occupancy Code), by adding and revising Zoning Board of Adjustment fees and provisions regarding hearing scheduling, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 260204, an Ordinance amending Title 3 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Air Management Code" to modify the amounts of license and permit fees, under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 2602055, an Ordinance amending Section 19-1806 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Authorization of Realty Use and Occupancy Tax," to clarify the imposition of the tax on the use or occupancy of real estate with respect to cell towers, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 260206, an Ordinance amending Chapter 6-600 of The Philadelphia Code ("Asbestos"), by adding and providing provisions related to various fees, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 260208, an Ordinance amending Chapter 19-1800 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "School Tax Authorization," to a add a new Section 19-1808, entitled "Authorization of Rideshare Use Tax," to authorize the Board of the School District of Philadelphia to levy a tax upon the use by a passenger of a transportation network company for a prearranged ride that originates in Philadelphia; all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 260209, an Ordinance amending Title of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Finances, Taxes and Collections," to add a new Chapter 19-4800, entitled "Retail Delivery Tax," to establish a tax on orders for the delivery in Philadelphia of retail consumer and other tangible goods, all under certain terms and conditions. Bill No. 260295, an Ordinance Authorizing and approving the execution and delivery of a Service Agreement between the City and the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development relating to the provision by the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development of development assistance to support certain costs related to promoting economic and commercial development of the City; approving the guaranty by the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development of certain obligations related to the issuance of a letter of credit to secure the funding of such costs; authorizing and approving the obligation of the City to pay in full when due the Service Fee and other amounts payable under the Service Agreement and covenanting to make necessary appropriations for such purposes; and authorizing City officials to take necessary or appropriate actions to accomplish the intent and purpose of the ordinance, all under certain terms and conditions. Resolution No. 260227, providing for the approval by the Council of the City of Philadelphia of a revised Five Year Financial Plan for the City of Philadelphia, covering Fiscal Years 2027 through 2031, and incorporating revisions with respect to Fiscal Year 2026, which is to be submitted by the Mayor to the Pennsylvania Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority pursuant to an Intergovernmental Cooperation Agreement, by and between the City and the Authority. Resolution No. 260253, appointing Bekir Gunaydin to the Board of the Director of the Old City Special Services District. Resolution No. 260254, appointing Felicia Wilson to the Board of the Directors for the Old City Special Services District. Resolution No.

260255, appointing Ken Weller to the Board of Directors for the Old City Special Services District. Resolution No. 260256, appointing Kya Kerner to the Board of Directors of the Old City Special Services District.

Thank you. Today we will first hear brief testimony and take action on Bill No. 260295 regarding the City's bid to host the 2028 Democratic National Convention as well as Old City Special Services District appointment resolutions. After taking action on the DNC bill and Old City appointment resolutions, we will continue to hear testimony on bills regarding operating and capital spending measures for Fiscal Year '27, our Capital Program and a Forward-looking Capital Plan for Fiscal Year 2027 through Fiscal Year 2032. Ms. Loughead, will you please call the panel to testify on Bill No. 260295 regarding the City's bid to host the 2028 Democratic National Convention.

The panel to testify on this bill is Vanessa Garrett Harley, Chief Deputy Mayor, who's also joined by Rob Dubow, Finance Director, and Jackie Dunn, City Treasurer. (Witnesses approached witness table.)

Good morning to each of you. Thank you so much for being here this morning. We ask that you state your name for the record and proceed with your testimony.

Good morning. This is Vanessa Garrett Harley, Chief Deputy Mayor for the City of Philadelphia. Good morning all Councilmembers. With me today is Rob Dubow, City Finance Director and the City Treasurer Jackie Dunn. I'm here to testify in favor of Bill No. 260295. The bill would support the City's bid to host the 2028 Democratic National Convention by authorizing the City of Philadelphia to enter into a service agreement with the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development known as PAID. Under this agreement, the City will agree to pay a service fee equal to PAID obligations, if any, are incurred under the guaranty of the Host Committee, Pick Pennsylvania, related to a $35 million letter of credit to support the 2028 bid. The City has full confidence in Pick Pennsylvania and its fundraising capabilities, as it is led by Ambassador David L. Cohen, President, and Dan Hilferty, Chair. For the bid, the form of service agreement was submitted as an amendment to this ordinance. In 2016 when Philadelphia last hosted the Democratic National Convention, the City utilized a similar structure, and the City was not required to make any payments under the 2016 guaranty as the Host Committee raised the funds it needed. We thank you for your partnership and allowing us to include this bill in today's hearing. I respectfully request a suspension of the rules to allow for first reading at the next meeting of City Council. This concludes my testimony. We are more than happy to answer any questions that you may have at this time.

Thank you. Thank you very much, Deputy Mayor Vanessa Garrett Harley. And to Rob Dubow and our City Treasurer Jackie Dunn, we appreciate you all being here. Also wanted to take the opportunity to thank our Council President for the expeditious scheduling of this hearing, particularly after the Pick Pennsylvania event led by Mayor Cherelle Parker. Of course, must shout out Aaron Wilson and the hard work they are doing in conjunction with David Cohen, Dan Hilferty, Chairman Brady and others to Pick Pennsylvania. I also wanted to shout out our colleagues here in Council and Councilwoman Cindy Bass, who serves on the DNC as well as Councilmember Jim Harrity. We thank you both for your national service on our behalf. Very quick question. Just wanted to know how will PAID select the bank to provide the line of credit?

I believe that the selection has been made with an amalgamated bank, who there is a long partnership with the Democratic National Convention.

And as you stated, we do not draw down on the line of credit. We did not in 2016. Are there any additional costs associated with this at all?

I'm going to defer that question to Rob Dubow.

No, no 13 additional cost.

Yes, just stating that for the record. So we thank you and we appreciate that work. Are there any additional questions or comments from members of the committee for these witnesses? Okay. Chair recognizes Councilmember Harrity.

Thank you. First, I want to say sorry, I didn't make it out there this time. It's the first one I've missed since I was elected. But I did hear that you guys put up a really nice showing. Heard the party was really good and heard that you guys were out there lobbying for us. So thank you for that.

Thank you.

So as far as the other cities are concerned, right, where do you see -- can you just explain why and what you explained to them, the leadership of why they should come here to Philadelphia rather than go to, say, Georgia or Louisiana or one of the other places?

So Philadelphia has the distinct pleasure of having -- we're one of the five finalists. I kind of remember the other cities just for memory's sake. I call them the ABCDs. It's Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, and then Philadelphia. And so, what we are trying to explain to them is just how wonderful and great our city is and all the amenities that the city has to offer. And what we have that makes us such an attractive destination for conventions and things of the like, we have hotels, Center City. We have a very robust and active Center City area. We have added an additional, about 28% of hotel space since the time that we had the Democratic Convention here in 2016. We have a very large and accommodating Convention Center that is here and very walkable, in walkable distance to many things. We have -- as you'll hear later today, I know SEPTA's hearing is today. We have a very robust public transportation system that can take people in this city from end-to-end and even out to the counties and other places that we can advertise. The arena is really important. We have the Arena District, and we have, you know, Xfinity Mobile and all the other areas there. And then when you talk about our cultural institutions and the Parkway, right, I'm saying the Parkway because a lot of our cultural institutions are on the Parkway, just what it looks like from an aesthetic purpose. But we're also the birthplace of democracy and this is the year to really bring that out. I'm putting in a shameless plug because I'm also head of the Special Events of the America 250 stuff here in the city, right. But we are the birthplace of democracy. We are where the Declaration of Independence was signed, and we're talking about democracy and bringing the Democratic National Party here. And many of the values that it was founded on is what we argue are the values of the city. Now, while we're talking about the Democratic National Convention, it's not a political thing, certainly not for me. I'm apolitical believe it or not, and wouldn't even be allowed to be involved in it because of the city rules if it was political. This is about a civic event and talking to them about the civic education and what it could bring to the city. But the economic impact --

Exactly.

Having a Democratic National Convention --

Show me the money, baby.

-- hundreds of millions of dollars could be, you know, made for the city, from everything from our restaurants to our hotels. We did talk to them about our now Michelin Star restaurants and our excellent restaurant scene. We have a lot of restaurants. We have nightlife. We have what people would want if they're coming to a convention. And so, I'm pretty confident that it will go favorably.

Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you, Councilmember Harrity. The Chair now recognizes Councilmember Cindy Bass.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning.

Good morning.

It was a pleasure to be with you in New Orleans last weekend.

You as well.

You did a fantastic job.

Thank you.

I think that the City of Philadelphia was well-represented. Listen, Patti LaBelle was there.

Absolutely.

Everybody got a picture with Patti LaBelle.

We brought in our best.

But it really was something to talk about because, you know, we traveled around in circles and myself and other members of the representation from Pennsylvania, we traveled around to see what the word was from other events that were happening to woo the DNC to their cities. And I have to tell you, hands down, Philadelphia really came out strong. So I really believe that it's going to be Philadelphia. We're very hopeful, but at the same time the presentation really made us look good. It felt good. People were excited about the possibilities. And I think that we are really a party town. We don't talk about it in that particular way, but we certainly know how to put on an event, a party, a show, activities like this. And for those of us who participated in 2016, we did a phenomenal job. When the Republican Committee came here, I think it was 2000 or 2004, came to Philadelphia, that was phenomenal. And it's only gotten better and better every single time that we've done it. And I agree with you, it's not just about one particular party. Because even though I'm a member of the DNC, we also want everybody to come out. There's going to be something really for everyone to see and to support and to recognize that the City of Philadelphia is really a special place. So I just really wanted to say kudos on the work that you did. It was really phenomenal. I'm sorry everybody didn't get a chance to see it, but it was really fantastic.

Thank you. Madam Chair, could I just add one thing for the record I think is important to put on about Philadelphia. We also talked, which is a huge deciding factor, about public safety, and that we have a world-class police force. We have a phenomenal Commissioner here. Our police force is very used to handling large events. We've done the Pope. We've done the NFL Draft. We are about to do FIFA and MLB and a bunch of other stuff with that. Our officers, we have a very well-respected Dignitary Affairs Unit and other things. So the public safety aspect is another huge part of what we are promoting and able to offer.

Yes. Excellent, excellent work. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you so much, Councilmember Bass, and thank you for representing Philadelphia. Are there any additional questions? Okay. Great. The Chair now recognizes Councilmember Ahmad and then Councilmember Lozada.

Thank you, Chair. Good morning. And it's wonderful to hear we're putting our best foot forward. I had a question to do a comparison between what we experienced in 2016 in terms of what it cost the city and was it a net positive or a negative, given police and all these other things that happened? I know we're not 2016 now. But just to get some idea, the LC is not going to cost us anything. It's just having it there. But the rest of it, the actual operations of putting on that, what did it cost the city in 2016 so we can sort of extrapolate for 2028?

Can I ask Rob Dubow, our Finance Director, to handle that question.

Yeah, I can't tell you off the top my head. But we did do analyses back then, so we'll find them and we'll get that to the Chair.

So do we know that it cost us or it was a net?

It was a net gain.

And that's really the selling point to our people, to say that we're putting on a big party and yet, we're asking our people to do a lot, we're paying taxes, we're doing this, that and the other and we are ready for the party. So I just want to make sure that we have all the data to say why we are supporting this, because it's a net gain, it brings in hopefully new business, all of those things, because we need that information to tell our constituents why are we asking you to pay more for X, Y and Z, why are we putting on a party that might cost us. But if it doesn't, then we're happy to say it won't cost us. So thank you, Chair. I think we need that information --

You get two things. You get the straight benefit, which is things like hotel rooms, restaurants, all the spending from delegates. But you also get to be on an international stage and show the city off, which then helps bring in business for years to come.

Just to make sure I'm on the record, I'm supportive of this. I just want to have enough information so that we can answer questions that will surely come our way.

And if I could, I do have one data point.

Yes. Please share the data point with Councilman Ahmad, and then I'd like to recognize -- I'm sorry. Please allow me to recognize Councilmember Bass for a point of information.

Thank you. I just really wanted to go back to Rob Dubow's point in terms of generating additional tourism dollars for the City of Philadelphia's future. And so, I'm not sure exactly what the numbers are, even though I'm sure that they're in the positive. But I can tell you this, as someone who's been to every Democratic Convention that's been had since about '96, I can tell you that some of these cities are not easy to move around in. And just as a consumer, it made me say, I don't particularly want to go back there. Nice city, not a bad place, but it's very difficult to move around. And when you're moving large numbers of people, you need a transportation network. You need to be able to have the infrastructure in place. And a lot of these other places don't have what Philadelphia has. And I think that that makes it a place that people will come for the DNC, but also want to come back and spend their tourism dollars in the future. So thank you, Madam Chair.

And if I could, just in terms of the data point I will make sure that every Councilmember gets a copy of kind of a one-pager that has a lot of facts that you could share with your constituents from Pick Pennsylvania. But the 2016 Democratic National Convention, the economic impact that went to the city was $230 million. And we expect to do as well, probably better.

Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Thank you very much, Councilmember Ahmad. The Chair now recognizes Councilmember Lozada.

Good morning. Thank you for being with us. I think Councilmember Bass just made the point of information clear, right. We need a transportation center that is going to be able to support mass groups of people so that the economic opportunity that these conventions bring to our city are spread across neighborhoods. I guess my concern and my question is -- and we'll hear from SEPTA later on this morning. As we continue to attract these groups into our city, how are we working with our transit system to ensure public safety, rides that are, favorable, that are welcoming? We struggle every day on the Market-Frankford Line. Many of my staff take public transportation to work every day and it is a daily struggle. And so, how are we preparing our mass transit system to be able to respond appropriately to these groups so like Member Bass said, when they leave after the convention, they choose to bring their personal families back to visit our city?

Absolutely. I will say this and then I will leave it to the experts and even we can provide you with a written response if you'd like it more detailed, but we certainly value our partnerships with SEPTA and their leadership, very much including them. We have our site visit, which will be coming to the City of Philadelphia, April 29th through May 1st. That kind of a question you just asked is one of the things certainly those folks who are coming to town will be definitely drilling down on, but our SEPTA partners are will be and our Philadelphia Police Department as well as our Office of Emergency Management and everybody else will be working very closely together so that we can ensure the safety of everyone that comes here as well as the safety of our residents as we take that extremely seriously. But I can get you a more detailed answer if you want, but it would be better coming from the public safety experts who are handling that part of it.

I appreciate that. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you very much, Councilmember Lozada. Are there any additional questions for these witnesses? (No response.)

Seeing none, we thank you all very much for being here this afternoon. We look forward to continuing to work with you.

Thank you so much.

Thank you. We will now hear testimony regarding the Old City Special Services appointment resolutions. Ms. Loughead, will you please call the witness to testify on these resolutions.

Job Itzkowitz, Executive Director Old City Special Services District. (Witness approached witness table.)

Excellent. Thank you very much for being here. Please state your name for the record and proceed with your testimony.

Good morning, Madam Chair Gilmore Richardson and all members of Council. My name is Job Itzkowitz, the Executive Director of the Old City Special Services District. I'm here to testify in support of Resolution Nos. 260253, 260254, 260255, 260256, respectively appointing Bekir Gunaydin and Felicia Wilson, Ken Weller and Kya Kerner to the Board of the Old City Special Services District. I've submitted written testimony and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.

Thank you. Look forward to working with you as always. We thank you for being here this morning. Are there any questions or comments from members of the committee for this witness? (No response.)

Any questions or comments for this witness? (No response.)

Seeing none, we thank you very much for joining us here this morning.

Thank you very much.

There being no further questions from members of the committee and no other witnesses on the list to testify, I will ask if there is anyone else present in this hearing who wishes to offer testimony on Bill Nos. 260295 and Resolution Nos. 260253, 260254, 260255 and 260256? (No response.)

Hearing none, I want to thank all of the witnesses for their participation today. We value your opinion. We will now go into our public meeting to consider the action to be taken on Bill No. 12 260295 and Resolution Nos. 260253, 260254, 260255 and 260256. Ms. Loughead, will you please call the roll to take attendance.

Councilmember Squilla. (No response.)

Councilmember Gauthier. (No response.)

Councilmember Jones. (No response.)

Councilmember Young. (No response.)

Councilmember Driscoll.

Present.

Councilmember Lozada.

Present.

Councilmember Bass.

Present.

Councilmember Phillips.

Present.

Councilmember O'Neill. (No response.)

Councilmember Gilmore Richardson.

Present.

Councilmember Thomas.

Present.

Councilmember Harrity.

Present.

Councilmember Ahmad.

Present.

Councilmember Landau.

Present.

Councilmember Brooks.

Present.

Councilmember O'Rourke.

Present.

Council President Johnson. (No response.)

Thank you. Thank you all so much for being here. We recognize the presence of a quorum. The Chair now recognizes -- the meeting will be at ease. (Council at ease.)

Thank you so much. The Chair now recognizes Councilmember Phillips for a motion on Bill No. 260295.

Thank you, Ms. Chairman. I move that Bill No. 23 260295 be reported from this committee with a favorable recommendation and further move that the rules of Council be suspended to permit first reading of this bill at the next session of Council. (Duly seconded.)

The Chair notes for the record that Councilmember Harrity seconds the motion. And it's been moved and properly seconded that Bill No. 13 260295 be reported from this committee with a favorable recommendation and further move that the rules of Council be suspended as to permit first reading of this bill at the next session of Council. All those in favor will indicate by stating aye. (Aye.)

All those opposed? (No response.)

The ayes have it and the motion carries. Bill No. 5 260295 will be reported from this committee with a favorable recommendation with a request that the rules of Council be suspended as to permit first reading of this bill at the next session of Council. The Chair now recognizes Councilmember Phillips for a motion on Resolution Nos. 260253, 260254, 260255 and 260256.

Thank you, Majority Leader Chair Gilmore Richardson. I move that Resolution 20 Nos. 260253, 260254, 260255, 260256 be reported from this committee with a favorable recommendation and further move that the rules of Council be suspended to permit first reading of this bill at the next session of Council. (Duly seconded.)

The Chair notes for the record that Councilman Harrity seconds the motion. It has been moved and properly seconded that Resolution 10 Nos. 260253, 260254, 260255 and 260256 be reported from this committee with a favorable recommendation and further move that the rules of Council be suspended as to permit first reading of these resolutions at the next session of Council. All those in favor of the motion will indicate by stating aye. (Aye.)

All those opposed? (No response.)

The ayes have it. And Resolution Nos. 260253, 260254, 260255 and 260256 will be reported from this committee with a favorable recommendation with a request for suspension of the rules to permit consideration of these resolutions at our next session of Council. We will now go back into the hearing and take testimony on the Fiscal Year '27 budget bills.

We will now continue to hear testimony on bills regarding operating and capital spending measures for Fiscal Year 2027, a Capital Program and a Forward- looking Capital Plan for Fiscal Year 2027 through Fiscal Year 2032. Ms. Loughead, will you please call the first panel to testify.

Scott Sauer, General Manager for SEPTA. (Witnesses approached witness table.)

How you doing, Scott? How are you?

Thank you. I'm fine, Council President. Appreciate it.

It always good to see you. If you could just state your name for the record and also your team that will be joining you for questioning from members of City Council. Before you get started, I was looking for Wendy Harvey Green.

I think Wendy is waiting for the team. We were rerouted through the entrance into City Hall.

Okay. So I just want to go on record and just acknowledge her hard work and keeping the lines of communication regarding all things SEPTA as well as Pam McCormick on the state level, keeping us abreast on all things SEPTA as we advocate and fight for funding for mass transit on a state level as well as we continue to advocate and address the issues regarding the SEPTA Bus Revolution Plan and making sure it's integrated to our Councilmanic Districts in a smooth, seamless fashion, and also your leadership for being courage under the fire as we address about a year ago the lack of permanent funding on the state budget and working with our Governor Josh Shapiro on the General Assembly for the flex dollars that we did receive on two separate occasions to keep our city moving forward, particularly during this year which is 2026, and we need not have any type of disruption to our transportation system during this period as we celebrate the birthplace of America and there are several different events that will be here during this time. So with that being said, Scott, just state your name for the record and please begin, and also acknowledge your team that's here for lines of questioning as well.

Certainly, and thank you for that. My name is Scott Sauer, S-a-u-e-r, and I am the General Manager of SEPTA. Good morning, Council President Johnson, Transportation and Public Utilities Committee Chair Driscoll and members of City Council. I am joined today at my right by SEPTA's Chief of Transit Police, Charles Lawson, and momentarily, my team will be joining me. I have representatives from across SEPTA's various divisions and departments representing everything from finance to planning to operations and engineering. Thank you for the opportunity to testify on SEPTA's budget request as part of the City of Philadelphia's Fiscal Year 2027 budget process. I'm grateful for the Council's partnership, thoughtful input and steadfast advocacy for transit funding. Today I am pleased to share how we are using the city's support to invest in safety, service, our workforce and the long-term future of the system. The City of Philadelphia's proposed $134 million contribution is essential. It enables SEPTA to meet its legislatively-mandated requirement to secure local matching funds, unlocking nearly $1 billion in state-operating support. Importantly, the city's five-year commitment of nearly $900 million positions SEPTA to fully leverage additional funding anticipated under the Governor's proposed statewide transit funding plan. The Mayor's budget proposal would also maintain two critical partnerships, the city's participation in SEPTA's Key Advantage program and its Zero Fare program. Together, these initiatives expand access to public transportation for city employees and low-income residents, advancing our shared goal of connecting people to jobs, education and opportunity. We're also grateful for the Council's continued support of other shared priorities, including the new bus network implementation, bus and trolley prioritization and lane enforcement, and service and capital initiatives that we are undertaking in the communities we represent. Much of my testimony last year focused on SEPTA's fiscal crisis and the difficult choices we faced to address our budget deficit. Action we took last September redirecting funds dedicated to future SEPTA capital projects to fund operations helped reverse service cuts and stabilize SEPTA's operating budget for two years through June of 2027. Without any mechanism to replace those funds, this one-time fix carries long-term consequences for how SEPTA can serve the city and the region in the future. Temporary fixes are not a substitute for a sustainable funding solution. We are continuing to work with the Governor and our Regional Legislative Delegation to advance dedicated statewide transit funding. And I want to thank the members of City Council for their advocacy on behalf of SEPTA. The city's proposed investment comes at a critical moment. Like Philadelphia itself, SEPTA is building on renewed momentum, and we are using this period of relative stability to focus on the fundamentals of our mission, safety, reliability, cleanliness, accountability and putting our customers first. That focus is producing measurable results. Today SEPTA provides approximately 800,000 daily trips across bus, subway and Regional Rail. Through July 2025, we achieved 51 consecutive months of year-over-year ridership growth. And despite several major snowstorms this winter, ridership has returned following an operationally challenging fourth quarter last year. Those who are riding see an improved system. Our most recent rider survey showed improvement across all categories. Serious crime is at historically low levels, supported by the largest uniformed transit police force in more than a decade. Following a 33% reduction in serious crime in 2024, the largest one-year decline in SEPTA's history, safety improved further in 2025. Preliminary data from the first quarter this year shows an additional 30% decrease compared to the same period last year.

Targeted enforcement and infrastructure improvements are also making a difference. New fare gates and transit police deployments have reduced fare evasion by 10% this year. Fare evasion rates at the stations that have full 10 height fare gates have dropped between 37% and 75%. Based on that success, we are moving forward with plans to install the new gates at another 13 stations. Expanded transit police staffing is allowing us to deploy new transit police patrols on the B and El trains. Following federal emergency orders issued last fall, Regional Rail and trolley operations have rebounded and we are working to build the culture needed to improve safety and reliability moving forward. Our skilled and dedicated workforce is ready for the additional demands that will be placed on the system to fully support the city and the region during the World Cup, the nation's Semiquincentennial, the Major League Baseball All Star Game and the many other events planned in the region this year. With temporary funding in place, we are advancing the phased implementation of the New Bus Network, which takes a major step forward today with two public hearings on the Fiscal Year 2027 Annual Service Plan that will guide the initial phases. This year of transition is reflected in the operating and capital budgets we released last week. Through cost-containment and operational improvements, SEPTA has achieved approximately $30 million in recurring annual savings. Increased revenues from advertising, parking and investments has further strengthened our financial position. As a result, our projected structural deficit has been reduced from $213 million in Fiscal Year 2026 to $192 million in Fiscal Year 2027. The budget also exposes the tenuous status of the Authority's capital program. SEPTA faces a $10 billion state-of-good- repair backlog, including the oldest rail vehicle fleet in the nation that must be replaced. 3 billion over the next 12 years just to advance essential replacement and repairs. This increased reliance on debt will constrain future flexibility and limit our ability to fully meet long-term system needs. Despite these challenges, the progress of the past year demonstrates SEPTA can deliver for our riders and the communities we serve. As we work to secure a sustainable funding solution, we are also investing time and resources to develop our vision for what SEPTA can be. Across the Authority, employees are helping develop SEPTA's next strategic plan, built around five core priorities: putting customers first; investing in an engaged and supported workforce; securing stable, long-term funding; practicing strong fiscal stewardship; and modernizing our infrastructure and technology with adequate funding. This plan will serve as the roadmap for the Authority's next five years, guiding organizational decisions while establishing clear accountability for results. I'm committed to leading SEPTA through this next phase, one that moves the Authority beyond recovery and toward a best-in-class future. I look forward to continuing that work with City Council in achieving that goal. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today in support of SEPTA's Fiscal Year 2027 operating budget request. I appreciate the continued support of Council and welcome your questions.

Thank you very much. And before I get started, I see she has arrived. Again, I want to publicly acknowledge Wendy Harvey Green for her hard work and dedication. (Applause.)

I want to also welcome Hugh Allen to the SEPTA team. I know you from doing this work since I've been a State Representative, so you have a fine gentleman who's a hard worker joining Team SEPTA. So welcome, Hugh. Always good to see you. I just want to take a moment to just answer a couple questions. First, I want to acknowledge the work of our Councilmember Nicolas, who will work for advocating for additional funds for the SEPTA Key program and Zero Fare. Thank you for your leadership, making sure those most in need have a chance to participate and taking advantage of SEPTA and all the opportunities that it provides to utilize that great transit system here in the City of Philadelphia. So I want to personally just thank you for your hard work and advocacy around it. When we went to Harrisburg as a group, as a body and we talked to different members, the House and the Senate, but primarily the Senate, just to get their feedback, most importantly lobbying them for advocacy, for support, for permanent funding for transit. A couple things will come up in the midst of our conversations that we would have to clarify with them around the issue of public safety, right. And we know that our numbers are down, but I think for some apparent reason there's a perception that our numbers are up. So could you just take us to where our numbers are? Two, what are we doing regarding fare evasion? And three, in terms of our police force, are we growing. And if we are growing, at what rate in terms of how we're addressing public safety? And the last part, I remember a couple budget sessions ago, you and your team came and talked about, separate from the law enforcement aspect, we were also dealing with issues regarding behavioral health, drug addiction, homelessness, to address the quality-of-life issues that really isn't a part of I would say the total operation of SEPTA, but you have incurred it as a result of you running your business. And so, could you touch on those four things, please?

Yeah, certainly. And I'll take a little bit of it and I'll have the chief kind of chime in with me strategically. Safety and security is essentially the highest -- it's the highest value that we have and we want to keep safety and security at the forefront. We have made tremendous progress over the last several years at reducing crime on the system, increasing our ability to engage with the most vulnerable riders and at the same time increasing the ranks of our police department. We've made several strategic decisions along the way that have resulted in success in all areas, primarily increasing the ranks of our police officers. We made several decisions a few years ago, worked with the Transit Police Union on pay increases, shrinking the time it takes for an officer to reach the top rate in making the Transit Police Department a much more attractive option for those folks who want to enter law enforcement. We were able to do that and we saw some dividends almost immediately in officers who had left the Transit Authority to pursue other law enforcement options returning to SEPTA. In addition, we have been successfully recruiting. We run two classes a year in the municipal police academy, and we have placed double- digit number of students in that police academy every single time since about 2022. One of the key changes that we made in that time frame of course was promoting Chief Lawson. Chief Lawson, as a lifetime police officer for SEPTA and has risen through the ranks, taken a similar path much like I have to achieve my standing at the Authority, and the Chief rose through the ranks and he brought credibility with him into his position that we needed. In that position, he's been able to motivate and attract recruits into the Transit Police Department. And I'd like to turn it to the Chief to talk about our strategies and the numbers as we see them today. CHIEF LAWSON: So thank you for the question. Thanks, Scott, for that feedback. As Scott said, our staffing numbers have risen for the last three years. They're as high as they've been in or years, where our staffing 12 level at present rate is 96.5% of 13 our budgeted head count. And I've 14 gotten a commitment from the 15 Authority that when I reach that budgeted head count, I don't have to stop hiring. So we are going to continue to hire police officers for as long as we can do so. So that has paid big dividends, right. Like Scott mentioned, the historic lows that we're seeing right now in crime, and they are historic. I've been with the organization for 34 years, and we are seeing crime rate as low as I've seen in my entire time in this police department. So that work is being done. We're having a lot of success with our strategies. The more difficult challenge is the behavioral health issues that you mentioned, right. And it is a more difficult challenge because we don't have the same tools for long-term success as we have. We can't arrest our way out of it. Many of these issues that we're dealing with are non-criminal issues at all. And yet, I have a police force of 200 officers that are trying to address this with limited tools and resources to effect long-term change, but they're doing a great job. Last year my team engaged in more than 200,000 engagements with that community last year, moving the bulk of those folks off. We're having limited success in finding long-term connection to resources, connection to addiction treatment programs, right. We're just not seeing that right now. But we're moving this community out of the system. We're enforcing a code of conduct. We're enforcing safety issues. And so, we're having limited success with nonlong-term tools.

What's the name of the -- before y'all came here, maybe two, three budgets ago, you had a gentleman who had a whole operation that supplemented the police. Your job is police, right, but you had somebody else who was strictly responsible for the behavioral health issues, the drug addiction issues and the homelessness issue so all of it wouldn't be on just the police. So where's the -- I don't remember his name, but I remember the presentation. And is he still a part of this current operation?

Yes. So the person you're referring to is Ken Divers. Ken retired from the Authority I think the end of '24, early '25. That program still exists. It resides --

What's the name of it?

SCOPE.

SCOPE, that's what it was.

Safety, Cleaning, Ownership, Partnership, Engagement, and that program was, as you described, designed to remove the responsibility from police officers. So that program still exists. We are in a transition phase. When we came to you last year, we talked about we were moving away from some of the existing providers that we had partnerships with. We have a request for proposals that's out on the street today to re-engage with new providers. But we also have partnerships with local mental health and addiction specialists that are helping us. We have a woman, Theresa White, who runs that program within the police department. And so, we've married the two components together to give it structure and better strategies for how we deploy officers, how we deploy specialists to engage with the most vulnerable that are on the system.

But in the meanwhile while you go through transition and the RFP is out there, I guess what I'd like to say is it's a gap in between -- because on one end the Captain is saying we're making limited progress. In order to make sure we're having more than limited progress, we would have to have that RFP responded to and then the whole operation get started where the police have an opportunity to police, and hopefully there will be a team like it was before going on more than likely the Sub and the El as compared to the buses, just checking on what's going on from the quality of a person's experience who's getting on the bus and the El, would that be correct?

Yes. So while we've transitioned between the two contracts, the bulk of the interactions has fallen either on the police department or on the limited partnerships that we have. So part of the redeployment of police resources to the trains that we recently did was to address some of those quality-of-ride issues that you're speaking of today. And, that is, folks who are riding with no destination, who need help, they need resources. And so, our police officers are engaging those folks and offering those resources while helping them to move through the system. But, yes, all that is happening within the police department.

Just a question for the Captain and then I'll turn it over to my members. What does a day look like for officers who actually frequently check in from railroad car to railroad car on the El and the Subway? And the reason why I ask that question is because I do get individuals reaching out saying, I was on my way to work today -- I know my staff probably heard me because he was one of them. I was on my way to work and people are getting high on the train, people are getting high on the El, and I have to deal with this while I'm on the train and while I'm on the El, right. So I'm like okay. And we have people come down to Council and say, oh, SEPTA, at the end of the day, like it's this magical thing we need to be a part of, where I didn't grow up with a car in my household, to be quite frank with you and everybody inside this room. The transit mode every day was SEPTA. It was the 29. It was the famous 17 bus to this day, right, the 7 bus growing up in South Philly. But also, I know that Broad Street Line like the back of my hand, so it's nothing new to me to know the train station particularly from Pattison Avenue. Because I'm from South Philly, we pretty much used to stop at City Hall. But I know under Walnut Street, you know, as a kid riding my bike under there, but that's a different conversation, right. So I know it back and forth, right as well as the Frankford Line because we used to go to the Frankford Mall back in the day. You would take the El to Martha Orthodox coming from South Philadelphia. But I understand it's a very different experience today than it was back then. I know a key aspect is that visibility of police presence to try to tell folks, you're not going to get high, you're not going to rob, you're not going to do all those things to tear down the quality of life and you have a choice to make. Either you straighten up and get in line or you will not be on this transit system, because you got children that's on these buses on the El, you have seniors. And so, I think a couple bad apples, you know, I'm going to call a spade a spade, have to be dealt with on behalf of the interests of everybody else who's good, law-abiding transit riders. So we're not going to help the people that's on there doing wrong. And if you need mental health issue support, we will provide mental health support. But you will not disturb my little nieces and nephews who are getting on the Subway and on the El, period. And I don't apologize for that approach at all. CHIEF LAWSON: Yeah. So the success that we've had with serious crime on the system has really allowed us to turn the full weight of our attention to those quality-of-life issues. Serious crime is not happening largely on the train, right. So we were spending a lot of time off the train focusing on serious crime. Now that we have that under control, all of our time is being spent on trains. I'll give you an example of a weekly report that we run last week. 200 train runs, 1100 hours of patrol, just cops on trains, and that's what they're doing. They're enforcing largely our code of conduct, right. So smoking, open containers of alcohol, taking up more than one seat, these issues that are really not criminal in nature, but they lose their rights and that's exactly our approach. And so, you lost your ride. Some of these issues result in a 24-hour ban. And so, we ban them for the day depending on how serious the infraction was, but that's been our approach. We've been seeing that translate into a little better feedback from our customers, right. This is a fairly new plan. We've been doing this for about a month, but we're already seeing results from it.

And how are we dealing with -- I think we're better than New York, but they have this ride fare -- I mean, not ride fare. What is it called, fare evasion equipment, where you try to hop the turnstile -- well, they used to have the bars down the bottom, that's big, but you try to jump the turnstile to get on the train for free. Where are we in terms of modern technology to actually stop individuals who think it's okay to ride the train for free?

So we've completed installation of full- height fare gates with full-height doors, like saloon-style doors. They are much, much harder, much more difficult to defeat. It's not to say they're impenetrable, because there's still opportunities there that we have to address. But we've installed these gates at 10 locations, 10 stations already, including City Hall Station, if you've been through City Hall Station. They have made a tremendous difference. We've seen fare evasion at those stations drop off anywhere from 40% to 75%. In the budget that we're proposing this year, we are proposing to install those at 13 more stations, which will assist in those areas. But then there's also a project that we're undertaking, which we'll introduce later this year, to try to harden the existing turnstile infrastructure. While we can't get the full height fare gates at every location right away, we can harden some of the infrastructure that we have to make it more difficult for folks to not pay their fare. And we couple that with the Chief's police deployment, which even presses down on that number even further. The police officers have issued thousands of citations to folks who are fare evading. We always give them a chance to go back out and come back through on a fare. But if they insist, then the police will issue a citation.

And last but not least, how are we protecting our SEPTA workers who are on the buses? How do we deal with the Local 234 type of issues where the SEPTA drivers are pretty much doing their job, but a lot of times they have to deal with a variety of different things that really has nothing to do with them, but it just comes with the job of them being a SEPTA bus driver?

There --

We want to put the plastic shield that will be around the actual bus drivers to keep them safe, right, hopefully bulletproof.

Yes. So there's several modifications we've made structurally to the bus to protect the operator. So the shield that you're speaking of, so we have evolved from a three- quarter type shield that they can retract at on demand. We've now introduced a fully-encapsulated driver compartment, where the shield now goes from the rear of the operator all the way to near the window. It's very difficult for someone who wants to get back there to do it simultaneously. We've enhanced the communications for operators. They have silent alarms that they can trigger to get police response. That silent alarm would automatically go into our control center. The control center can see where the vehicle is by GPS. It opens an ambient mic, we can listen. The police have capabilities now to look in live through the camera system. We also created or modified the bus to include an emergency egress window to the operator's left. There's not a door there so the operator would technically be trapped, should they not be able to exit through the same door that the customers use. Now, the operator could, in an emergency, get out through that window. So we've made a number of modifications to the bus itself. We are still looking at bullet- resistant glass. That glass does present some engineering challenges for us because it's very heavy, so we're still working through those challenges. But the full encapsulation and the enhanced communications have been pretty well-received, and we have worked hand-in-hand with Local 234 to develop these ideas as we've gone along. I'll let the Chief -- if you don't mind, the Chief has strategies he's used to address buses and trolleys as well. CHIEF LAWSON: Yeah. For the first time a year ago, we created a unit within the police department that focused on nothing but our service transportation. You've never had that in the past. That group has been instrumental in reducing crime on buses 16% last year, but they've also reduced assaults on our bus operators, physical assaults on the operators. Not only is it coming down, but they've given that allows now the surface group and our operators and that team, a specific leadership team, to work with in the police department that addresses nothing but their issues.

Okay. I just want to recommend that you and your team show these updates to Senator McCormick -- I'm sorry, not McCormick, Senator Pittman. We can do McCormick as well so we can get some of that federal funding as well. But I would have that conversation with Senator McCormick and a variety of different Senators who pretty much have final say on the budget in Harrisburg. And show that, one, our numbers reflect that we are making progress. Two, these are things that we're addressing regarding fare evasion. And three, here's the strategy regarding -- well, not even just the strategy, but the progress we have been making in terms of safety of the ridership as well as those who operate all of our buses and trains. I just think that goes a long way when we're doing our advocacy up there and we're fighting -- that was direct conversation that they would have. That was the reason they would come up with why they couldn't support us. Whether we want to believe it or not, they're the ones in power that's going to approve the budget so we have to make our case to them that what they may think is the case isn't necessarily the case, and here's the facts and here's the progress that we are making as a transit authority. With that being said, the Chair recognizes Councilmember Majority Leader Katherine Gilmore Richardson, then Chair of Transportation Mike Driscoll, and then Councilmember Rue Landau and Kendra Brooks.

Thank you. Thank you so much, Council President. And thank you, Scott Sauer and your entire team. We appreciate the work that you all continue to do on our behalf, Chief Lawson, Michael Carroll, all the SEPTA Board members led by Board Chair Ken Lawrence. Wendy Green Harvey, thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you for always being there for all of our calls and requests. And also, to the new bus network team for your collaboration. I'm going back a couple years now, but I wanted to say thank you again based on the work with the new bus network. And I know that there were several iterations. And now, you're ready to proceed with this new bus network. Can you provide an update on the implementation and how you all will be working to ensure all riders, but especially the ones that are hard to reach, like our seniors, our students, working parents will be notified about the bus network changes?

Sure. Thank you for that. So today we are kicking off our first hearing for the Annual Service Plan, which is just highlighting of course the New Bus Network. And so, a couple things that we learned -- actually we learned a great deal last year during the phases of the service cuts that we were implementing as a result of our budget issues. And as we were going through that process, we deployed staff actually out to bus stops to talk to riders on the ground, where they live waiting for our service. And what we found is that really made a difference in folks' ability to understand what we were doing. As you well know, the service cuts was a drastic change from what people were accustomed to, even well beyond what we're doing on the New Bus Network. So we really wanted to make sure that people understood what those changes meant for them and their daily commute. And by getting out in the field with riders at the bus stop really made a difference. So we have taken that lesson and applied it as we move through the New Bus Network. So the bus network is going to be implemented in several phases for the next to months. 14 And so, what we are 15 taking is we're taking each phase 16 as kind of an implementation 17 process, a means to get out and 18 talk to the folks. And since most 19 of the phases work regionally 20 within the network, we're able to 21 target specific areas of the city 22 and the region to talk to them 23 about what's changing in that 24 phase. So we don't have to really inundate them with all of it all at once. I mean, it's great if they want to know it and that information will be available. But when we're out talking about changes, generally we're going to talk to people about the changes that they're going to see every day, because it's their bus route, it's their rail route and it's going to change their connections and that sort of thing. So we are talking to them about that as the phases go. We've already done a number of town halls and a number of open houses before today in advance of the first implementation phase, which starts in August.

And I'm sure with the bus operators as well. Shout-out to TWU 234.

Yes, and thank you for that. But, yes, absolutely. So we have spoken of course with TWU's leadership and going depot-by-depot to talk to the operators about what's happening in their depot, because some of these changes obviously are happening on a depot-by-depot basis.

Right.

That was some of the feedback I got last year during the cuts. As I was going depot-to-depot telling them about what was happening, they were bringing me to the board and showing me how their roots were changing. So we took those lessons back and were applying those to the New Bus Network implementation as well. Yes, we're trying to address every stakeholder, including Council, including our county leaders as well as to make sure that everybody is well-informed and that we can answer their questions well before implementation actually occurs.

Okay. That'll be great. I heard the bell and I'll honor the clock. But I just wanted to put on the record please to continue to send us the information -- we'll receive it from Wendy -- that we can share with our constituents and our E-newsletters. We're already getting the information, but continue to send it to us so we can get it out to our board of constituencies that we represent. I will submit questions for written response due to time limitations relative to the repurposing of the capital dollars in that timeline. And also, what you all have budgeted for capital funding and what percentage of those funds you encumber each year, what percentage you actually spend? And then also on the revenue side, around passenger revenue and sort of what you anticipate from a budget perspective on passenger revenue moving forward, particularly starting with 2026? I'll submit those questions for written response. But just wanted to say thank you for your continued work and advocacy and working together with this body, with Council President, our Chair of Transportation, and advocating on behalf of Philadelphia in Harrisburg. So thank you very much for that work. And I have to say this too. Prez brought this up around riding the bus, and I still call the Broad Street bus the C bus. Okay. I think it's 4 now, but I think it was the C when I was in high school. I'm just going to be honest, completely honest, and I usually don't even do this on the record. I don't like the new LBT. I don't like that, because I think that you all are trying to make SEPTA more so like the New York bus system. So I get it, L, the Market-Frankford, B for Broad Street. I get it, right. But to me, it looks like New York. And I think we have to be cognizant of the fact that we are Philadelphia and we need to keep the character of our city at the forefront of the work that we do. So I just wanted to mention that for the team and the staff on the back-end. I know you all got upset with me about this last time. Who may or may not be from Philadelphia, who may or may not be born and raised here, to remember the cultural and historical significance of what our transit system means to us. It doesn't have to look like -- everything doesn't have to look like New York City. We are Philadelphia. Thank you. (Applause.)

Fair enough.

Thank you, Majority Leader. Chair recognizes Councilmember Mike Driscoll, Chair of Transportation.

Thank you, Mr. President. And welcome, Chief, and welcome, Scott. Scott, I appreciate that five-step plan that you've outlined. Appreciate that, but I wanted to ask before I get to my questions, you're not new to SEPTA. You've been there a long time, both of you. And with all your experience, what is your vision for SEPTA going forward?

Sure. Thank you for that. Last year we talked a lot about what SEPTA will be if we are not funded. And so, as we shifted away from that, even though it's a temporary solution, I wanted to shift the language and I want to talk about what SEPTA can be if we are funded. If we get a permanent funding solution and we do all the things that we want to do with SEPTA, the things that our customers and that Council wants us to do, this is what we can be. And what that vision looks like is it looks like a system that is modern. It runs frequent, reliable service. It's service that will arrive regardless of whether you have a printed timetable in your hand or a digital timetable on your electronic device, that I can just show up at the street corner and I know that bus will arrive within minutes 5 or I know that that train will 6 arrive within 15 minutes. 7 I want a system that 8 that our workforce is well-trained, 9 highly-skilled, that they are 10 attentive to our customers' needs 11 and that they know what's expected 12 of them and that they perform to 13 that expectation every single day, 14 a system that is clean, a system 15 that folks can get in and be proud of, that they'll bring visitors from, from other cities or other countries and that we don't have to try to spruce up in order to meet that demand. We're already there. It's kind of the same approach you would want to have in your own home where I don't want to have to clean my home just because somebody dropped by. I want it to be clean and ready to receive company any time I need it. I want that for the people that use it every day. I want that for visitors. In order to get there, we have to change the way we do business internally. So I need a leadership team that is responsive and that is meeting needs and looking ahead strategically, and that's the point of this strategic business plan initiative. It's the point of the vision document, to show what SEPTA can be. We have a real opportunity. Because over the next 5 to 10 years, we're going to have at least three modern rail fleets coming onto the property, the trolleys, the Market-Frankford Line and the Silverliner VIs. We have an opportunity to fast-forward into the 21st century in a way that SEPTA has never done before. We've never procured three major rail fleets all at once the way we're going to try to do, and we still have to do the Broad Street Line. So we still have a ways to go. But in 5 to 10 years, it's going to happen whether we like it or not and we have to be ready for it. And that means all the infrastructure. I want to have a system where our platforms are all high level on Regional Rail. I want to be able to board in a light as quickly as we can. I don't want to be compared to Europe and Asia and be told, how come you guys can't be like them. I want people to say, hey, you got to ride in Philly because that's the way their system is. I want to be better than New York City. I don't want to be New York City any more than the Councilmember wants to be New York City. I want New York City to look at Philadelphia and say, we want to be like Philly. So that's our vision, and we have a path to get there.

Zohran is offering free bus rides though. So I mean, zero fare is great but he's talking about all free, like just get on the bus and go as you please.

We don't need Zohran. We have Mayor Parker. We don't need Zohran.

I know that's right. Say it again, One City. That's what I'm talking about.

That's what I want for SEPTA and that's what I want for Philly.

Well, I think that's what we want, so we appreciate you articulating that. Real quick -- Mr. President, just a couple questions -- to follow up on your question, there's full height fare gates. You said maybe between 45% and 70% we're achieving that. Not necessarily today, but can you translate that into real revenue projections for us?

So we were projecting -- we were losing about $50 million annually in fare evasion. Now, that's system-wide. So if you just annotate that into those individual systems, those individual stations, assuming that, say, 1000 people come through that station, then they're all paying -- just for the sake of round numbers, let's call it $3, that's $3,000. So if we were missing 50% of that revenue and now we've reduced that 50% number to, say, 25%, that's a significant savings station-by- station. And some of those stations are much busier than others. City Hall Station, for example, where the gates have been going in, that's the hub of the wheel, if you will. So we are seeing tremendous system-wide fare evasion has dropped by about 10%. Now, that takes into account also that our fares went up last year. So the raw number might be higher, but 10% fewer people are evading the fare system-wide. And at those stations, half, sometimes three- quarters fewer are evading the fare thanks in large part to the infrastructure hardening, plus the attention that the transit police gives.

This is why I think it's very important. And Council President and the folks who went to Harrisburg with us last budget season, the Republican Senate kept harping on those opportunities that we're not recovering. So as we are giving you more money to increase those stations, I think that's important in this budget, that we can go back to them and say, we hear you and we are doing something about that. Real quick, can you tell us about -- I know with Silverliners, you had to do all those and you were under tremendous pressure. Where are we at with all that?

So the really good news is we had a target of return of getting back to daily about 200 Silverliners back in service every day. And we have achieved that. The number drops off from time to time because we were very cautious with the equipment. But every day, we put out roughly between 180 and 200 Silverliners. And that was our goal. 223 worth was the fleet of Silverliner IVs. We were able to achieve all the inspections. We were able to achieve all the repairs, but for about 10 cars that are sitting out with long lead time items, but we were able to achieve that in short order. Now, we didn't do a good job and that's what got us into that mess. But what we have done systematically over the last six months is we've changed the leadership of that organization within SEPTA. We've changed our approach. We've added standard operating procedures. We've added more training. And the best part of it is our workforce really stepped up. They gave us so much time and effort over the course of those three or four months to get us back to a place where at least now we can show better reliability. There are still going to be days when our Regional Rail customers may have to board a train that only has two cars. But every day we shoot to have three and four car consists on the trains every day and we continue to aim for that goal. We can't say it'll be perfect. It won't be perfect until we get a new fleet. This is an old fleet. It needs some real TLC, and that's what we're going to do for it, at least for the foreseeable future until the new fleet begins to arrive. But we're there. We are in a much better place today than we were even back in January.

Well, thanks to your team for that. I know you were working around the clock. Appreciate that. So prepandemic to now, where are we at in ridership?

So we've shown about a growth over the last four years every single month but for a couple months at the end of last year with the difficulties we were having. But overall, we are showing about close to 80% of what we were prior to the pandemic. We're still running only about 90% of the service that we ran prior to the pandemic. So we are still growing. We saw growth last month. We're back into a growth phase again, coming away from the Regional Rail issues. So we're back into a growth phase. We have very aggressive ideas on how to grow ridership through the Key Advantage program as the city is part of through Zero Fare, through other fare, more ridership-focused programs to try to lure in. The best advertising for getting people back on SEPTA is to improve our service, and that's what we have to do and that's what our goal is as we push through every single day, is to improve the service, make it reliable, make it safe, make it clean, and that's what will bring people back. When our customers get out and talk to people and say, hey, I ride SEPTA every day, I don't have any problems, it's always okay. That's the best advertising we can have, and that's what we shoot for. Our customer surveys all show that the people who are riding, the people who respond to our surveys are seeing improvement. They've also seen places that we can do better. That's how we're going to grow ridership, and that is what our goal is, is to get back to 100% and beyond. We were growing until about 2013 and then over the years ridership started to dip. There were a lot of factors why that is. People were, you know, remote work was a thing even before 2020, but it was generally one day a week. And we saw that on Fridays. We saw that dip on Fridays. So we saw where things were starting to tinker off. The introduction of rideshare, TNCs, we took a hit on that as well. We are trying to recover that ridership. We're trying to do it in ways that make the system more attractive, the New Bus Network, trolley modernization. All the things that we're doing to try to speed up bus service, the AI cameras, the enforcement cameras, the dedicated bus lanes, they were all part of a strategy to get people back on the system. And all the things we've done for bus service have actually shown bus ridership to grow faster than our other modes. Bus service is almost all the way back and that's really encouraging. So we know we can get there.

That's great. I mean, look, I know prepandemic the world changed because people are working from home. I get all that, but it sounds like we're on the right direction. Lastly, are we ready for 250? And the second part of that question is other cities are contemplating special fares. What are your thoughts on that?

So we're working with the organizers on fare-related issues, right. So I'm not prepared to tell you exactly what that is because that announcement is coming, but we are working with organizers on fare, on special fares and things like that to support the events. But the short answer is we've been preparing for this since it was proposed. I'm a soccer fan, so I was excited about this. As soon as it became a thing, we wanted to, we want to do this. SEPTA does big things. We do big events and we do them well. We did the Eagles parade a couple seasons ago and we brought 400,000 people in and we took 400,000 people out and we did it without incident, and we did it safely and efficiently. We can do big things and we're excited to do this. We have plans for enhanced service on the Broad Street Line. We have plans for enhanced service on a couple of our bus routes that are going to serve the Fan Fest. We have plans for ambassadors to be out and about, in the field directing folks, guiding them back and forth through services. The difference between an event of this magnitude in the summer versus an Eagles parade, people are going to be kind of everywhere all at once, going here and there, whereas the Eagles parade it was everybody coming in and everybody going out. And that makes it much more challenging for us, but we're ready to meet that challenge and we've been planning for this for several years and it's even more intense now as we inch ever closer to it. We've already supported the Flower Show. That was kind of the kickoff of our 2026 schedule of events. We supported March Madness, Phillies opening day. As these events start to kick off, we're exercising that muscle to really kind of get ready for the big one when it starts in June. We're excited to provide that service and I think we're ready.

Thank you very much. I also want to acknowledge the presence, I didn't see him earlier, Michael Carroll, who's the head of OTIS, which is the key lead organization that brings everybody together when it comes to infrastructure, transportation and sustainability, so always a pleasure to see you. We were just down at the Bellwether District on the Lower South Plan with all the key institutions to talk about how the 2nd Councilmanic District is a key part of regional growth as we move forward in the City of Philadelphia in partnership with our Mayor. So it's always good to see you, Mike. At this time, the Chair recognizes Councilmember Landau, Minority Leader Kendra Brooks and Councilmember Cindy Bass.

Thank you, Council President. Thank you for being here. Yay, SEPTA. Quick follow- up. I heard that Councilmember Driscoll already asked, but my most recent time of riding SEPTA was this past weekend. Pretty good with the cleanliness. I was pretty impressed, smelled good and everything. But underneath the Clothespin did not at all. Smelled a lot like urine. And I was curious if SEPTA has any plans or would be willing to have some plans of down there, especially the businesses are not up and running right now, of having those new Porta Potty things, I forget what we're calling them, but having those down there so people could actually use the bathroom?

So we generally don't do public restrooms, but for specific locations, our biggest hubs. Part of the reason for that is those restrooms need ongoing attention, and we have dedicated cleaners to those restroom facilities because they are only in several different locations. Now, for big events we have done portable toilets at some of the really big stuff that we've done, like for the Papal visit, for example, some of those bigger events. But placing restrooms in a particular facility for us would be problematic for a number of ways, but certainly staffing it. But then one location versus another, folks will certainly, you know, why not us. We would get into kind of envy, class envy kind of thing, they got bathrooms and we don't. It would really stretch our cleaning and security resources.

So maybe you could talk to the city about putting --

We can certainly do that. We can certainly do that.

Okay. Thank you. So I wanted to talk a little bit about Zero Fare, which I know that my colleague Nicolas O'Rourke has been championing as well. Apologies that I had to step out for a minute. I'm very relieved to see that the Mayor put Zero Fare back into the budget this year. But with the $25 million allocation, what's the estimate on how many Philadelphians can be provided with Zero Fare cards? And is this an increase from last year's participants? Is it comparable to last year or is it an increase?

So there's about 68,000 eligible recipients of the Zero Fare program. And that's 170% more than what was in the original program. The original program, if you remember, was about 25,000. So there's been a significant uptick in the number of recipients of the Zero Fare program. And what we know from when we've put in these sorts of programs is it doesn't just give people who would ride anyway an opportunity to ride, but it gives people who maybe wouldn't ride because of that restriction. Now, they might ride because they have a fare card in their hand. And that's true of Zero Fare. It's true of Key Advantage and we've seen it, that it does induce new ridership for folks who now have something in their hand. So, yes, it's been an exponential uptick in the number of recipients in the program through the funding levels that have been provided.

If the program serves Philadelphians under 150% of the federal poverty rate, but that's something like 500,000 Philadelphians so --

It is limited. It is certainly limited. I mean, but we certainly appreciate the effort that Council and the City are making towards getting more people into the program. But you're right, it doesn't address everyone.

What would it take to expand the program?

Well, it takes ongoing discussions with the city and figuring out what levels of funding would like to be provided.

Okay.

For every card that gets funded, we'll provide it. We have capacity. We can take those riders. We certainly have the capacity to take that. It's just a matter of deciding how we're going to fund it and at what level.

Okay. I want to ask also about student fares, which I've been asking almost every year. I introduced a resolution September 2024 to expand student fares to weekends and evenings. Currently, student fares are only valid from 5:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. weekdays and for students who live 1.5 miles or more from a school with a $10 charge if the student needs to take the Regional Rail. Students are more than just students now. They have to go to work. They go to their afterschool programs. They go to all of the amazing job training programs that we have in the city, many of which are supported by City Council. And we want them to be able to access these things and sometimes they need to come home after 8 o'clock. Sometimes their job is on their weekends. We don't want them taking money out of their weekend paychecks to do this. So can you share any more insight on your openness and conversation with the school district in expanding student fare passes to more students and more times the week and year? And what can we do to help?

Sure. First off, I'll say that SEPTA is very proud to be the transportation provider for the School District of Philadelphia. And we know that there's about 52,000 kids that are on SEPTA every single day. We provide these passes. Essentially, the Commonwealth provides the funding to the school district who then pays SEPTA for the fare instruments. We're aware of the restrictions on the cards, and SEPTA is open to providing transportation any hour, any day for anyone. And so, what it would take to get there, and truth be told, we've not had this specific conversation with the school district, but we certainly could initiate this. What it would take essentially is more funding, because we give a discount on the card because of its restrictions. So if we open the card to more hours, we would of course raise the fare to the school district, essentially raising the fare to the Commonwealth and then they would provide that funding to us, and we could unlock that card for any time, any day. Again, it comes back to what I said earlier, we have the capacity to introduce this. And we also know that by introducing students at an early age to use mass transit, to ride mass transit, they learn how to take care of themselves, how to move, how to transport themselves, from here to there. They become much more responsible citizens. They become good citizens for us and for the future. We want to be part of that and we're happy to do what it takes to get there. What it will take is funding for that program.

Okay. Thank you. I'll hold my next one for the next round. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much. Chair recognizes Councilmember Kendra Brooks, Councilmember Cindy Bass who's near and dear to SEPTA, and then Councilmember Dr. Nina Ahmad.

Thank you so much, Council President. Thank you, SEPTA, for coming out and taking our questions. My first question is, is SEPTA willing to engage in a strategic partnership with rideshare companies to help optimize service delivery for riders with accessibility needs?

The short answer is yes, we are. We are open to that idea. And we have engaged rideshare companies on this, on this approach a few times over the years. In the early parts of the rideshare kind of phase, there were some federal restrictions on how we could use rideshares. There are still some federal hurdles we have to overcome that apply to our drivers, because we are recipients of federal dollars so our drivers are subject to some federal requirements, such as drug and alcohol testing and so on. So we have to overcome some of those challenges. But, yes, we are very much open. In fact, I would say we're more than open because we know that we have our own challenges in meeting the demand for our paratransit and our shared ride customers, so we have very limited resources for drivers and availability, and that does reveal itself in some of the customer dissatisfaction in the service we're providing. So we are open to engaging with TNCs to the extent possible and getting them to become part of the SEPTA system.

Oh, that's great news. My next question is about SEPTA's Key Advantage. We think it's a great program and it helps Philadelphia and saves money on transportation and helps businesses lower cost and it helps keep our buses safer with increased ridership. I want to thank you for working with City Council to create and expand this program. Can you tell us about the participation levels in this program and how has the Key Advantage participation changed over the past year? And how about the preceding three years?

So Key Advantage started with a couple pilot companies, some of the bigger organizations in the region, and many of them have remained customers. And again, it comes down to for us, it's providing transit to the organization. So they in turn provide that fare to their employees as an employment benefit. We have some really large partners as part of that, and there's a number of programs that engage in that. And I'm looking for -- so at the current participation levels, funding is about million 4 annually so that's new revenues 5 that we may not otherwise have. 6 And again, it comes down to 7 inducing ridership. What we've 8 learned as we've engaged with our 9 partners in this program is when 10 someone has a fare card in their 11 hand, they're much more likely to 12 use it and that puts more people on 13 transit and fewer people on our 14 roadways. 15 We have some really big 16 partners, Penn Medicine being one 17 of them, who has been with us from 18 the beginning. We have engaged 19 with landlords to have them engage 20 with renters. We are looking for 21 some of the bigger partners. I've 22 already spoken with folks at Temple University, for example, to try to bring them into the fold. Community College of Philadelphia, we've done a program with them for the West Philly campus. So there's a number of these institutions in Philly that have engaged with us and continue to engage with us to get them involved. So there's a lot to do there.

Do you have any ideas of how we can increase participation in the program? And to the thought of CCP, what is the partnership with CCP and does it include students, especially students that receive the CATTO scholarship?

So the CCP relationship, we were both parties or have been engaged in negotiations to figure out how to expand that partnership. I know that's been very public, but the truth of the matter is we have been speaking with Community College to try to expand their footprint in the program, how they engage, whether it's the full student population, because many of their students are part-time so they're looking at what that means to them and how they can engage in that, but that's a decision that the Community College will make. And we're in discussions with them now in how to help them arrive at a good decision.

Thank you so much.

Certainly.

Thank you very much. Chair recognizes Councilmember Cindy Bass, then Councilmember Dr. Nina Ahmad, then Councilmember Anthony Phillips.

Thank you, Mr. President. I just wanted to -- I had a couple of questions, but I wanted to start off to go back to Councilmember Kathy Gilmore Richardson's point about the changes to SEPTA -- hello. How are you, sir?

How are you?

Good to see you. But I wanted to go to her point about the changes to SEPTA. I wanted to ask, and I'll ask specifically for those of us who grew up sort of like North Philly and South Philly. Councilmember Brooks, Council President Johnson, what was the bus line that ran up and down Broad Street? What was that bus?

The C.

Does anybody know what the bus that goes up and down Broad Street is now?

No. 2

No. 3

Somebody knows.

And so, the point I'm making here is we still call it the C bus. You know, you change the name, you change some of the scope of service on it. For most of us, it's kind of I'm going to catch the C bus and go down to South Philly or up to North Philly or whatever, and it remains. So we've spent a lot of money on these changes that a lot of Philadelphians really have not embraced. And I'm someone who grew up in the city catching SEPTA. I know how to get to every part of the city thanks to SEPTA. I used to take the 48, the 33, the Route 60 to 54. Those were my North Philly lines. But because of those lines and SEPTA's work, I know the city so much better. Because again, like the Council President, we didn't have a car. SEPTA was our car, so we have a lot of respect for the work that you do. Now, that being said, I do have some concern in your conversation. You mentioned the funding crisis that threatened last year, SEPTA service cuts, fare increases and the like, which really had all of us and the legislators in Harrisburg extremely nervous about what that was going to mean for our constituents. But then there was this article I came across in the paper that we were giving away five properties in very desirable neighborhoods along the Chestnut Hill East and the Chestnut Hill West Line to a developer for 99 years for $1. It was the first of its kind agreement, and it certainly should be the last of its kind. Also, I want to point out that another piece of real estate SEPTA owned was leased to a developer in Ambler, and that was just this year and they're paying $402,500 per year, with annual 3% increases for a total of $236 million going to SEPTA over 99 years. So help me understand, $236 million or $1. Help me understand. Make it make sense.

Sure, I would love to do that. So the two examples are really vastly different. What we leased for $1 were the station buildings, not the whole property. The station still belongs to SEPTA, the station building, which in many cases will likely be transformed into some retail space, coffee shop, food service place, so that is a much smaller investment for anyone than the property that you're speaking of out in Ambler or contract, where it's an entire parcel that will be developed into housing with a parking garage and maybe retail. So it is a little bit different in the approach that we took.

So I have no doubt that it's different. But at the same time, $1 for five properties is outrageous when you're asking us for money. It is outrageous that these kinds of conversations are even being had and that SEPTA is having the financial cliff that threatens us all. For those of us who ride SEPTA now, who have ridden SEPTA and respect the work that you all are doing, for those of us who care about public transportation, it is really quite outrageous that SEPTA would give away this very valuable property on a very desirable line, the Chestnut Hill East and the Chestnut Hill West. I just really cannot make sense of what has happened here.

I certainly understand your position. But what I will say is we tried to lease those properties individually and we went through a bid process that wound up at $1. These properties --

I'm sorry and don't want to cut you off, but I would say in saying that you went through a bid process, we were never contacted so I don't know who you -- if you needed some help or we're looking for some minority participation. Because the other thing I want to mention is that there is no minority participation on these properties, and that is as well shameful when you look at the overall ridership that supports SEPTA day-to-day.

And certainly, the first time that you and I spoke about this, that was one of your chief concerns, we had not engaged you well enough. And I acknowledge that that is probably the case. So we have done a much better job on the Germantown property, for example, that I know we've engaged you and your office a great deal and you've given us great feedback on that. So we are learning from that lesson that you pointed out to us on how better to engage with Council, how better to engage with your teams and the communities. So, yes, certainly we could have done much better in our communications with you during that process.

Okay. That doesn't fix.

Understood.

And as I understand it, in our research these were properties from the original -- before it was SEPTA, it was PTC?

Probably long before. It's railroad property. So it's likely Pennsylvania Railroad or --

When it was PTC, part of the conversation that we've been advised of is that the leasing of these properties, there is some question as to the legality of the leasing of the properties because they are actually PTC properties that were leased to SEPTA. So there is a question as to if these properties could be sublet. And so, that's a conversation that we will have. But I just think the optics of this really look horrific for SEPTA. And again, we're out here selling this product. And the product is if you're connected, you can get five properties for $1 for 100 years. Sounds great if you're in the loop, if you're on the end. But for most of us, this looks like somebody got a hook-up. Plain and simple, somebody got a hook-up. And as we're talking about trying to put more money into programs like Zero Fare, that's where that money comes from, that's where we get those dollars from. So I know you get it. I know you understand exactly where I'm coming from. Because again, we have had that conversation before. Two other things I wanted to mention just briefly, and that is that SEPTA operators -- I don't know if you know this or not -- bus operators are being blamed for tickets that if people are in bus lanes and the bus automatically gives them a ticket, then the operator is assumed to have done something, signaled them somehow, caused that ticket to happen. So we already have some concern about keeping our operators safe. That's something I think that SEPTA really needs to look into. And the other thing really quickly was, I was glad to hear you say that you want clean stations. You want your stations to be clean at all times. It shouldn't matter if somebody's dropping by or whatever. The station really just should be clean. Because we had this conversation previously with a general manager who said, well, we're doing the best we can. No, that's the wrong answer. The stations were pretty dirty. I'm glad to hear you say that. I do have a concern about the lack of bathrooms in the subway system. I can't remember who mentioned that -- okay, Rue, my colleague, Councilmember Landau. Because I have a connection with SEPTA in the subway system. As an example, the elevator at the North Philadelphia Station, which is Broad and Lehigh, is constantly broken. And it's broken because people are using it as a restroom. And so, SEPTA needs to figure out how to get restrooms in the stations. It's really just that simple. I know it's probably a whole lot more expensive to send out the mechanics to fix an elevator that is eroding because someone is urinating constantly in the elevator system. So if SEPTA could figure out how to make that happen, I think in the long run it's actually going to save you all some money on those kinds of repairs. So thank you, Mr. President. Those were my questions.

Thank you very much. Chair recognizes Councilmember Dr. Nina Ahmad, Councilmember Dr. Anthony Phillips, then Councilmember Quetcy Lozada, then Mr. O'Rourke.

Thank you, Council President. Good morning still, almost. Good to see you all. Thank you for all the work you do. And once again, we recognize Wendy who keeps us plugged in. I wanted to go back to 2021. I know you were not in this position, but you were in SEPTA, as was many of you. And there was that horrific sexual assault that happened on a train between here and Upper Derby to 69th Terminal. I was not elected at that time. I was the President of the National Organization for Women, the Pennsylvania Chapter, and we had a rally that got on the train and went from there to Upper Darby to really talk about lack of security, lack of issues. There were some demands made then and I just wanted to see what the follow- up was around that. And mainly, they were about monitoring those cameras with live people. And they had cameras then, but nobody saw what was going on and could have stopped it much earlier. So one was about live monitoring of cameras and public transport, more trained social services personnel which got discussed I believe already, and education for customers and passengers, what to do and have clear messaging around that on our trains and subways and buses. And so, that's one part of the question. The second part is, we're embarking on a human trafficking campaign of awareness and prevention. The RFP has gone out. I wanted to know what SEPTA was doing around this issue in this year and then to continue going forward. So those are my two main questions. CHIEF LAWSON: Yes. So to go back on some of those, some of the demands that you mentioned we didn't at the time, but have since successfully achieved the ability to have live look-in on all of our trains. So that technology was introduced a couple years ago. And on every shift, as long as trains are running, I have a team, a civilian team of folks that are watching these trains. So we've achieved that. That has actually resulted in a lot of crime reduction for us. The work that they're doing is phenomenal. So we've seen that success. In terms of human trafficking, a couple years ago we spent some time working with the Department of Transportation on the creation of a training block for frontline staff. That was achieved through all frontline employees at the time that we delivered that a couple of years ago. But part of the work that we did on that was developing a training block for new employees. So now, every new employee that comes into SEPTA gets a block. So how to recognize signs of human trafficking, how to report it, things like that. So everybody touches every frontline staff that works at SEPTA. I will tell you specifically for this year for the events of 2026, that we are working on sort of a refreshing awareness campaign. So the police department is putting together sort of training bulletins for our staff. And starting in May, we're going to start rolling out every week a new training bulletin for staff and it's going to be on things like recognizing suspicious behavior, how to recognize it and report those things. Human trafficking is going to be a topic for that. So kind of the goal is as we move up into the bulk of these events, refreshing our employee staff with how to recognize these things and how to report them.

Well, thank you. I'm glad to hear about that. I wanted to know since you have this live monitoring have you been actually able to intercept and stop, what's the data around having that? And also with the training, since you've had it for a while, how do you follow up to see how effective it's being or not and where's data around that? CHIEF LAWSON: Yeah. I don't know if we have specific data on attributing arrests to it. I have examples. Many times our live monitoring team, our virtual patrol team, is seeing incidents, both serious in nature and nonserious. So they're directing police all day long. Essentially, if I could describe the workflow, right, they'll see an incident that requires police attention, they'll snap a picture and within a minute, that's in the hands of every police officer in the field. And this is going on all day long, where pictures are going out to our team. So I mean, it's been instrumental in some of the positive statistics that we've referenced.

I so deeply appreciate that. The reason I ask this and ask for data is to tell our public that this is happening and you are doing this proactively and you're making it safer. People don't know that. I mean, it's a good thing in one way that you can catch people doing bad things, but I think you would increase ridership if people knew you were so proactive about this and making sure and then tracking it. Without tracking, I'm just taking your word. I don't disbelieve you, but I think for people to know there should be a dashboard of some sort that SEPTA should have that says this is what security looks like on SEPTA, and we could have dashboards for other items that SEPTA grapples with. But that's a public-facing kind of tool that could help your ridership, so many things it could do. So I think we need to be proactive in telling our communities, our constituents, that the money we are investing in you is bearing fruit and they need to see that. People need to see their tax dollars being used appropriately. So I thank you for the work. I just need to advertise and amplify it and have data to actually back up what you're saying, because I'm a scientist. So I will take your word, but I need trust and verify. So I would appreciate that. Thank you so much, Council President.

I want to echo those sentiments, again maybe some type of SEPTA safety public campaign and, again one that builds the confidence up of the public in the ridership. But also again, one of the key conversations, and my members can testify, we were meeting with the Senators up in Harrisburg. They were saying, well, it's not safe. We live in the county, it's not safe there. And we're saying, but our numbers tell us otherwise. But the onus is on us to create that narrative that, no, here's the facts, we are making progress and we are safe in these areas. And to be quite frank, we should be even safer, cleaner than Regional Rail, right, in terms of the level of service that we're providing to the intercity ridership, similar to folks that take these trainings to go out into the counties when they're leaving Philadelphia going back to their counties where they live at. And so, that would be our expectation, to see some type of campaign when you come next year and they say, here's how we're telling this SEPTA story. So with that being said, the Chair recognizes Councilmember Dr. Anthony Phillips, then Councilmember Quetcy Lozada, Nicolas O'Rourke, Jim Harrity, then Jamie Gauthier.

Thank you, Council President. I just want to say thank you to Scott for his leadership. You have been truly yourself in this role, and I think it's been really telling. We want to thank you for what you're doing to bring SEPTA to life. I just have a couple questions. So along the lines of what I've been working on here in the city and all of our budget hearings, I'm focused on helping SEPTA become even more responsive when it comes to our neighbors. Responsive government when it comes to SEPTA is important as well. So first question that I have is around the bus operators. They're your primary concern. Our bus operators, all of our train operators, they're our primary concern. What is the standard operating procedure for a bus operator or a train operator if they're experiencing some level of conflict or danger that's happening? Are the police readily available or is it like they may not get there until moments later? What is the rapid response when it comes to something?

So first and foremost, we train all of our frontline staff in de-escalation. So we are trained. Our operators are all trained to de-escalate a potential conflict, understanding of course that the de-escalation techniques only take you but so far. In the event that there is an incident or let's say before an incident occurs, if the operator feels that they are in jeopardy, they have a two-way radio aboard the bus. They also have a silent alarm aboard the bus that they can trigger a response. That response in the City of Philadelphia is generally under four minutes for a police response for a crime or a violent offense. That's not just take into account where our police are, because the City of Philadelphia will respond to those sorts of events as well and they are usually more readily accessible to the bus depending on where it is, so that happens rather quickly. In many cases when there is a violent offense that occurs on a bus where a passenger strikes an operator or something to that effect, almost every single time our transit police are making an arrest in that case. It may not happen at the scene, but it'll happen shortly thereafter.

What about just not the violent ones. What about the nuisance person, the person who's just being a nuisance? They're loud, they're causing disturbances among the riders. I mean, are they asked to just de-escalate that? Are they asked to have SEPTA police come out at that moment because they're technically not public safety officers?

Sure. It varies depending on what's happening. So let's assume it's a nuisance, somebody's, I don't know, playing loud music on the vehicle and the operator is instructed that if it's safe to do so, have that patron kind of turn the music down or whatever, use headphones or whatever the ask is, do it politely, do it professionally. If it's not safe to do so, then they can request help. They can call on the radio to our control center and say, I have a passenger that's causing a disturbance, they're doing this. And then the control center will make the call in concert with the Transit police who sit side-by-side with them. Is this a police issue or is this a supervisor issue, either or both can be summoned and they will be summoned in a moment's notice from the control center once the report is made. But all that decision-making happens in our central control center which is at our headquarters.

Great. And lastly, because I just heard the bell, a lot of our residents in the 9th District are concerned about the fact that it seems like every so often there is a potential strike looming. They would love for leadership to work even better with the union so that we don't have these potential strikes. Is there somewhere in the budget where you're accounting for maybe reserve funds for future salary increases for our union, you know, workers that work at SEPTA, so we can stop or whatever they demand? It'd be nice if you all are more hand-step, you know, lock- and-lock, and they can get not a year contract, but they can get multiple years that they're agreeing upon, so it's not always a threat potentially of us not cooperating.

So the answer is yes. Every year we go into our budget presuming that it's a contract year where we know we're going to negotiate a contract. We will establish a budget of what we expect to incur in salary increases for the union into that budget, and that's how we approach negotiations.

Is that lockstep with the union where the union feels -- when you make those budget decisions?

Certainly, the union sometimes believes it's not enough and that's part of negotiations. But what I will say though, I'm very pleased to say that we have not had a disruption since 2016 so almost years since 7 the last work stoppage. And that's 8 something that SEPTA couldn't say 9 for a long time. We were seeing 10 work stop just every two, three years. Now, getting to a multi- year contract is my goal as well and I know it's also the TWU's President's goal. He and I meet often and discuss -- we don't just wait for contract cycles to roll around. He and I have regular discussions and ongoing discussions about how we can improve things here at the organization. So I know it's his desire as well as mine to get a multi-year contract done. We need stabilized funding in order to reach that agreement, which is why we were able to do a two-year deal this time because we knew we had two years of stable funding in order to get that done.

No, thank you. Thanks, Council President. I just want to offer that up. I mean, I've been hearing about some of the pensions of some of the retirees are not increasing in this growing, rapidly-changing economic world, and those things should be considered. And if you need to ask us, right, to help you get closer to that, I think a lot of us would be in favor of that. I know I would. And then I just had the quick suggestion of you have a lot of events and programs. One of the things that I think could be helpful is if you had on each one of your buses and train lines an area where there could be flyers that could be posted up and every operator says, hey, take a flyer, there's a meeting coming up, here's a change that's happened to the line. That way we can really account for the fact that the people who normally ride the bus or the train are getting that information. I think that would be really helpful. I mean, I don't think that's a big cost to put something like that, a little thing to stick onto something so people get information about upcoming events. Because we had a meeting at (inaudible) the other day and people are like, we didn't know, we didn't know. I'm like, okay, what is SEPTA doing when it comes to advertisement. I have other questions, but that's all I have for now in terms of my comments and questions. I do want to say that Verbena Avenue, if you could take note, in our district is being talked about a lot of times around cleaning and quality-of-life issues. We constantly get questions about maintenance and cleaning around that area. Is there something you could do on that? I just want to make sure.

I can't speak specifically to that area. But I mean, cleaning and security is kind of the focus, that's our entire focus at this moment. But what we can do is I can go back and look at that --

Can I get a point of information please? What is the size of your cleaning operation?

So the cleaning operation is in excess of about 700 staff, and that's to clean stations, facilities and vehicles. Each vehicle fleet has its own dedicated cleaning staff --

You said 700?

Yes, that's correct. And that's just the custodial staff. Then there are supervisors and managers and things like that, that oversee that, but 700. And that has been a dramatic increase since COVID. When we entered 2020 for example, there were only 180 cleaners dedicated to the subways, the Market-Frankford Line, the Broad Street Line. That's about 350 now. So we've really dramatically increased the cleaning ranks.

Yeah. Maybe they could work with Carlton Williams, Council President?

Yeah, I was thinking like Clean and Green along the SEPTA stations, and we're all rowing in the same direction on this issue. I think part of this is a perception of people's experience, right. And I know you're doing work. You say 700 people, right, but how do you measure your impact, right? And I know we have a long Subway and El system, right. But really, I will look at how often those teams are powerwashing the stations as well as the subway cars. And I guess because of some of the quality-of-life issues that we're dealing with, particularly along the Broad Street Line, but definitely that Frankford El Line, right. And we know what the issues are around Kensington and so forth, that we're just stepping up and ramping up those efforts, right. And again, when you talk about PR, I would have some type of Clean and Green SEPTA initiatives. Again, that boosts morale, the ridership, that something is being done. And again, it also arms us when we go to Harrisburg and they say, well, this was going on in Philadelphia and we say, oh no, here's the positive things that are taking place and why we're advocating for additional SEPTA funding. And so, those are just some of the things to think about. And we're here to be partners in this, because we have family members that take SEPTA day-in and day-out. We have friends that take SEPTA day-in and day-out. My wife takes the 17 bus, right. Yeah, she takes the 17 bus. And so, I want for her what I want for myself and the same thing I would want for my constituents and family as well. So we're a partner in this as well. So Chair recognizes Councilmember Quetcy Lozada --

Thank you, Council President.

-- then Nicolas O'Rourke, then Jim Harrity and Jamie Gauthier.

Good morning. Thank you for being with us this morning. I guess I'm a bit frustrated because I hear what you're saying, but the realities of the folks in my district who take SEPTA, who rely on SEPTA, whose only option is SEPTA is painfully different. And so, I've sat here budget season after budget season and we're having the same conversation. And so, I guess my question first -- let me start with a comment first and, that is, in order for you to create the next generation of transit riders, it is not going to take funding. It is going to take a safe experience. I see a sign back there that says we won't get there without SEPTA, but we're not going to get anywhere if we're not safe, right. And so, I'm extremely frustrated around the safety aspect and the cleanliness of our system. My phone is blowing up because I have a direct relationship with the people that I represent in the 7th Councilmanic District, many of whose only option is SEPTA. And for them to tell me that they are using pipes on the train, for them to tell me that they have to move from train cart to train cart three and four times to get from Kensington and Allegheny to 15th and Market is a problem, right. For them to tell me that people are shooting up on the trains, for them to tell me that they have to stand the entire ride because there is a problem on the system that they report on their app and it's not responded to is a problem. We cannot continue to sit here and ask for transit funding if we're not creating a safe experience for everyday riders. We just can't, right. There are people that meet around quality of life in Kensington every day. Chief Nastell(sic), what is your relationship with Deputy Commissioner Rosario? CHIEF LAWSON: We have a good relationship. Our staff meets weekly with the Kensington group. He has my number, I have his. We pick up the phone, talk to each other on issues over the years. We have a good working relationship, I would say.

I asked him the same question. He said, we really don't have one. And so, there's a lack of communication. When Nastell was here, there were weekly meetings, people were talking every day, people were present. They were a part of the solution. We need to get there. I don't know what needs to change, but you both should be saying we have a daily conversation, we know exactly what is happening around outreach. We have a relationship and are communicating with DBHIDS and CBH and all of those outreach providers on the ground every day to make sure that when people get on our transit system, they are having a safe experience. It has to happen. It has to happen. There is no reason why I'm sending Wendy photos of five, six police officers at SEPTA stations when there are people who are living unsheltered inside of your spaces. No reason for that. There's no reason for that. There's no reason why I should be driving around at any time of the day and there's open fires inside of your stations. No reason for that. Because you guys apparently have cameras, right, so somebody should be monitoring your cameras to see that there's an open fire inside of your structure. We can't talk about increasing fares or cutting routes and still ask people to take our transportation system when we're not doing for people. And I want to be a supporter of SEPTA. I know that it's many in my community's only option, but it is not acceptable. And it is not fair to Wendy to receive text messages on Sunday, on Friday, on Monday, on Wednesday. It is not fair. Because I know if I'm blowing up her phone, there's other members 10 that are blowing up her phone. And 11 I'm not asking for special 12 treatment. I'm asking for fairness 13 in response. 14 We know what's happening 15 in Kensington. We know. And so, I 16 am asking for you all to figure out 17 what the plan of action is going to be as it relates to meeting on a daily basis, if necessary, at the beginning until we stabilize the situation from Tioga all the way down to Berks Station, because it's when apparently things change and give my riders in my community the same attention that you give other neighborhoods. That's what I'm asking for, so that we can get there with SEPTA.

We will do that.

Thank you. Thank you, Council President.

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councilmember Nicolas O'Rourke, then Councilmember Jim Harrity and then Gauthier.

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for being with the -- afternoon, everyone. Thank you for being with us today. It is very possible that not everyone understands. So I want to highlight the amazing work that y'all are doing with a shoestring budget. We all hear when things go wrong we have no 3 qualms about pointing it out, but I just want to make sure everybody knows on record how much is going right. In 2024, SEPTA was ranked as the most efficient transit agency in the country. It is able to provide each ride at almost half the cost, as I understand it, than Boston or Chicago. In 2024, SEPTA saw a 33% drop in crime. That is the single largest, I think, one-year decline in the history of this particular transit system. SEPTA reported its highest-ever customer satisfaction scores last year. And on top of that, by 2031 SEPTA will be rolling out, as you've already spoken to, Mr. Sauer, completely new El cars, trolley cars, a completely new and modern system. It is high time, I believe, that we recognize that we can. And if we work together, we continue to row in the right direction, together in the same direction. We'll have what any world-class city requires, and that is a world-class transit system that is affordable, that is clean, that is consistent, that is safe, that is expansive. And we'll all need to work together more effectively because we all have a stake in this, SEPTA, the city, the state, the private sector even. I've had several conversations about that. It's clear to me, President Sauer, that the SEPTA organization is doing its job on those particular points that we've raised. But my question for you is, what can the city do to make that job easier?

Well, certainly I appreciate that. I think it's -- I'm hard-pressed to come up with an answer more than what you all have done. I mean, committing the dollars that you are considering to commit to SEPTA is an important step for us. It virtually unlocks $1 billion from the state and displays the commitment that the City of Philadelphia has towards transit in this region. The advocacy that you all did last year in Harrisburg advocating on our behalf, I mean that really meant something, certainly not just to SEPTA, but to all your constituents. And then of course, the new commitment now to the Zero Fare program, the Key Advantage program. The City of Philadelphia is our largest customer, not just geographically, but the City of Philadelphia's Administration is our largest customer on the Key Advantage program. The commitment to Zero Fare, the school district, all those commitments, that's the information I take to our institutions for Key Advantage and say, look what the city has committed, look what the school district has committed to, we need your commitment now. So that continued advocacy helping us push these institutions, these large businesses towards SEPTA, that would be a big help to us. That is going to be my mission for the next year, to get out and sell Key Advantage to the largest employers of the region to get them bought-in to transit as part of their budgets and part of their commitment to the region.

In that same line or at least kind of in that same theme, I introduced, as you know, the Transit Access Fund more than a year ago at this point, some legislation that we introduced last year. The Transit Access Fund would dedicate, just as a reminder .05%, a half of a percentage of the General Fund. That's equal to the Housing Trust Fund, which also takes out .05% of the General Fund, to permanently fund the Zero Fare program and to provide matching grants to small employers to participate in SEPTA's Key Advantage program, bring in transit passes to more employees citywide. We all know how critical the Zero Fare program is. We've talked about it already today. But like Member Brooks lifted up, I kind of want to talk more about the Key Advantage program. On the question and the hope of expanding revenue, how important are low-income ridership programs like Zero Fare and Key Advantage in actually realizing that?

I mean, it's important for that reason of course. I mean, certainly the ridership, there are low-income residents that are going to try to ride anyway. But there are also low-income residents who see maybe that fare as a barrier to riding. So that low-income fare reduces that barrier, gives those folks an opportunity to ride. That certainly helps us with revenues. That's revenue that we didn't have. But what it also does for us is it now lessens the burden on that low-income rider to find other ways to try to ride, and I'm speaking specifically to fare evasion. We certainly don't want to make anyone's life more difficult. Fare evasion is a problem for us. It costs us millions of dollars every year. But giving that low-income rider the ability to ride, the ability to pay a fare and also reduces our interaction with our police department potentially with that low-income rider, so reduces all sorts of friction and just opens the door to jobs and education and things that maybe that customer wouldn't have access to without that low-income fare.

Let's say in a dream world the Transit Access Fund passes. How impactful would city-funded matching grants be to leverage private investment in SEPTA? And also, how might more robust private investment, which I know that you talked about leveraging, help our negotiating position in Harrisburg next year?

I mean, that's part of our goal and part of what Council President probably heard in his feedback from the Senate last year. We want more P3 investment in transit. We want that too. Many of the real estate transactions we're doing today is to encourage P3 investment, to get people investing in the properties around transit, so that in turn induces ridership. Advertising and marketing, station naming rights, all those things feed into our non-fare box revenue and allows us to keep costs down, it allows us to generate more revenue on our own, which then in turn reduces the obligation that may or may not be needed by government. So there's lots of things that all this feeds into the wheel and make SEPTA run. But generating our own revenues outside of what goes into the fare box is very important for our survival and our future.

All right. Well, the bell was wearing me out a couple times, so I'll tighten and put a bow on this and just say that I echo honestly, and you know I am a supporter and it is essential for SEPTA to be top tier, right. We deserve that and we're a world-class city so that has to be in place. And also, I echo the sentiments of my colleagues that have frustrations around cleanliness. And I shared this with Ms. Wendy on our call. Perception is the ultimate reality, not necessarily the ultimate truth, but it is the ultimate reality. Even if you haven't rode SEPTA, you probably would be discouraged from riding if you hear the stories of what our experiences have been, what anybody's experience has been as it relates to going into some of these stations and seeing the condition that they're in. I'm encouraged to hear about the uptick from 100 to 700 workers that are focused on cleaning. And also, if staffing up doesn't get the job done, then maybe we have to double what maintenance looks like on a regular basis. Whatever the current program is in terms of maintaining cleanliness, we have to look at that, how do we double that to make sure that we're not just hoping to fall into cleanliness, but it is top priority in the same way that we should be prioritizing infrastructure. This is infrastructure upkeep. I don't want us to pretend that we're New York. We are our own city. And also, you mentioned sometimes hearing frustrations about people talking about what they've seen in Asia. I'm concerned because the last couple of years we have seen, whether it's in New York or here, when torrential downpour comes as a result of climate change, what have you, you've got water coming through the walls at the train station. It's really challenging when you see videos of cities and towns, whose names I can't currently pronounce in China, where you got trains going through houses and buildings and stuff like that, and it's clean as a whistle. If the water does come down, you can see the fish. So I think we really need to prioritize, not just kind of as an aside, but as top-tier focus how we actually realize clean stations in the City of Philadelphia because we are a world-class city and we won't stop having huge events. And so, I think it's particularly important. So, yes, I will continue to fight to make sure that you have funding to be able to do that. But if there's some way that we can reorient to make this a number one priority as well, I think that would be in our best interest. And in conclusion, I'll just say I appreciated Member Phillips lifting up what I think is often overlooked, which is the idea around free transit. There's a culture in professional spaces I think that permeates, that normalizes, standardizes short-sightedness and narrow-mindedness and almost de-incentivizes imagination. Everything that we get a chance to experience in this city comes first from someone's vision. And I think if we can imagine possibilities, let's not cut ourselves off at the hip. It would be good if we had the perfect transit system. It would be good if everyone had access to that and be able to get around. We should not I think fall back on that, you know, and think because we have a grasp on the numbers or what have you, that we can't do these incredible, dare I say, utopic things. We should see that as a vision. Aim for it. As they say, shoot for the stars, sometimes you'll land on the moon. Anyways, thank you, Mr. President, for the time.

Councilmember Jim Harrity. And then we'll wrap up this first round with Councilmember Jamie Gauthier.

Thank you, Council President. Thank you both for your service. Going to get right into it just for the sake of time, and apologize. One of the things of going next to last is that sometimes your questions have already been asked. SEPTA plans on rolling out the Bus Revolution. Redesign and phase is starting this August which eliminates routes. 12 The first phase, what 13 criteria determine what routes were 14 cut and how equitability will be 15 remaining routes? How equitable 16 will remaining routes be to 17 low-income neighbors? SEPTA's FY27 18 budget relies on a second and final year of 394 million PennDOT capital transfer to cover operations. What is SEPTA's plan to fund in FY2028 and beyond? And finally, SEPTA's 2027 plan relies on borrowing 4.3 billion over years to fully fund and replace the Broad Street Line cars. What is the plan of replacement if those cars fail before the replacements are funded?

Okay. I 7 think I have them all. So let me 8 start with the Bus Network. So 9 part of the criteria as we looked 10 at the Bus Network -- and this 11 process of course started several 12 years ago -- the goal of the Bus Network was to give more opportunity to more people in a shorter amount of time. In other words, can I get you from where you begin your trip to where you want to end your trip as efficiently as we can in the shortest amount of time. So that's how it all started. As part of this, as we kind of went through and identified specifically which routes would be affected, which routes would remove service, which routes would get service, that all goes through an equity analysis. And as part of the annual service plan presentation that's happening today, we are presenting this implementation phase, this Phase 1, that's going to show what's affected and how it's been affected and as part of that, that equity analysis. And I just happen to have a couple numbers I could share with you. What we're happy to say is that today we have eight routes that are considered high frequency, 50 minutes or less, seven days a week. That number is going to almost triple. We're going to be at 29, so actually it is going to triple. It's going to almost four times. That's going to be at 29 once the full network gets done. But as far as the equity analysis is concerned, we're showing now that this annual service plan that we're presenting today is going to show an increase in 660 revenue hours across the network. That includes an increase in minority routes and a decrease in non-minority routes. So essentially, we're showing through this analysis that the system becomes even more equitable. So that is a pleasant change that we're going to show to our customers. We tend to focus on what the system is not going to have instead of what it will have. We are going to add frequency to routes that are our highest ridership routes. We're going to add connections where connections didn't exist before, and make them when you connect two frequent routes together, it makes the whole trip easier than one infrequent route on a winding route. So all those reasons make the Bus Network meaningful. Now, I also realize that your constituents probably like their bus route and they like that stop outside of my house. So we are trying to meet people where they live and talk to them about what their needs truly are and try to find a good solution. And that's part of the engagement. That's why we're taking this on a phase-by-phase approach, to make sure that we're not doing anything that's too radical that we're doing today and then two years from now, it gets implemented and then we have a whole lot of new people in the room that maybe didn't hear that initial analysis. So that was thing one. So the other part was the Fiscal '28 capital program, I think, Fiscal '28 and beyond. So our capital funding is just like our operating funding. We have a need, a big one. We deferred or descoped project, 44 projects at the start of last fiscal year, the current fiscal year actually. And we had to do that because we had to shave $2 billion out of our 12-year program. That was for a variety of reasons, hyperinflation, low funding, increased costs in all the projects that we did. So what we need is a comprehensive solution to funding. We need something that addresses both our operating needs and our capital needs. The only way we're going to make a dent in our $10 billion backlog is to start spending and improving the system at a much higher rate than what we're doing today. That's going to take funding. There's a whole slew of ideas out there on how to accomplish that, either from the state or from local sources. We give our needs. We give folks to experts like you who are going to figure out how best to proceed on this. 3 billion that we referenced earlier. So we're trying to make inroads.

We've moved some projects around in the program to try to meet the needs of our constituents, to try to meet the needs of our riders, from station accessibility to new rail vehicles to new buses. We've got new buses back in the program this year when we thought we might have to defer them for a couple years. These are really tough decisions that we're making on a very limited budget. There's things that we can do to meet Councilmember O'Rourke's vision of shooting for the stars. We want to hit those stars too. But there are funding needs we can certainly do better internally and how we execute. But there are funding needs that we just can't escape. 3 billion. I think the last question was, how are we going to make the rail cars last. That is certainly a concern. I think we made really good progress in getting the Silverliner IV fleet back, and we have a plan going forward to do more intense overhauls of the IVs to try to get the last years out of them. Our Market-Frankford Line cars are also going through a -- we took the lessons that we learned from the Silverliners and have now applied them to the Market-Frankford Line cars and the Broad Street Line cars to try to learn what are these components that were built 40 years ago that now we have to pay a little more attention to. They weren't in the maintenance and overhaul schedule because the builder called that a life-cycle component, right. That's going to last the life of the car. Well, the life for the car as they knew it is not the life of the car that we need. So now, we're learning from that process that we have to pay attention to some components that maybe weren't in the original maintenance table.

Thank you. Thank you, Council President.

Thank you very much. And wrapping up this round is Councilmember Jamie Gauthier.

Thank you, Council President. Good afternoon, General Manager Sauer. And thank you to you and Wendy, one of your newest hires, Ciani, who served for many years in the 3rd District Council Office and your entire team for everything that you do to keep Philadelphia moving on a daily basis. I am very grateful to represent a district that is served so well by SEPTA. We are the only council district where a majority of residents do not drive to work. And so, I recognize how SEPTA keeps not just West and Southwest Philly moving, but the entire Southeastern Pennsylvania region. And I wish that more of our leaders, especially in Harrisburg, would recognize that if SEPTA stops, so does Pennsylvania's economy. And from my vantage point, and I know my colleagues will as well, continue to advocate until people really get this point and fund SEPTA appropriately. A few months ago, we were meeting pretty frequently about the emergency extended trolley tunnel closure that started in the fall. And I just have some questions about where things stand currently. So SEPTA is still closing the trolley tunnel for seven hours every night, which significantly harms many of my constituents. We have not had normal trolley operations since November and now it's mid-April, especially as we gear up for this summer when we will welcome millions of visitors. Not having the trolley tunnel fully operational is going to keep tourists out of West and Southwest Philly, denying our small businesses the same economic opportunities as their peers in other parts of the city, and it will be harder for my constituents to get to the events taking place across our city. And so, can you tell me what's the timeline for getting the tunnel open 24/7 again? And related, why have the temporary shelters been removed from 40th and Market, given that they are still needed every night?

All right. So thank you for that. Yes -- and we certainly appreciate the support that you gave and the help that you gave us during those difficult months when the trolley was closed every day, all day. So I'm pleased to report that we have submitted our plan to reopen the tunnel in the evenings to our state safety oversight. We're awaiting their feedback. I'm optimistic we can have this tunnel open by the end of the month and be able to run 24-hour service back in the trolley tunnel. What we've seen over the last several months, and we reopened the trolley tunnel on a limited basis starting in January 12th, I believe it was, so we spent that time, those three months, looking at the slider on the trolley, looking at the wire. Every night we were in the tunnel, examining the wire. And what we've been able to find is that the changes we made, the adjustments we made to everything is we're seeing back to normal results. So we didn't see any issues, which is why we started compiling a report a couple weeks ago to submit to our oversight. We're ready to reopen the tunnel. So like I said, by the end of the month I think we should be back to normal.

Thank you so much. Can I get another question in?

(Nodded affirmatively).

I also wanted to ask, what lessons SEPTA learned during this unexpected trolley emergency? And how will you improve how you get information out to community members about future closures or service disruptions? I'm hopeful that there's no trolley blitz this summer because of 2026 but even for the closure last year that we didn't expect, it took SEPTA over a month to get real information about the severity of the situation out to community members. And so, we need better systems in place for the future. And I'd like for you to speak to what process changes you're making.

So that was the number one issue that we had to learn right away. We didn't really know what the severity was at first. And I think the absence of that knowledge really gave us pause to communicate and that was a mistake. Even if we didn't know, it would have been better to tell people we didn't know and when we would know. So that was a number one lesson that we kind of took from it and having those processes in place to communicate all types of incidents as they occur, especially if we know they're going to have that dramatic of service impact. So our communications team has a more robust approach to that need. The trolley blitz, there is no trolley blitz this summer. So we've put all of our construction activity on hiatus for the events of the summer. So we're trying to make as minimal an impact, construction- and maintenance-wise as we can for the summer events and the shelters. I'll get an answer for you on -- I have to find out what happened to the shelters. I know we discussed that when we were talking about the trolley tunnel a couple months ago.

Okay. I thank you for everything that you and your team did to rectify this situation. It did take us a while to sort of get into gear. I am hopeful that we'll meet that end of the month deadline for the trolley tunnel opening. A couple minutes ago, we were talking about having our service rival, the Regional Rail. I have to notice that when you all had a disruption on the Regional Rail, you kind of moved heaven and earth, right. And so, in my district where people don't just take the trolley because it's a nice thing, they take the trolley and the bus lines and the train because it's a necessary thing, I want to see the same level of urgency and prioritization for those riders too, and I look forward to your continued partnership. We were talking about the SEPTA Key Advantage. I know that a few of the institutions in my district, I believe Penn and Drexel are participating. But I would love to sit down with any other University City institution that's not enrolled in the program and see if we can get them to participate.

That would be great. I appreciate that.

Thank you. Thank you, Council President.

Thank you very much. Members, are you bringing SEPTA back for a brief second round, yes? Anybody else have questions before -- let me do it this way. We can finish this round with additional questions and we'll break at 1:00 and come back at 2:00; is that okay? And then we just won't do a second round. We'll just get it all out now. Okay. Chair recognizes Councilmember Rue Landau and then also Councilmember Jamie Gauthier.

Thank you. Thank you again. I wanted to talk about data. I'm the Chair of the Tech Committee. And the first question is, what settings and oversight is there on SEPTA cameras that use AI tools? Does SEPTA have an AI policy or a governance board or does it participate in the state or city's governance framework?

So I'll speak to the governance. So there is an AI policy in development. So we have limited AI applications today. They're mostly operations- based. We have some work to do internally to protect our internal data, to protect it from AI. So we have very limited usage in the back office, if you will. But we do have some AI usage on operations that are monitoring, say, Trolley Pole and pantograph applications or interfaces with wire. We did pilot AI technology on weapons detection last year. That project didn't work for us so we're not using that any longer, but we are using -- is it the Briefcam project? CHIEF LAWSON: Yeah. It's essentially a tool that helps us cut through hours and hours of video quicker, right. We input some data on what we're looking for and this system kind of runs through and cuts down the hours of time it takes to get information out.

What's it called? CHIEF LAWSON: Briefcam.

Briefcam, great. And thank you for all of that. And what's your policy for sharing data recorded by SEPTA cameras? What would you do if you received a request from an organization like DHS or ICE? Would you release the footage?

As a government agency, we're subject to right-to-know laws just like anyone else. And so, a reasonable request from anyone could trigger release of video. When it comes to law enforcement, we certainly have partnerships with law enforcement to share video, depending on whether or not they identify it quick enough for us to get it. There are certain capabilities within the system that we have to meet. But, yeah, when it comes to law enforcement, we have different memorandums of understanding with law enforcement to be able to share on a need to --

Does the law enforcement agency have to have a subpoena in order for you to share your video? CHIEF LAWSON: Typically, no. I mean, we're really only sharing video as it relates to criminal incidents that happen either on the highway or -- it's really the only video request that we received. We have a process. We have standard MOU with the agencies that we share videos with. So we enter into that beforehand and then we have a process to go down. We have to cite the specific reason you're asking, criminal incident or whatever it is. Then we would make a decision based on that.

I would suggest you talk to the PPD about their policy of when they're sharing any data or information with ICE. And the second thing is, has your staff been trained as to what to do if ICE officers are on your trains, your trolleys, the subways or on the train platforms?

So if staff identifies law enforcement or engaged in law-enforcement activity, they report it. They report it through our control center. We get it to the police, our police department, who will engage. If law enforcement from any department or just riding the train as a passenger, that generally doesn't pique any interest from staff, unless they see something developing. So that's typical.

Thank you so much.

Thank you very much. Chair recognizes Councilmember Jamie Gauthier and Councilmember Dr. Anthony Phillips will wrap us up and we have a hard stop at 1:00.

Thank you, General Manager Sauer. I wanted you to speak on the outlook for trolley modernization in 2027. I think we know that the best way to cut down on frequent service disruptions is to implement modern, accessible trolley networks installed throughout West and Southwest Philadelphia. So can you speak a bit about that?

Sure. So Trolley Modernization is probably the single largest infrastructure and vehicle program we have. It's in excess of $6 billion total. It includes modern street cars, which are already in design, includes a new maintenance facility at 51st and Grays. It also includes level- boarding platforms at all of our street stops, accessible stations underground. Our 19th Street Station, for example, will go to construction very soon. So we are making really good inroads to advance this program. We've been told by our streetcar manufacturer that we should see a half car mock-up probably by the end of the year, so we'll be able to share that hopefully with you at that time. But we're still a couple years off from seeing actual street cars on the line. But we're hopeful we can get the first pilot car in 2029 and then start to see production in 2031, somewhere in that neighborhood.

Is that a delay? I thought that we were going to see something in '27 in our area of the city.

It is a delay. There have been some design changes we had to make after the fact, so we are working through that with our car builder. But the half car mock-up is an exciting first step where customers and stakeholders can see for the first time what the car is going to look like. We're going through the design process now for our T5 line, which is the former Route 36 trolley along Elmwood Avenue, for platforms and stations. The heavy maintenance facility is going through design right now, so we will start to see some work on that probably next year. So you're going to start to see things start to develop. We need to get our infrastructure straight on the T5 to receive the first pilot car. And that's the most important piece, to be able to properly test that car.

And can you just quickly name what are the elements of the delay? Is it funding? Is it something else?

That's holding -- so certainly funding. The project is not fully funded. The whole program is not fully funded. We kind of refer to it as a program of projects because there's lots of projects going on. The car project, the maintenance facility project, we have to convert all the overhead wire to receive a pantograph now, much like what you see on regional rail. We have to do some work in the tunnel, on all the stations, the accessibility. There's some track work we're going to have to do. So it really is a huge infrastructure project that has to happen. So there are still funding constraints. We are still funding the program, but the streetcars themselves are funded and we have design work done for the projects that we're advancing.

Thank you so much. Thank you, Council President.

Thank you. And wrapping this up is Councilmember Phillips.

Thank you, Council President. I just have two last questions. I want to raise concerns about a longstanding capital project, particularly our Lawndale Station in the Northeast. The project has been on the capital plan for years. We propose pedestrian safety improvements that are critically important to the surrounding community. Now, we're hearing that the project may be delayed indefinitely. So what is the current status of the Lawndale Station project? And when can we make sure it's fully funded and get back on the capital projects list?

So the Lawndale project was part of the 44 projects that were deferred at the start of Fiscal '26, the current fiscal year. That is essentially deferred until beyond that 12th year of this year's program. So 2039 would be the first opportunity, unless there's a funding change. And then we can reintroduce some of those projects back into the program. But at the very earliest, we would not see that project begin until 2039.

Okay. And this is because of the recent cuts and so forth that had to transpire?

The cuts to the capital program at the start of this year pushed that program out of the 12-year program.

Understood. And then lastly, for our policing I am concerned from residents about the smoking that takes place. Some of the situations that happened between fights with young people getting on and off the bus and then operators have to deal with that situation. Is there a standard operating procedure that is in place? If not, it should be in place where there are officers that are literally riding around certain bus areas, not only at the drop-off but even escorting the bus in some ways. Because, you know, just having police presence at major bus stops where you notice large crowds between -- you got it in the Northeast, you have Olney, different areas that you could just like, you know what, let's always just have a police presence, not just at the let-out of the school, but also just during the actual ride so we don't have to worry about safety in that regard? CHIEF LAWSON: So there is a group within the police department that focuses on bus routes and surface transportation. They typically get their assignments because of a number of things. So either operators at the depot level are kind of reporting to us recurring problems on a specific route. And so, that will gain our attention and we'll put cops on those routes. Another way that we deploy those resources is through our Transit Watch app. So getting word to your constituents to use that app repeatedly will generate a pattern for us. We'll see a specific route pop up more frequently for, say, smoking or whatever the problem is, and then we'll focus on that with that specific group.

And that's what I was saying with the marketing. If you put it on a bus, if you repeatedly say something's happening, this will increase our presence, because a lot of people don't know that. They don't know that by having an organized group of people doing something, that doesn't, you know, they just say, oh, SEPTA's not going to do anything, they just deal with it, especially with the smoking and other things that happen on the bus. So I just want you to -- don't wait, be proactive. It's like the speed cushion law. I didn't wait for someone to get hit, you know. We worked with the city on that, Mike Carroll and Carlton Williams and so forth, mostly Carlton. But I just wanted to say we got it done before it happened. So I just want to make sure.

Thank you. Well, we thank you for your time and testimony. You do hear loud and clear that members of Council have an interest in public safety and we support your efforts. So when you grab Lil Man-Man or Lil Tanisha on the side where they smoking weed and they're raising all types of havoc, I don't want nobody inside this body talking about why y'all addressing it that way. I'm for public safety. I'm for when my wife gets on a train and she comes home safely. When my wife gets on the bus, she gets to come home safe. And so, we share that sentiment, but also we can also provide behavioral health services and outreach and wraparound services and support for those who are most in need. But we're your partners though in all seriousness. And whatever we can do to be supportive, I'm sure Wendy will keep us abreast of all things SEPTA as well as she has been doing in terms of how we move forward and be supportive of your efforts. But thank you for your leadership and going. And I've been around for a little bit. I don't think I went to Harrisburg with a General Manager walking through the halls of Harrisburg, working in partnership with the Mayor and members in Council. Well, the first time that members of Council done that, but members of Council to actually advocate together in a unified fashion. I don't remember a General Manager doing that. And so, that's a testament to your leadership of going up there stating the case as to why we need we need permanent funding for mass transportation and specifically SEPTA -- (Applause.)

Permanent, permanent, permanent. And so, whatever that takes for us to get it done, I'm sure we will continue to work in that direction. Council will be at ease until 2:00 p..m. Thank you. (Lunch recess.)

Good afternoon, everyone. (Good afternoon.)

I want to welcome everyone to Philadelphia City Council during our budget hearing process of the Committee of the Whole. Ms. Loughead, could you please call the next panel.

Jane Golden, Executive Director of Mural Arts; and Emily Schapira, President and CEO of Philadelphia Energy Authority. (Witnesses approached witness table.)

Good afternoon. I'm Jane Golden, the Executive Director of the Mural Arts Program, and I'm joined by some esteemed colleagues today. If you could say your name.

My name is Michael Voight.

You're with what program?

With Color Me Back.

Good afternoon. I'm Andre Chaney, and I'm an artist with Mural Arts.

I'm Nadia Dashell, Assistant Artist with Color Me Back.

How you doing. My name Sadiq Hawk. I'm a Rec Crew member at Mural Arts.

Well, thank you very much for being here today. Ms. Golden, could you please state your name for the record and please begin your testimony.

Yes. My name is Jane Golden, and I'm the Executive Director of the Mural Arts program, a job I feel very privileged and honored to have. I have remarks, but I wanted to say a few things, just personal things, to City Council before I start, if that's okay with you. So it's hard to believe, but this is my last budget testimony before City Council after so many years. It has been a privilege and an honor to partner with all of you in the service of the city. I just wanted to use a small part of my time upfront to thank you from the bottom of my heart. The partnership we have created is nothing short of extraordinary, and it has served as an inspiration to cities both near and far. Whatever Mural Arts has accomplished in my tenure, it was done in partnership with a really big village. But please know and never forget that an important part of that village is the city, its Mayors, of course, but without a doubt, members of City Council and their beautiful and wonderful and inspiring staff members have helped move our work forward. So on behalf of the Board and this amazing staff, I want to recognize and thank each of you. We honestly could not be who we are and do the depth and breadth of our work without your counsel, your support, your wisdom and your investment. You have truly helped demonstrate the power of art as a public good in these challenging and polarizing times. We need this work more than ever. So I ask you to please stay close to Mural Arts. The village we have built together is strong, and I believe there is a wonderful new chapter to write with your support. And so, now I would like to begin my remarks. So good afternoon, Council President Johnson and members of City Council. As I said, I'm Jane Golden and I'm joined by my esteemed colleagues today. And I'm pleased to provide testimony on the Fiscal Year 2027 operating budget. For four decades, Mural Arts has partnered with artists and residents and community organizations across Philadelphia to create public art in the shared spaces of our city. Together, we have created more than 4000 murals across every Council District, every Council District, artwork shaped through collaboration and grounded in local histories, experiences and aspirations. In doing so, we've strengthened neighborhood pride. We've helped establish Philadelphia as the mural capital of the world everybody. Can we have a round of applause? (Applause.)

And we've created a powerful way for residents and visitors alike to encounter the city through the voices and vision of its communities. But the murals are only the most visible part of what we do. What people see on the wall is just the surface of something much deeper. Behind every mural are months and months of listening, of conversation, of trust-building. We begin by asking who lives here, what stories are held here, what should be remembered, what deserves to be seen. And then we work together, artists, neighbors, community groups, businesses, city agencies, City Council, to bring those voices into the public space of the city. Yay. For us, this has always been about making sure that anyone, anyone, anyone in any neighborhood can walk out their front door and see something that reflects them. This is what the citizens of Philadelphia truly deserve. And it reminds them, it reminds people that they belong here. The collaborative process is at the heart of everything we do and how we advance Mayor Parker's vision, but also your vision and priorities for Philadelphia. Public safety, education, economic opportunity, education, cleaner, greener neighborhoods, all of it. So I want to start with public safety. We have long believed that safety begins with providing young adults and young people with opportunities, with dignity, with respect, with a chance to be seen and heard. We want to provide them with opportunities so they can start to believe in themselves and what they can become. Through the Guild, our restorative justice workforce program -- can we have a round of applause for restorative justice? (Applause.)

I get so excited. I know that I know this and I see -- like, I talk about it, but I'm always excited. It's, like, odd. I wake up and just am excited. Mural Arts provides people returning from prison and who've been impacted by the criminal justice system with structured work, coaching and support as they rebuild their lives through the Rec Crew -- the Rec Crew, let's hear it. (Applause.)

That work continues in neighborhood recreation centers, and we want to thank the Recreation Parks & Rec Commissioner Susan Slawson. We're working in public spaces where participants work alongside artists to create places that feel cared for, that feel welcoming and full of possibility. Each year these programs serve at least 70 returning citizens and roughly 80% move on to jobs training or education. Yay. With full FY27 support, we can grow this work, deepen employment partnerships and pilot scholarships to help participants broaden their choices and opportunities. Public Safety also depends on whether residents have places where they can participate, contribute and shape community life together. In Tacony, Mural Arts created the Tacony Lab -- (Applause.)

-- as a neighborhood cultural space. See, that's the thing with artists. They see things other people don't. Some people might say, oh, that's an empty business. But we're like, no, we see possibility, and that is so exciting. So the Tacony Lab, it's a neighborhood cultural space where artists and hundreds of residents come together through workshops, exhibitions and shared programming that build civic participation, local pride and a stronger sense of belonging and meaning. Mayor Parker's budget proposal this year talked a lot about economic opportunity, and this is very relevant and exciting to us. Every year Mural Arts employs at least 250 artists. Let's have a round of applause for that. (Applause.)

Attracting and sustaining Philadelphia's creative workforce and investing in the people whose imagination helped shape this city. And I want to thank our Chief Cultural Officer Val Gay, who is here. And through Color Me Back, the city's first program of its kind, the Same Day Work program launched in 2019, it has become a model for many successful programs throughout Philadelphia. We offer same-day work and pay and we're working with people facing housing instability and behavioral health challenges. It's an amazing, inspiring program. And I invite all of you to come visit us. We're underneath a Clothespin, we have a hub there, and in Kensington at K&A. And in particular, I know that we have a member from CEO that's here, and I want to thank them for their invaluable support. Operating from Suburban Station in Kensington, the program engages roughly 450 residents each year for approximately 3200 shifts and distributes more than $250,000 in wages. That's great. But what makes this work so powerful is that it offers -- and, Councilmember Lozada, you have often cited this, that it offers more than a paycheck. For hundreds of people each year, Color Me Back provides a place of welcome, consistency and human connection. So many people are living in isolation, and it seems like something, oh, so obvious, but it doesn't happen all the time. Each shift brings together dignity, creativity and access to support, meeting people where they are and helping them move forward in really concrete and wonderful ways. We also very much believe in young people. And since we started in 1998, we have been really dedicated to art education, art ed. Each year Mural Arts serves more than 2600 young people through free, free arts education and career-connected learning rooted in public projects. Yay. These are young people whose creativity might otherwise have little room to grow in school or after school, and our work helps open that door. Across the city, we see students develop skills around collaboration, critical thinking and form real relationships with practicing artists and employers. The work gives students a voice and a choice. Inevitably, they begin to see themselves differently, not just as students, but as makers, contributors and future leaders of our city. This year 107 teens are participating in Career Connected Learning and paid youth interns 11 are working alongside artists and 12 project managers on neighborhood 13 projects, getting and gaining experience confidence and a stronger sense of what is possible for their own futures. And moving on to a topic we love, cleaner, greener and more beautiful neighborhoods. This is about the daily experience of living in Philadelphia. What does it feel like to walk down a block that is cared for, to see beauty where there once was neglect, and to know that your neighborhood matters. Each year Mural Arts completes between 80 and 100 public art projects, 80 and 100. And when people call us, they think I am speaking for the entire state, not a city. So yay Philly. (Applause.)

We engage roughly 20,000 residents in improving their neighborhoods, we perform more than mural 13 restorations and we carry out 100 14 graffiti remediations. And now, 15 through the gateways to 16 Philadelphia Highway Beautification 17 initiative, we are helping to 18 reshape some of the city's most 19 visible entrances with our great 20 partners at Clean and Green. In fact, if you go on the highway and you go by the CSX wall, you will not believe it. We are shutting down the train and artists are painting in the middle of the night between 2:00 and 5:00 in the morning. And people said it could not be done. Just tell us it can't be done and we will do it. (Applause.)

I want to thank Mayor Parker for her leadership in creating this ambitious effort and for including Mural Arts in this important work. And I want to thank my colleague, Director Williams, who I've known for a long time and believes in art. And 2026 is a landmark year and we are featuring 108 new projects. And here are just some of the exciting examples: We're doing a tribute to Philly music legends. We are honoring the Sunra Orchestra, Quest Love, Jesse Bermudez, Celia Cruz. We're doing a tribute to Black dance, celebrating Sidney King and Joan Myers Brown and others. We are celebrating Philadelphia's extraordinary, extraordinary LGBTQ heroes, including Gloria Casarez. And Councilmember Landau, Councilmember Squilla, I don't know where you are but -- there you are. Thank you, thank you for bringing this mural to life and it is so beautiful. The design is just absolutely stunning. And then we are also working with the Tacony Lab and doing Northeast 250, its threads of history. And there will be all these artist-led residencies, events and community flag-making. In FY27, additional investment would allow us to support up to 10 more mural projects requested by community groups, residents and Councilmembers, and it would help us to begin addressing a very large restoration backlog that we have, that we really want to work on because we want our collection to always sing. In fact, in fact, just as a special thing today, we unveiled a design in your district -- oh, and Councilmember Jones, you've both been involved in this. And it is a tribute to the Negro League and the Philadelphia Stars. And we are going to show you that design right now because we think it's good to have an interactive session. So is everybody ready? Here it is. It's at 40th and Parkside. (Applause.)

Everybody, we had a mural there and the mural went away. And what's really nice is that the developer who took the mural away is building a wall in the Memorial Park so the mural is coming back to life. Yay. Whenever murals go away, they should come back to life. Okay. I digress. So anyway, as I -- this is the sad part. As I prepare to step down after four decades of service, I do so with extraordinary gratitude and unwavering confidence in Mural Arts future. The work is upheld by Mural Arts staff. And I just want to say, could people who work at Mural Arts raise their hands? (Applause.)

These are extraordinary people who have such dedication. I feel so lucky to work with them. Amazing artists and community partners and public leaders like you who believe in the power of art to help our city thrive. It has been truly the honor of a lifetime to steward this work in service of making Philadelphia a safer, cleaner, greener city, blanketing neighborhoods all over with art that honors people and stories that make our city strong. I know that shared commitment will carry Mural Arts forward. We are so grateful to all of you, to Mayor Parker and her administration and for the leadership of the Chief Cultural Officer Val Gay and the entire team at Creative Philadelphia. And I want to end with, you know, we had our second mural book. We asked Sonia Sanchez to write a foreword. And instead, what she did was she wrote a haiku and I wanted to read part of it to you. She says, Philadelphia, roots lighting these walls with fireflies, flowers stretched in prayer on a cornerstone wall. Brown-skinned children dancing with butterflies, these children's faces light up the stars. Philadelphia painted with blue hallelujahs. Winter a warrior's face. I hear people singing in an open alley a galaxy of dreams. Common ground is we, forever tasting the earth hands in the green light, always saluting peace. Even in the rain, these murals pause with rainbows. Thank you so much. (Applause.)

And now, my wonderful colleagues here are going to talk briefly about the work and the impact on their lives.

Yeah, they have to be very brief though because we still have another person as well that would like to also give their testimony, the Philadelphia Energy Authority. So please move forward.

Good afternoon. My name is Mike Voight. I've been with Color Me Back for two years. I was connected to the program because of a friend was working on a project in a lot in Kensington called Stop the Risk, Matt Tomesco, who's a program manager and artist with Color Me Back, was doing a mural project there that included putting up fence decorations and making planners. I started working there for a few months and then I went to rehab. When I got out of rehab in June, I went to live at Riverview Wellness. While I was at Riverview, I saw Matt again because he was doing a mural with his floral designs there. He told me to come to work with him again at Color me Back. And because I'm able to leave during the day at Riverview, I've been working as an assistant artist at Color Me Back since then. Mural Arts also paid me to do a workshop series at Riverview. I created a bracelet class and that helped me focus on teaching and setting up a routine. The other people at Riverview constantly stopped to talk to me about the bracelets in the class. I've always loved art, but I never had training in it until I came to work for Color Me Back. The program has given me the life, the ability to aid in my recovery in a positive way. That helps me stay clean. It gives me something to focus on. The art helps me to meditate and puts me at ease. I also love the working environment. Matt is an awesome and great boss. He's very attentive and always listens to people. If I have a problem, I can go to him and talk to him about it. Because of Color Me Back, I've been able to save up money for when I leave Riverview to have my own place. Thank you. (Applause.)

Don't go nowhere.

Good afternoon. I'm Nadia Dashell. I came across Color Me Back when I was walking by the studio at Suburban Station. I was working, but it was just a job. It wasn't exciting and not a lot of money. I have always loved doing artwork on my own. And so, I decided to sign up. I've been with the program for two years and I worked my way up to becoming an assistant artist. I've been involved with many projects, including a mural at Esperanza Wellness Center, a mural at Mother of Mercy House, three murals at 5th and Lehigh and a mural with Ukrainian artists that's currently installed on the third floor of City Hall. I'm one of the artists who's been doing community engagement for the Large Heart of Kensington Creates project that we're doing on the SEPTA El Line in Kensington. And I will be an assistant on three murals we're installing in Frankford this summer. I've also been through the muralist training program that's offered by Mural Arts. The biggest change I've seen in myself with Color Me Back is that I've gotten out of my comfort zone. I've worked on projects in all different kinds of conditions and I've built a certain resilience. I've been able to adapt to new environments and new people. I've also been able to share my knowledge and taken knowledge from other people around me. My plan was always to do art on the side and I never thought I could make it my career. Now, I'm an assistant artist actively working on murals throughout the city. The people in the program are also like a family to me now, and I don't think I would have met most of them if I wasn't in this program. Thank you. (Applause.)

My experience with Mural Arts leads me to think even now this isn't just an audience, it's a community, a community of artists, mentors and people who believe in second chances. Being here today matters because this program didn't just give me a space to create. It gave me a place to grow. The art showed me that this isn't just painting on walls. It's progress, it's storytelling, it's emotion and it's healing. I learned that creativity, no matter what form it takes, can be a path to growth and new beginnings. Mural Arts reminded me that we are more than our mistakes, that real change doesn't come from judgment. It comes from support. Mural Arts also didn't teach me -- I'm sorry, Mural Arts also didn't teach me about just artistic skills. It taught me about accountability, it taught me about reflection and it taught me a lot about my community. I learned that restorative justice isn't just about punishment. It's about rebuilding. It's about rebuilding confidence, rebuilding trust and rebuilding ourselves. I see the importance. I see the value in all my peers here. We support each other and we all learn from each other as well. I just want to give a special shout- out to everybody that's here supporting everyone. (Applause.)

Excuse me real quick. Young man, can you just state your name for the record for the stenographer please.

Sadiq Hawk.

Thank you, sir. Go ahead, young man.

I just wanted to say that my desire and passion to be an artist is what brought me back home, but Mural Arts is what kept me home. And what I mean by that is that ever since I was a kid when my imagination was at its most wildest, I always had aspirations and dreams of being an architect, a graphic designer, illustrator. And unfortunately, growing up I felt that in the school systems, because art was taken out, it wasn't a feasible career choice. And so, what wound up happening is when I had the choice to go to college, I left and I felt like a stranger in Moscow when I was in a different state, because it didn't have what Philadelphia has to offer. And I also feel like if you want to make it anywhere, you got to make it at home first. So I started doing my research on what Philadelphia had to offer and I found Mural Arts. And when I found Mural Arts, I came back home and I began to engage with Mural Arts. And I didn't just get access to projects. I got access to a community ecosystem, a place where I could define and also refine my artistic voice and abilities. And I have to say that since then, I'm doing pretty good. I can't lie. (Applause.)

With that said, what I'm also ultimately saying is that if we choose not to invest in Mural Arts, what we're ultimately saying is that the people who put their life and their voice on the line and continue to do their own form of advocacy and depict what's going on in our city and push our city forward by way of art, ultimately it'll be a disaster. My last point -- I'll speed it up -- is that the first thing that you learn in art history is that you know about the painting in the caves of Lascaux, which is some of the earliest depictions of art in art history. I feel like Philadelphia is a new cave of Lascaux, not because we're just the mural capital, but because we're truly telling stories that push everything forward. So I feel like we have to invest and overinvest to calculate for inflation and things like that, to ensure that that young kid that's about to make the decision on whether or not they can stay here and not leave, they'll choose to stay because they know that the city also backs initiatives like Mural Arts, which is extremely important. And it's just the right thing to do. So thank you. That's my testimony. (Applause.)

Just state your name for the record.

I'm sorry. My name is Andre Chaney.

Can we give all of our young people that testified, let's give them a big round of applause. (Applause.)

It is not easy to come up to that podium and provide testimony in public with all of these strangers sitting here listening to you. And so, it takes a bit of courage to be at that table. So thank you. And to the gentleman in the back who's in recovery who talked about how art is therapy, yes, art is therapy, art is healing. Continue to keep doing a great job. I just want you to know that as well. (Applause.)

I'm going to ask Emily Schapira to give her testimony and then we'll allow questions from members of Council to address the Mural Arts program as well as Philadelphia Energy Authority at the same time.

Should I stay up here or --

You can stay up there, but Emily Schapira is going to join you on the side.

Emily, just state your name for the record and please begin.

Sure. Good afternoon, Council President Johnson, members of Council. I'm Emily Schapira, President and CEO of the Philadelphia Energy Authority or PEA. I am so proud and honored to be here today in Council chambers with Mural Arts program who has been such an inspiration to us over the years. So glad to share this table today. I'm going to share a shortened version of the testimony I submitted in writing and happy to have any questions today. PEA, as you know is an independent municipal authority advancing projects that deliver on the city's most urgent priorities, lower bills, stronger infrastructure, safer neighborhoods and quality jobs. In Philadelphia, clean energy is not just one thing, it's everything. Since 2016, under the banner of the 10 Year Philadelphia Energy campaign, PEA has driven $1.3 billion in investment, creating nearly 11,000 jobs, exceeding the ambitious goal we initially set out to reach. We recently conducted a full economic analysis to assess the complete impact of our work over the last decade and the return on the city's investment in PEA. And I'm really excited to share this with you today. This is the first time we're releasing these numbers. First, the benefit in municipal tax dollars. The city's invested $14.7 million in PEA's annual budget since 2016. In that same period, our work generated over $25.3 million in city taxes. So I'll repeat that, the $14.7 million that you've invested in PEA over the last 10 years produce $25.3 million in combined personal income, sales and business taxes to fund city government. (Applause.)

Second, for every $1 of city investment in PEA, we've spurred $90 of local investment in Clean Energy projects and programs, so a 90x return. 4 billion across Pennsylvania. So what has this investment meant to actual Philadelphians? I'll give you a few examples. 3 10 billion of investment and 11,000 jobs represent the 427 households served by Built to Last so far, who have had their generational wealth preserved, utility bills slashed and health improved through Whole Home Repairs. It represents the nearly 4400 households, over half of whom are low- and moderate- income, who are generating clean, long-term, affordable electricity on their roofs through Solarized Greater Philadelphia. It represents the nearly 130,000 brand new, long-lasting and highly-efficient LED streetlights that save money and make every corner of the city safer at night. It represents the 118 Philadelphians that graduated from our Green Retrofit Immersive Training or GRIT program, and the 224 individuals we connected to clean energy jobs with employers like PECO, PGW and Solar States through our Good Jobs Challenge grant with Philadelphia Works and others. It represents the 14,503 students that attend the public 16 schools that have been retrofitted 17 using the Guaranteed Energy Savings 18 Act to be more comfortable, 19 healthier learning environments, 20 and it represents the nine small- 21 and medium-sized local plumbing 22 companies hired by the Water and 23 Sewer Service Line Protection Program who have grown their businesses to serve critical residential infrastructure for the nearly 90,000 Philadelphia households enrolled in the program citywide. That program has saved consumers $90 million in repairs, and over 70% of all claims were served by minority-owned firms. We are incredibly proud of these achievements and so many more. PEA's work in '26 and '27 supports the priorities of the Parker Administration to make Philadelphia the safest, cleanest, greenest city with access to economic opportunity for all and also meets the priorities of City Council to use the tax dollars of hard-working Philadelphians in the most thoughtful, impactful ways to the benefit of all. We learned that we don't need energy to be at the top of the priority list. We fit easily into the day-to-day and strategic priorities of both branches of government. As we focus on the next decade of work for PEA, we plan to scale up, grow this work to be bigger, better and more. For FY27, PEA is requesting a total budget allocation of $4 million. 3 million for PEA. We've demonstrated our ability to turn investment in PEA into economic benefit for the city and all Philadelphians, and we ask for your support to scale and accelerate our work. I want to just take one second to explain why city funding is so important for us. It's a critical piece of the puzzle. PEA has shown proof of concept through nationally-recognized programs like Built to Last and Solarize, and we use the success of those programs to attract new funding to Philadelphia. We rely on much more than just city funding. Our total FY27 budget from all sources is more than $14 million, but city funding is what allows us to develop the next iteration of big projects and effective programs and stabilize our staffing infrastructure to scale up programs that work. E. Initiative and pitch to bigger funders. It helps us speed up our pipeline of city energy and capital projects as well. City funding also helps us provide technical support to elected officials, regulators and others to navigate the complex and systemic energy issues we're facing, especially in an environment where data center growth and geopolitics are causing an unsustainable increase in energy costs for every Philadelphian and for even city government as well. PEA needs the stability to do what it's designed to do as an authority work across departments and capital cycles to improve energy infrastructure and stabilize our costs.

We will continue to return every dollar invested and more. 3 million amount, we will be challenged to maintain our staff, much less to strategically expand our capacity to meet the moment. To conclude, this body has a million hard decisions to make when it comes to the budget, and this should not be one of them. We've done what we said we would do and there is more work to be done. We've taken the investment made in us and grown the pie exponentially. We've been frugal, grown responsibly, established our own program funding and have aggressively sought philanthropic and other dollars to ensure that we can deliver for the people of Philadelphia. Since I joined PEA staff 10 years ago, 10 years ago now, we've worked hard to build a reputation of being an effective, strategic organization that delivers. I hope our strong track record of success and the overwhelming support of partners, stakeholders and community members lends credibility to our request, and I hope we can count on your support this year. Thank you so much for the time today. )

Thank you. Before I turn it over to my members, I just want to say it is truly an honor and also a bittersweet moment because I've had the opportunity to work with Ms. Jane Golden over the last 20-plus years in some capacity. I first met Jane Golden when I was part of a program called City Year and they had a Mural Arts team. And I remember you asked some people that wanted to be a part of the Mural Arts team and other people that wanted to be a part of other teams where you saw an immediate impact from the work that you would do. We had the Habitat for Humanity team where you would go and build houses. We had another team where teams were in schools working with children. But when you're doing a mural, that's a process within itself. And I remember talking to the Corps members at that time, I was a project manager, really encouraging them to be a part of Mural Arts team, because murals can transform the lives of individuals, right, especially a lot of people that come from Black and Brown neighborhoods that are looking for hope. You may say, well, what do you mean. There's some murals in parts of the city where you might see an image of an individual that you may not normally see, rather that's a lawyer, rather that's a doctor. In my neighborhood of Point Breeze, I remember we had a mural of an astronaut on the corner of 18th and Reed as a part of a mural that was inside of a neighborhood garden, right, or in Southwest Philadelphia off of 53rd and Greenway, there's a major mural the Tuskegee Airmen, right, which also will inspire young people to dream beyond their local neighborhood, and that's the work that Mural Arts has been doing throughout the City of Philadelphia, but also Jane Golden, with her leadership, her passion and her infectious attitude, right, and energy, which she brings to this position really is going to make it harder for the next person who has to fill her shoes. And so, it's truly an honor and a privilege to have this opportunity to work with you and we're going to keep you around as long as we can. We know you're not going to go too far, but you're an icon and I'd like to say an actual institution to the City of Philadelphia, because you have transformed murals and taken our city to the next level. And beyond murals, you also got involved in social justice by helping individuals who deserve a second chance. And so, I'm going to ask for all my colleagues and everyone, can we stand up and give her a round of applause please? (Applause.)

Thank you. I said I wouldn't cry. Thank you.

We appreciate you, Jane. We appreciate all your hard work and all your dedication. I didn't even talk about the work you do up at Phoenix Prison. Most people may or may not know, helping prisoners find a sense of hope or when you took them to the Barnes Foundation, where normally the Barnes is for the che-che folks, right. And Jane thought it not robbery to make sure we open it up for individuals who deserve a second chance of trying to get their lives together. And could you imagine somebody that's incarcerated saying, my artwork is in the Barnes, Barnes Museum. And so, that's the type of work that you do in terms of your leadership. And so, I'm going to take this moment to begin having my members acknowledge you and ask questions of the Mural Arts program. I'm starting off with Councilmember Nicolas O'Rourke and Councilmember Jamie Gauthier.

Thank you, Mr. President, and echo all the sentiments that you shared as it relates to the great impact of Jane Golden and all that has been done. Jumping right into it. I was excited to hear about the $790,000 that's being allocated to Mural Arts as a part of the Mayor's Gateway Project to beautify the highways, Philadelphia's highways, prior to this summer. At the same time it struck me, upon considering the highways being beautified, that SEPTA could equally use that same kind of facelift along the transit stops and along those tracks, especially considering how many international tourists will be relying on public transit instead of cars. So obviously, that's smart for '26, but we are a world- class city and this will not be the only year, it hasn't been the first and it certainly won't be the last, that we welcome the world into our city gates. So if this body were to allocate a similar amount for beautification of SEPTA's infrastructure, would Mural Arts be prepared to use that funding? And if so, how far could that money go? How many murals could we create? How many of the Color Me Back same- day-work-and-pay opportunities could there possibly be, etc., so on and so forth?

Sure. Thank you. Thank you for that question, Councilmember. So I want to say that Color Me Back really got its start partnering with SEPTA, and the early work was in the concourse right under the Clothespin. And it struck us at the time that that was really important because some of the people that we were working with actually were in the concourse and saw us there and signed up for Color Me Back, and that sort of was transformational. But then it's also, how do you change individuals but also impact the built environment of our city, and one mirrors the other. And so, during COVID we worked and did these columns that are just so beautiful. And right underneath the Clothespin there are a couple new murals. And we're working with SEPTA and other places, but it would be a dream to be able to mobilize the talents and the energy and the passion and dedication of Color Me Back to transform stations along the El. I mean, for us that is a dream scenario. And I just want to turn it over to my colleague Nadia Malik, who runs our extraordinary Porch Light Program. Nadia Malik, would you come -- (Applause.)

Nadia Malik. I'm the Director of the Porch Light Department, which is our partnership with Department of Behavior Health -

As-salamu Alaykum.

Wa Alaikum Salam. And Color Me Back is under --

Could you say your name for the record please?

I'm Nadia Malik.

Thank you.

And thank you for the question. So right now we're actually going through the approval process with SEPTA in Kensington. We are doing a project with Councilwoman Lozada's office doing what we're calling Gussets. If you don't know, gussets are the little triangles that are on the El line. If you look at the El line, the poles, there's a little corner of the poles. We are doing 400 of those with the residents of Kensington. SEPTA is going through its approval process to allow us to install 400 of those pieces made directly by Kensington residents, all up and down between Tioga and Lehigh. So all the little -- not all the little stops, but the stops that don't have the little gussets that don't have any electricity issues, we're going to have them up and down the El. We figured if that goes through the approval process, people are going to ask for those in other parts of the city. So I think those are pretty economically easy to do and it is so community engaged. Because again, people are directly painting those. It's a small piece, so people can directly do those. But as Jane was mentioning too, we have been able to mobilize in the stations throughout the city. So we have obviously worked in Suburban Station. We are asking for permission in Kensington right now for the Allegheny Station and for Tioga, for the walls that are at those stops. So, yeah, it would be amazing. And like Jane mentioned, the folks in Color Me Back, they call the Suburban Station space their home, right. They lived there, they slept there. The other stops, the SEPTA stations are home to people. So if we can be an asset of recruiting those folks to kind of beautify the spaces that they called home and hopefully find new homes for them. Then I think it would be an amazing asset. But also, again engaging directly with communities so they can see their own work along the El, I think would just be an amazing, amazing project.

I agree. I agree. Duly noted. Let me shift hard to PEA, if you don't mind. Can you give us an update -- and good afternoon to you. Thank you for being here as well. Can you give us an update on how PEA is deploying home funding in the Built to Last program? I'm sure I'm not the only member of this body who is very interested in the continual support of getting more of those homes off the waitlist. Can you speak to that?

Sure. Well, thank you so much for that question, Councilmember. Funds just started flowing. So we are just beginning to layer H.O.M.E. funding into our projects that are ongoing. We've committed to a minimum of 267 new homes that will be taken off our waitlist. Our current waitlist is 4767 homes. It continues to grow. There is a never-ending need for funding for this. So we are looking everywhere and reaching out to all sorts of new funders, but we are moving forward with the H.O.M.E. funding. Now we're excited that that's moving. It really highlights the importance of this operating budget that we're asking for. We need to be able to build the staffing and the sort of prework that it takes to deploy those H.O.M.E. funds quickly. We got $8.25 million thanks to the support of this body in the first year for H.O.M.E. funding. So we have to deploy quickly and make sure that we scale the program up in the ways it needs to. That's going to require full staff members even though H.O.M.E. won't pay for full staff members. So that's part of the reason why fully funding the operating budget request is so critical. Secondly, we expect that we'll be able to do more than those 267 homes with it, pending other grants and other federal funding and other types of funding that our partners have. So we'll update you on those numbers as soon as we have them. We've currently completed 427 homes. We have 270 more that are in construction right now with other funding that's not H.O.M.E. funding, and then we'll add this additional 267, so we'll be at a little over 900 homes with this H.O.M.E. funding.

One more --

Briefly, Member.

Yes, sir. I see that you all are running another cohort of green construction training. Can you tell us how PA is helping to train and connect Philadelphians with good jobs and clean energy? I think it's important to get that on the record, given the climate around an attitude towards green energy these days.

Absolutely. A lot has changed at the federal government in the last couple of years. And so, that has impacted the clean energy industries. However, the technology continues to move. There are still some tax credits available. I'm sure you all are hearing in your districts the increasing demand to cite data centers and the needs of PECO and others to make sure that we have actually enough power to power the needs coming up. We're seeing these huge investments at the port and other places and all of that needs power. And so, that really has kept the demand high in Philadelphia. We are perfectly located and a strategic market for almost all of these industries. So we continue to do our own training a little bit through the energy coordinating agency, through our GRIT program. We've graduated almost 120 people from that program. We're also closing up the three-year Good Jobs Challenge Grant with Philly Works, where we placed I think almost 230 people into clean energy jobs. And we continue to fund and partner with dozens of other organizations across the region and in Philadelphia who are doing all different kinds of trading, whether it's the construction work that's needed to do real energy-efficiency work or whether it's things like solar battery installation, manufacturing, electric vehicle charging infrastructure installation, so we've got sort of a full gamut. We're also restarting our CTE program at the school district hopefully this fall, and they're just hiring a teacher right now, so we'll be excited to continue that training. And I'll just say this really quickly. We hear from the industry all the time that there is not enough labor. There's a labor shortage in construction and clean energy. And at the same time, we have an unemployment rate among young Black men in Philadelphia that is two to three times the citywide average almost all the time, regardless of the economy. And so, if we can be connecting the dots here, that saves everyone. That helps the industry with the problem that they're designing. And you've got eager young people that want to do this work. So that's what we've been working to do and we've seen --

That was a great ending.

Thank you.

That was a great ending to that question. Awesome. Chair recognizes Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, then Councilmember Mike Driscoll.

Thank you, Council President. Good afternoon to both of you. My questions are for PEA, but I wanted to start by saying, Jane, you are one of the most powerful, impressive advocates I've ever had the opportunity to watch and work alongside, and I just want to thank you for everything that you've done for our communities and our city at-large, and you have made us endlessly proud. In fact, myself, Minority Leader Kendra Brooks and Minority Whip Nicolas O'Rourke, we were just in Seattle for a housing conference. And although there are some things to envy in Seattle, like their investment in their public transit system, murals are not a thing that we were envying. In fact, we saw their murals and we were kind of like our murals are so much better. And so, you make us proud and we have the ability to go other places and talk about and know what a fantastic job Mural Arts does here and what a gift you've been to our neighborhoods and our city. So thank you so very much.

Thank you, Councilmember.

My questions are actually for PEA. Each year during budget season, and today is no exception to that, we hear about PEA's effectiveness, your competence. We hear about how much revenue you bring to the city. We hear about the multiplier effect when we give you money and how much money you're able to multiply it to bring to your programs. We hear about amazing projects like the Philly Streetlight Improvement Project, buying solar farms for the city, Built to Last, job creation, all of it, right. And we know how much funding PEA needs to achieve this goal or these goals rather, but every single year the budget that the Administration presents to us cuts PEA's funding back to a baseline of about $1.5 million, harming the agency's ability to function effectively or plan long- term. And so, this is actually a question for Sabrina Maynard and Rob Dubow, but I'll just get it on record. I want to know what the logic is behind the Administration's decision each year to try and cut PEA's budget in the budget proposal? And I also want to know how this improves PEA's operations, how it sets the agency up for success and how it adds to the Administration's goals to achieve 30,000 housing units and to be the cleanest, greenest city in the country. So I'll just put that on record and hope that we hear back. And then for you, Emily, I wanted to hear more specifically how does this dance that we do every single year where Council is essentially asked to cut your budget, how does that harm your ability to carry out and grow key programs? I know you've talked about that a little bit, but I wanted you to expound.

Thank you so much for that question. It causes a delay essentially. So every year we kind of wait through the first half of the year to conserve as much as we can, kind of take things a little bit slow, see where we end up, see what we can ask for and where the Mayor is going to land. We do participate in the Administration's budget process, but have not -- that hasn't changed anything. We're not part of the five year plan -- or we are part of the five year plan, at 1.3 million. We're not able to be considered for additional funds at any point in that process. So it certainly slows things down. And I'll just give one example. We're working on a project right now with the Water Department and PGW. If you ever drive up 95 and you see the flame that's kind of coming up from the side of the road, that's the Water Department flaring biogas. So it's the byproduct that comes out of the sewage treatment process. That can be used in the plant for energy and sort of offset what they have to take from PGW. PGW could also be using that as a clean source of fuel to continue to make Philadelphia a reliable place for natural gas and we're just wasting it, and that's bad for the environment, bad for everybody, bad for the Water Department. We've been working on this project for years and it's kind of been slow and steady because we haven't had the resources to be able to staff it fully. And these are the kinds of things that happen when we're sort of funded at the minimum amount from the Administration.

Thank you. Thank you for your patience. Thank you for doing hard and good work even in an environment that's not optimal. You are an agency that carries more than your weight, right. You are multiplying benefit throughout the neighborhoods in the City of Philadelphia, and I just hope that this is something that we can stop doing every year. I'm fighting to get you a budget that allows you to do your proven and impactful work. And so, hopefully Council will be able to get you the dollars you need, but I hope next year that we're looking at a different budget proposal. Thank you so much. (Applause.)

Thank you very much. Chair recognizes Councilmember Mike Driscoll.

Thank you, Mr. President. Welcome ladies. Council has been -- not everybody in your chairs the last couple weeks has been as warmly welcomed as you two, and much richly deserved. Emily, I just want to point out, just as Councilwoman Gauthier says, we got to figure out you getting in the budget, just like we got to get Tacony Lab in the budget. I mean, the return on investment is there. It's proven. In our negotiations, Council President, I think we need to make that clear to the Administration that, you know, it's well worth the investment, Emily. So thank you for what you do. And, Jane, I'm excited that all the visitors are going to come from around the world are going to see the beautiful work of your team in the next couple of months and I'm sure they're going to be thrilled at the work product that you've produced. And thank you for that and thank you for all you've done. Just want to get back to the Tacony Lab. For me, it's a wonderful thing for that neighborhood and for the children in that neighborhood. But from your perspective, what do you think the impact of the Tacony Lab is?

I think for -- I think we share a lot in common because our budget is -- it's proposed at 3.7. And last year, because of Council, it went up to 5.2 and we've been working with that number. And so, if we were to go back to 3.7, we'd lose things. We would lose staff, programs, invaluable programs. And like the Tacony Lab and what I think about the Tacony Lab is just it's this relatively small investment for something that has become a beacon. I mean, honestly if I had a magic wand or if I were a funder, I only wish, we would have Tacony Labs in every Council District of the city, because the places like Tacony are miles, miles from any anchor arts institution. I mean, it's great that we're in a city with world-class museums. That's great, but not everybody goes there. So how do we bring art to people. And so, Tacony Lab is the quintessential multi-tasker, you know, programs for seniors, for kids, free programming. It's a maker space. It's got residency programs. It's like a beacon. And I can't even imagine -- if you were to tell people in Tacony that the Tacony Lab was going away, I think they would find it unfathomable. And so, it is the wisest of investments. Because Emily, like what you're saying, it is not a lot of money for a huge impact. Thousands of people are coming through those doors. And why shouldn't that happen in a city like Philadelphia, the birthplace of democracy. Someone once said that Mural Arts was the visualization of democracy, because people actually have a say over what is in their neighborhood and I applauded them for that statement, and we need to stand on that and believe in it and take it to the bank. And Tacony Lab is a wonderful example of it and I cannot thank you enough for your support.

We're going to keep fighting for it. Kudos to you, Barb Bower and your entire team. Well done. (Applause.)

I visited the Tacony Lab too. So Councilmember Driscoll is doing a great job. I know it's something near and dear to his heart. So great program. Chair recognizes Councilmember Quetcy Lozada, then Councilmember Rue Landau.

Thank you, Council President. Thank you both for the work that you do. I've been fortunate to be able to work very closely with speaking --

Can you speak into the microphone a little bit more.

Okay. I'm sorry. I've been fortunate to be able to work with Jane and your arts on transforming different parts of the neighborhood. And one thing I think is clear is that we can't agree on a lot of things sometimes in the neighborhood, right. But when we talk about art, when we talk about beautification, when we talk about partnering with stakeholders like Mural Arts, everyone is always on board and everyone says yes, and that speaks volumes about not just your leadership, Jane, but also about the leadership and the artists that are involved in Mural Arts. And so, thank you so much to all of you for your willingness to work in the 7th Council District, particularly through the Heart of Kensington Creates Initiative that is going to bring I think to life an entire corridor that for a really long time has had challenges. I'm really excited to see that come to life. Jane, can you talk a little bit about the Heart of Kensington Creates? What is the work? Who was involved? How was the engagement process working directly with multiple neighborhoods within that Kensington corridor? And what do you believe the impact will be once it's complete?

Well, first I want to start with huge gratitude to you for believing in us and believing in the power of public art. I remember the day you talked to me about it and I almost fainted, because I was so excited and just my gratitude knows no 10 bounds. So I just want to start with that. And it has been just a thrill, and I'm going to tag team with Nadia. Maybe you want to come back up and we can be a little team here. So we're partnering with Impact Services. What a great organization. And we are bringing lots of residents together. And what was so interesting, Councilmember, I remember the first meeting and you were there, you could see that it was a big group of people that don't necessarily agree on things, just what you said, but everyone could agree about public art and how much they wanted it, and that's why this Gusset project along the EL, everybody loved it. We could work with homebound people. We can work in hospitals. We can work with children. We could work in schools. Everybody can design a little part of it. And then there's going to be 12 major murals and we are also able to regrant to small galleries and work with a lot of local artists. So really it's like a platform for true expression to flourish. It's phenomenal. It is a phenomenal project and we're going to have a big arts festival and tours. I'm just get so excited I could leap out of this chair. Nadia, what would you like to add?

Nadia Malik. So as Jane mentioned, we're doing murals. And then with the 4 Esperanza Health Center, we are 5 starting this Thursday, tomorrow. 6 We're doing monthly engagement so 7 that anyone who wants to work with 8 the artists, they can come in and 9 work, but Mat Tomesko, who is the 10 artist on the Gusset Project. Our 11 goal was to have 400 individual 12 little triangles made directly from the community. We're at about 350 at this point. So you can tell we've done a lot of engagement throughout the community. As Jane mentioned, Impact is an amazing partner. We just spent -- Matt spent a week at Memphis Street Academy, so it's a bunch of kids there that made their little paintings that are going to go up and down the El. And then the 12 muralists, I believe Ricky is the project manager on this and I think he can give us that information. But I believe at least half of the artists that we picked are from -- more than half are from Philadelphia and have connections to Kensington. So I know two of the artists have studios in Kensington, but the main goal of this project is all of those artists will be listening directly to the community and we purposely picked 12 spaces that are up and down Kensington Avenue. So as you mentioned, the little neighborhoods make up the larger neighborhood. They all have their own say. They all have their own idea of the neighborhood. So each neighborhood, each part of the neighborhood can have a different mural that is their say. So we'll be rolling out that engagement next week. We'll be giving people a calendar of here's how you can meet the artists. And the artists are very clear that this is very community- focused, right. This is not a project where you can't not hear from the community. We obviously want the artists to express themselves. They are amazing, beautiful artists. They have their creativity. But this is we want to hear from the community and then put that out there publicly.

Thank you. Thank you for that.

And also, we'll have tours moving forward too. Every year there'll be tours going to this part of the city.

Okay. Thank you. Can you share the Affirmations Avenue Project? What do you believe the impact will be on not just the neighbors that are there, but on folks that are traveling through the neighborhood? What would the Affirmation Avenue Projects say to them?

Well, I think that Affirmation Avenue is so interesting and it's our hope that we can take it to some other parts of the city, that it's really about the history of the community and identity of the community and how the community sees themselves. And it's really just an interesting way of creating public art that it's like a street sign and not on a wall. So it sort of takes people like, oh, look at that. So I'm hoping that people can see their lives reflected back to them in ways that people understand. I think one of the wonderful things that I know I'm biased about public art is I think it gives people the dignity and respect they truly deserve and it lifts up our history. It talks about our memory. It deals with where we're from and that's what Affirmation Avenue does. So I'm hoping that that's just their little anchor points along the way that people walking will say, what does that sign say, what does this say and learn more about the community as they're also looking at the big, bold, beautiful murals. So the two artists that lead Affirmation Avenue, they are public school teachers, are part of the public school. And so, they do a lot of their work based on research as well. So in Kensington every neighborhood that they go to, they look at the lost Black history in that neighborhood. And in Kensington, a lot of that was AfroCaribbean history as well. So they've done an amazing job of focusing on history that people might not know about the neighborhood either. And so, I think it's great that people see those signs, gives them a little nudge to be like, oh, I didn't know that, maybe I can do some more research. But again, they're talking directly to people in the neighborhood who represent that Afro-Caribbean history as well.

Awesome. Thank you. I'm excited about that. And then one question for EPA. You all referred to a study that was conducted by the University of Pennsylvania where you talk a lot about how streetlighting can improve or reduce crime. Can you share with us how many light structures you've actually been able to change? Do you have that information by Council District? And if there have been any challenges that you've experienced and all of that good stuff?

Yeah, thanks for that question. So the Philadelphia Streetlight Improvement Project touched every single streetlight citywide, including all of the alleyway lights as well. We had Future Track clearing debris and trash from 1800 alleyways citywide. We replaced 125,305 fixtures and we're just finishing the punchlist now, so we've got a couple more to go but almost done. The project was delivered on time and on budget. It employed hundreds of people. We had incredible diverse participation on that project. We had 47% MBEs, 22% WBEs. We surpassed our projected 58% participation rate. It was about a $92 million project. It pays for itself in just over years, with 5 $8 million of savings annually to 6 the city. 7 And we do have the 8 numbers by Council District. In 9 the 7th we replaced 12,317 10 fixtures. I think that's all of them and happy to share those numbers with the rest of Council as well. And I'll just mention --

I'm sorry. And in the 7th, have all of the pictures been completely changed?

99.5%. We've celebrated. It's done, but there's just a little bit of a punch list. There were a few fixtures or a few poles where PECO needed to come in and do some maintenance first before we could replace it or something like that. We had a set of fixtures as well for Commerce Street and a couple of others where it was a different kind of fixture and the manufacturing plant took longer than we hoped, but it's almost entirely complete.

Awesome. Thank you. Thank you for your work. Thank you, Council President.

Thank you very much. Councilmembers Rue Landau, Jim Harrity, Nina Ahmad and Mark Squilla.

Thank you, Council President. Thank you both for being here and thanks for bringing your teams. You guys are wonderful for all of the work that you do in Philadelphia. I want to tell you that I too am struck by this power duo here of agencies that seemingly do completely different things, yet there is so much overlap. You both provide incredible job training programs to people who need them to provide employment and stability for households. You transform neighborhoods, both collectively large neighborhood transformation, but also individually in houses. You are absolutely our leaders in the return on investment and you tell us every single year that the more money we allocate to you, the more that comes back in Philadelphia in so many different ways. You are both so positive and will just continue to work if we give you more, that all you keep thinking is that good things can happen in Philadelphia and that you will not hear no for an answer, and your creativity and your ingenuity is just so inspiring. We have spent weeks, and a couple of years for some of us and many more years for the rest of us, of hearing other parts of city departments and agencies not be able to answer questions as clearly, not be able to tell us what happened to the money last year, not be able to tell us why a project wasn't finished. And it is so wonderful to hear what you two bring to the table and your organizations and your teams and so frustrating as well for the larger picture, which is not your problem. It is ours. But I got to tell you the contrast is huge. So I hope that doesn't buy into my time. But I just wanted to say that. Jane, you are amazing. You have transformed our city. You have added color and light and beauty everywhere. We know you're not really going anywhere, but thank you and thank you for bringing this team and building your team. You guys are an incredible force and we just know we just got to give you more and more and more. So at the fear that I'm only going to have one chance, I'm going to go two questions for Mural Arts and two questions for PEA. But my first structural question for Mural Arts has to do with the fact that you said there's 195 murals that require restoration or conservation. What is the estimated cost to address this backlog? And what risk do we face financially and culturally if restoration is deferred?

Well, I'd say restorations can go from a couple thousand to much more. I mean, the problem in Philly, it's just what it is, it's old architecture, so you don't know if they're leaks and if there's bad flashing and sometimes stucco pulls off and collections age, they just do. I got my start in Los Angeles. And at the time, LA was the center of the mural universe. And many years later I had moved here, it was early Mural Arts. And I got a call from the LA Times and they said, you know, murals in LA are going away. And I was like, what, that seems confounding to me. And they said, well, the city program, they lost their funding, so the graffiti abatement teams, the murals got graffiti, they just take them away or the murals are fading and they take them away. And these were brilliantly-painted murals. And I just thought to myself, oh, we can never let that happen in Philadelphia. And fast-forward, all these years we are known internationally as the city of murals. People come here from all over the place. I mean, over the last month I can't tell you how many people have stopped me and said, I moved to Philadelphia because of the murals, so we want to maintain them. The money that we're asking for, the 1.9 million that we really need, is because of restoration because it's such a little sliver that we have now. It really just doesn't go that far. And believe me, we stretch it really far. But I feel like we've tried everything to raise private money for restoration and mostly we failed, because people want to give money to new things or to programs and people just take it for granted, oh, the collection is just always going to be great, but the answer is, no, it won't. And we just need to make sure that we're always on a mission to maintain that collection. Because it's not just about beauty. It speaks to our lives.

Thank you. Second Mural Arts question is, after four decades of your leadership at Mural Arts, what steps are being taken to ensure institutional stability, continuity of artists, relationships and long- term sustainability?

Yeah. Thank you for that question. Well, I feel like we have an extraordinary staff. And for the last number of years, I've been thinking a lot about the next generation of leadership. And we have our COO Lisa Murch, our Chief Advancement Officer, Aviva Kapust, and the executive team, and Aviva and Lisa will be carrying on. We have an incredible leadership team, the directors of our departments. You met Nadia, Damon is here, Michelle, Phil Asbury from Community Murals. Here are people that absolutely love the work and are dedicated to our city and I have no doubt that they will be extraordinary stewards of all that Mural Arts does. And I think all you can really do is to make sure that people are in place so that you feel that the service delivery and all we do will be uninterrupted. And I feel very confident that that is the case.

Excellent. Thank you. Two quickies for PEA. I promise not to come back --

Be real brief.