COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS - - - Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Thursday, February 1, 2007 9:50 a.m. - - - PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN JOAN L. KRAJEWSKI, CHAIR COUNCILMAN DARRELL L. CLARKE COUNCILMAN W. WILSON GOODE, JR. COUNCILMAN JACK KELLY COUNCILWOMAN DONNA REED MILLER COUNCILMAN JUAN RAMOS COUNCILWOMAN BLONDELL REYNOLDS BROWN COUNCILMAN FRANK RIZZO COUNCILMAN DANIEL SAVAGE BILL 070019 - An ordinance authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2007 within the General Fund from certain or all City offices, departments, boards and commissions to certain or all City offices, departments, boards and commissions, to enable the purchase, installation and maintenance of additional public safety video surveillance cameras. - - - V A R A L L O Incorporated Litigation Support Services Eleven Penn Center 1835 Market Street, Suite 600 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 215.561.2220 215.567.2670 2
Good morning. The Committee on Appropriations is now in session. Thank you very much for waiting. I did have an emergency, so I'm calling it into session. Do we have anyone from the Administration? No. I'm sorry. Let the Clerk please read the title of the bill.
Bill 070019, an ordinance authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2007 within the General Fund from certain or all City offices, departments, boards and commissions to certain or all City offices, departments, boards and commissions, to enable the purchase, installation and maintenance of additional public safety video surveillance cameras.
Thank you. Do we have anyone from the Administration to testify?
Good morning, 3 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 Chairman. My name is Joseph James. I'm the Deputy Chief Information Officer from the Mayor's Office of Information Services. I believe my testimony has been provided to members of the Committee. If you would like, I can read it, or if it's already been read into the record, I can just answer questions.
I believe the testimony could be read into the record.
Fine. Then I'd be available to answer any questions that you may have, if you have any questions associated with the transfer.
Thank you. Are there any questions from members of the Committee? Councilman Clarke.
Thank you, Madam Chair. One question, Madam Chair. There is an amendment being prepared for this bill. When we go into public 4 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 meeting, I would like to offer that amendment. The amendment will speak of the department where the $5 million will be transferred from. Real briefly, I know we have abbreviated testimony. I just wanted to say that in discussing this issue with Mr. James and members of the Administration about the importance of this, it's my understanding that they will be laying out a schedule that talks about not only the time line associated with the cameras but the other things that are necessary, the infrastructure. I understand that we will probably need a facility to monitor the cameras, because the Police Administration Building is inadequate in terms of being able to have the appropriate space and the appropriate screenage, and I know there were some issues with respect to wireless versus hard line and a number of other technical issues. Mr. James, I believe there is 5 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 another gentleman being brought on to this process?
Well, in addition to myself, Michaelle Cooke, who also works in the Mayor's office --
-- is the Project Manager, and we are formulating a steering committee, which is mentioned in my testimony, which we'll have our first meeting on Monday, and a copy of that governance structure laying out the steering committee and the operations team is included in the testimony. And much of that is part of the planning phase, which is the initial step that where we really need to regroup from the initial pilot as to kind of reconstruct this initiative around a strategic planning phase, and then we can move forward to actually developing many of the policy issues associated with it, and then maybe it will move us forward to 6 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 actually get to a design. Around May we should be at a point where we'll be able to lay out a schedule and we'll be ready to start implementing cameras.
Thank you. Are there any other questions from members of the Committee? Councilwoman Miller.
Did I hear you say that you said you're putting together a steering committee?
And who would be members of that committee or potential members of that committee?
Sure. In the governance structure that we've included is a steering committee that has representatives from the Police 7 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 Department, Streets Department, Department of Public Property, Law Department, Mayor's Office of Information Services, and also the Mayor's office will be part of that steering committee. We will deal with a lot of the policy issues, which we really need to address up front. And then from the policy, once we have a concrete policy that has buy-in by all parties, that's how we're able to then work with the technical issues of laying out a structure and an infrastructure to move forward.
I'm sorry for the delay. We're waiting for the amendment. If there are no other questions from the members of the Committee, you may go.
Thank you. Councilman Clarke, the purpose of introducing an amendment to the bill?
Yes. Madam Chair, when we go into the public meeting, I will be offering an amendment. The amendment essentially will be directing $5 million -- directing the Director of Finance to direct $5 million out of fringe benefits from employee benefits to the Department of Public Property for purchase of services. I do believe that amendment has been circulated, and I will be offering it officially when we get into the public meeting.
All right. Thank you. Are there any questions? 9 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 (No response.)
That would end our public hearing on Appropriations. Now we will go into our public meeting. The Chair recognizes Councilman Clarke.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I'm going to ask for an adoption of the amendment to Bill No. 070019. (Duly seconded.)
Therefore, Bill 070019 as amended will be reported out of this Committee with a favorable recommendation with a suspension of rules so as to permit first 10 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 reading at the next session of Council.
Madam Chair, I think we should make a motion first on that --
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I would like to make a motion that Bill No. 070019 as amended be reported out of Committee with a favorable recommendation and a request for rules suspension as to allow reading at the next session of Council. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. Therefore, Bill 070019 will be reported out of this Committee with a favorable recommendation and the rules of Council be suspended so as to permit first reading at the next session of 11 2/1/07 - APPROPRIATIONS - BILL 070019 Council. All those in favor? (Aye.)
Thank you very much. That ends our public hearing on Appropriations.
Thank you, Madam Chair. (Committee on Appropriations adjourned at 10:05 a.m.) - - - 12 CERTIFICATE I HEREBY CERTIFY that the proceedings, evidence and objections are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me upon the foregoing matter on February 1, 2007, and that this is a true and correct transcript of same. ______________________________ MICHELE L. MURPHY RPR-Notary Public (The foregoing certification of this transcript does not apply to any reproduction of the same by any means, unless under the direct control and/or supervision of the certifying reporter.)