The ayes have it. These bills that have just been read will be placed on our First Reading Calendar for today. The Chair now recognizes Councilwoman Bass for a report from the Committee of Public Health and Human Services.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Committee on Public Health and Human Services reports one bill with a favorable recommendation.
Thank you, Councilwoman. Mr. Decker, would you please read the report.
The Committee on Public Health and Human Services, to which was referred Bill No. 180888, entitled "An ordinance amending Title 6 Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Code, entitled 'Health Code,' by adding a new Chapter 6-1200, entitled 'Pharmaceutical Sales and Marketing Practices,' to provide for registration of pharmaceutical manufacturer agents and certain other requirements; and to prohibit gifts by pharmaceutical manufacturers and their agents to health care practitioners," respectfully reports it has considered and amended the same and returns the attached bill to Council with a favorable recommendation.
Thank you, Mr. Decker. Councilwoman Bass, before you make the motion, would you like to make a comment?
Well, I would actually. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. You know, earlier today, this morning, I know that my colleagues received some correspondence from the Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 -- or actually, no. It was from the tourism agencies that represent the City of Philadelphia, and basically saying that in doing this particular piece of legislation, that we would somehow have a negative effect on pharmaceutical sales and on these sorts of conventions here in the City of Philadelphia which make up a large majority of the tourism here in Philadelphia, and I just really took issue with that. This is something that's been happening for so long and we have heard almost nothing from the pharmaceutical industry, from the tourism folks about how we were going to deal with this issue. We've heard almost nothing. We call ourselves a city of eds and meds and we have this huge disconnect where we have one of the lowest college attainment rates in the country here in Philadelphia and we have a huge disconnect with all of the folks who are Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 in the City of Philadelphia and gaining access to the critical healthcare that they need. So I just really wanted to put out there that to send this letter around this morning I felt was not the right thing to do. I understand that this is their business and this is what they're interested in, but if we're interested most importantly in the lives of Philadelphians, then this is something that we have to do, and I would hope that we would have more support from those institutions and from the pharmaceutical industry, who has been largely silent here in the City of Philadelphia on this issue. So thank you, Mr. Chairman. And that being said, I move that the rules of Council be suspended so as to permit first reading this day of Bill No. 180888. (Duly seconded.)
It has been Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 that the rules of Council be suspended so as to permit the first reading of this day Bill No. 180888. All those in favor signify by saying aye. (Aye.)
Let the record reflect Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown is being recorded as a nay. And this will be placed, with the majority of Council that voted in the affirmative, to be placed on today's Calendar for today. The Chair recognizes now Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown for a report on the Committee on the Environment.
Chairman, I Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 be recorded as voting no.
Just for the record, all this motion did, it was moving on the second reading. If anybody wants to vote no next week, they certainly have the right to do that. It's kind of unusual you don't at least allow the bill to be moved to the second reading, but I guess anybody could do what they want. But just for the record, that's not a negative vote on the bill. It just was a vote on moving it to the second reading. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you, Councilman. I am going to defer to Mr. Decker, our parliamentarian, who will rule on a change in the vote after a Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 on. One second. (Pause.)
Let the record reflect that both Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown and Councilwoman Gym be recorded as a nay vote for the first reading of this bill in today's Council session. The majority of Council has voted in the affirmative to be placed on today's Calendar. The Chair recognizes Councilman O'Neill.
Procedurally, as Councilman Greenlee said, this is a procedural vote as opposed to an up or down vote on the particular ordinance. Could you read the Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 again, please.
Mr. Decker, would you please read the title of Bill No. 180888 as being reported out of committee.
The Committee on Public Health and Human Services, to which was referred Bill No. 180888, entitled "An ordinance amending Title 6 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled 'Health Code,' by adding a new Chapter 6-1200, entitled 'Pharmaceutical Sales and Marketing Practices,' to provide for registration of pharmaceutical manufacturing agents and certain other requirements; and to prohibit gifts by pharmaceutical manufacturers and their agents to health care practitioners," respectfully reports it has considered and amended the same and returns the attached bill to Council with a favorable recommendation.
That is a favorable recommendation was motioned and Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 that bill being read out of committee with a favorable recommendation gets placed on next week's Calendar session. The Chair recognizes Councilwoman Bass.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just really want to make sure that people understand what this bill does. And what it essentially is saying is that pharmaceutical sales reps who are not -- we have no idea how many pharmaceutical sales reps there are in the City of Philadelphia operating, and one of the practices that we've been made aware of is that there is a practice of giving away free samples of opioids, of pain medication that have been permeating throughout our communities for quite some time now, and this is something that's a problem. We can't get in front of this problem unless we know exactly how many people are out there essentially sending themselves out as lobbyists. What we're Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 is to register themselves as lobbyists and also to end the practice of giving away free gifts so that a doctor will use your product, a doctor will prescribe your product, a doctor will give away all of your free samples. And so we have no idea how many folks are actually out here doing this practice, but we need to have some sense of it if we are going to get in front of it. If we're really serious about doing something about drugs in the City of Philadelphia, then this is a first step, and this is not a hard step, in my opinion. This is something that's overdo, that we need to do right now, and it shouldn't wait. It shouldn't wait. (Applause.)
Thank you, Councilwoman. The Chair recognizes Councilman Greenlee. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I don't want to elongate this. Councilwoman Bass certainly explained the bill correctly. I guess it's just ironic, I never remember anybody voting not to let the bill move to the second reading before, and it's unusual that somebody who has the support of a whole lot of people in here today is voting not to even let people consider it for next week, where we will in that week -- and Councilwoman Bass and I have been very open to say come talk to us. So maybe the bill won't move next week. Maybe it will have a vote. But to just vote to say don't move it, I've been here a long time, I've never seen that. So somebody has got to explain that to me. Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you, Councilman. The Chair recognizes Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
Majority Leader, this is not an either/or equation, as Councilwoman Sanchez likes to say very often. All of what Councilwoman Bass has stated is 2,000 percent true. All of what Councilman Greenlee has stated is 2,000 percent true. I have a number of not questions -- well, questions and concerns regarding the bill. I have no problem at all with it moving to next week. However, I need to register today that I have questions and concerns, a number of questions and concerns, because at the end of the day, this bill, as I understand it, has not been prescribed, described, constructed as an opioid bill. With that, I vote no, and I'm prepared to speak in greater detail next week when we move this bill to second reading and final passage. Thank you, Majority Leader.
Thank you, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 said, there was a motion on the floor -- the Chair recognizes Councilman O'Neill.
Then I'm going to move on to the majority of the vote that's on the floor for the bill to be referred to -
I agree with Councilman Greenlee. I don't remember it either. But if we're entertaining it, this is a bill that I believe should be slowed down, and that's all it does. It slows the bill down. It would sit on the Calendar through January. It's an Administration bill. It's not a Council bill. And this is using a shotgun approach to pharmaceutical reps when we should have a rifle dealing with opioid reps, and somehow we have to figure out how to Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 this, because we've got a lot of pharmaceutical companies in the City. They're doing cancer research and other things that this is really objectionable to, and I just think it needs more time. So if this is the way we find more time, so be it. I think it's a good vote on a motion. Thank you.
I have two good friends here, opposite sides of the issue, which is a good public policy discussion. I do think -- I don't want to slow it down. Let's make a decision, because last year, if I recall the number, 1,300 people OD'd on opioids. (Applause.)
I mean, you know, I'm not going to go to a teddy bear memorial or a funeral and explain why we had to slow it down. We need to slow the flow and proliferation of these drugs Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 so up or down, let's vote it out, but we ain't slowing it down. Thank you.
Thank you for your patience. Bill No. 180888 has been moved out of committee, seconded, and majority of Council has voted affirmatively to be reported to be read in our next Council session. Let the record reflect that Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown, Councilwoman Gym, and Councilman O'Neill have voted in the negative as nays. The next order of business, the Chair recognizes Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown for a report on the committee which I think has been submitted to our Chief Clerk, Mr. Decker. Clerk, would you please read the report.
The Committee on the Environment, to which was referred Bill No. 170712, entitled "An ordinance Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 21 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled 'Miscellaneous,' by adding a new Chapter 21-3000, entitled 'Environmental Justice Reporting,' to establish standards for studying and reporting on environmental justice," respectfully reports it has considered and amended the same and returns the attached bill to Council with a favorable recommendation.
The Chair recognizes Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown.
Thank you. Thank you. I move that the rules of Council be suspended so as to permit first reading this day of Bill No. 170712. (Duly seconded.)
It has been moved and properly seconded that the rules of Council be suspended as to permit the first reading of this day Bill No. 170712. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 will signify by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it. This bill will be placed on our First Reading for today's Calendar. The next order of business is the consideration of the Calendar, and I note that the bills just reported from the committees with suspension of the rules have been deemed to have had a first reading on today's Calendar. These bills will be placed on the Second Reading and Final Passage Calendars for next session of Council. Mr. Decker, are there any other bills on the First Reading Calendars -Mr. Decker, since there are no additional bills, the Chair recognizes Councilman Greenlee for the purpose of calling up the Council resolutions and bills for the Second Reading and Final Passage for Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 2ND READING today's Calendars. The Chair recognizes Councilman Greenlee.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The following resolutions and bills are being called up from the Second Reading and Final Passage Calendars today: Nos. 181049, 181050, 181051, 181053, 180672, 180674, 180919, 180741-A, 180978-A, 170854-A, 180649-A, 180602, 180906, 180951, 180939, 180940, 180846, 180704, and 180975. All other resolutions and bills are being held.
Thank you, Councilman. Before we consider these resolutions and bills, we will consider public comment as follows: Your public comment must be on the concern of the matter of Second Reading and Final Passage for today's Calendar in this calendar session. All speakers must sign up in order to testify. If you have not, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 please do so by giving your name to the Sergeant-of-Arms at the table to my left. And you will be called in the order in which your name appears on the sign-up sheet. You will have three minutes to speak. In order to be fair for those wishing to speak -- and we do have a full house here today, so your consideration and courtesy is greatly appreciated. We will hold faithfully to the three-minute limit. When you begin speaking, you will see a green light at the podium. There will be 30 seconds remaining on your time, the light will then turn yellow, which is a reminder to please conclude your remarks. Once the three minutes have passed, the light will turn red and the Sergeant-of-Arms will need to move forward with our next speaker. We also reserve the right, for the record, for redundancy. I will ask the Chief Clerk, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Mr. Decker, to please read the name of our first speaker.
Shani Akilah, commenting on 180649-A. (Witness approached podium.)
My name is Shani Akilah. I'm with the Black and Brown Workers Cooperative and I stand here -(Applause.)
Kylan Lunsberg with the Democratic Socialists of Philadelphia. (Applause.)
So I would be remiss if I didn't start with saying I am not here on behalf of any of the political actors who hold office who have been attached to this bill. I am here on behalf of the workers and, more Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 specifically, on behalf of black and brown workers who labor in white supremacist workspaces across this city. The current conditions under which workers labor within are completely at the behest currently of management, with no measures of accountability. This is mostly a managerial class staffed by white privileged folks who mostly have power over front-line black and brown workers, particularly those who identify as LGBTQIA. (Applause.)
Recently the Black and Brown Workers Cooperative received a phone call from a queer black man who worked for Starbucks right here in Philadelphia, the same Starbucks who sold out black bodies simply for buying coffee, simply for sitting in a seat waiting company to arrive. That same Starbucks hired a queer black man with a disability, who was very clear at the point of hire that he has a disability. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Over the course of his short tenure at Starbucks, he was forced to call out because of health complications due to the same disability that he let his managers know about up front. They not only retaliated by targeting him and firing him -- shame, shame -- but they are also trying to make it impossible for him to get jobs at any other Starbucks. And so we know, we know that the current system does not work. Black and brown workers already work in hostile working environments due to racism, particularly black women. The Black and Brown Workers Cooperative has received many stories from black women of all sexual identities, all abilities, all class stratifications who experience retaliation by their employers for simply trying to live their life, simply trying to take care of their children. The current status quo, the ways in which employers are able to cut hours, are able to force workers to work Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 double shifts even though they have a family, even though they are living below the poverty line, all of these things are rooted, are rooted in a white supremacist system. (Applause.)
Lack of agency for front-line workers -- no matter what you all decide, there will be a movement of the people. (Applause.)
Thank you. Mr. Decker, would you please read our next speaker.
Reverend William Moore, commenting on 180649-A. (Witness approached podium.)
Good morning. My name is Reverend William B. Moore. I am pastor of the Tenth Memorial Baptist Church and a former President of Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity. I and the organization, Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity that I was Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 privileged to serve as one of the former Vice Presidents, unequivocally support the fair workweek bill. (Applause.)
As a pastor in this city for almost 45 years, I have sought and is mandated by my calling. One of the fundamental principles of my calling is to speak for the voiceless, the marginalized, the underrepresented, and the often left out and left behind. This is what brings me here before this body today. It does not give me comfort nor peace to know that Philadelphia is numbered at the top of the list for the poorest city in America, particularly when more than 130,000 workers in Philadelphia who work in retail, fast food or hospitality receive less than adequate notice of changes in their work schedule. Black Clergy of Philadelphia and Vicinity members believe as I do, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 that workers deserve to know when and how long they will work. Every worker deserves the respect of being provided a stable work schedule, a schedule that helps them to arrange for medical care, to help them to arrange for childcare, parent-teachers conferences, and many of them who balance a necessary second job in order to keep food on their table. Sensitivity to the needs of the worker is crucial to a stable workplace, while at the same time helping to break the cycle of poverty in this city. A front-page article in today's Philadelphia Inquirer confirms that poverty is not being reduced, but it is rising in Philadelphia. And whenever there is an unstable workplace, it also encourages people not to go to work. Distinguished members of this body, I urge you to vote yes on these proposed found workweek bills. Thank you in advance -(Applause.) Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
Thank you for voting yes in advance for many of the workers that you represent. This is a way to show them that they really do matter. Thank you. (Applause.)
Thank you. Clerk, would you please call our next speaker.
Minister Rodney Muhammad, commenting on 180649-A. (Witness approached podium.)
Good morning, Mr. Chair and members of City Council. I'm Minister Rodney Muhammad, currently newly reelected President of the Philadelphia branch of the NAACP, minister of Mosque No. 12. I'm here with a statement for a fair workweek. It's customary that when people serve in government, they're sworn in with their hand on the Bible. I don't have a problem with that. The only Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 problem I would have, if we don't use the same hand to open that Bible so we can learn how to govern over God's people. The Bible opens with a God who promises that he's on 24-hour call, yet he gives us a model and genesis of a workweek because he was the first worker. He established family long before government so government can measure how well it's doing by legislation, policy, and industries on how they impact families. The family was first; the government came next. When a person has to quit school because they fail to know when they're going to be scheduled to work, that stifles any chance for upward mobility, which puts a knock against economic growth. To engage a childcare taker with money and hours waiting to get called for a schedule that never materializes, this is unacceptable in line with a predictable workweek. To prepare for a work schedule that abruptly Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 changes without notice and you're expected to adjust at a moment's notice, that has to be unacceptable. It is not employment but rather the destabilizing of those who are employed and the destruction of job security that guarantees the poverty levels in this city where one out of four of us is considered poor, people living on the margins. Philadelphians, we have no question, have ability, but when you can't predict when you're going to work, we're taking away dependability and reliability. Families are challenged already with limited resources, the greatest of which is time. Predictability helps a person to budget time. When 130,000 workers cannot predict how they're going to be scheduled to work, it amounts to a great economic injustice even to ourselves. The cry in the City is for Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 economic justice. The cry in the City is for a fair workweek. The book of Proverbs brought me here this morning because it says those who close their ears to the cries of the poor shall be ignored in their own time of need. Let's vote yes on the fair workweek bill. God bless you. (Applause.)
Good morning, Councilmembers. My name is Rosslyn Wuchinich. I'm the President of Unite Here Local 274, the hospitality workers union. (Applause.)
I'm here today on thousands of unionized hotel and food service workers and the 50,000 Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 hospitality workers in the City, many of whom are still non-union, the majority of whom are still non-union. We are here today to support the fair workweek bill and the $15 City minimum wage bill. (Applause.)
To take a step back in labor history and labor principles, in 1912 women and children who were working for half the wages of men in the largest textile factory in this country struck for both a shorter workweek and fair pay. That brutal but ultimately victorious strike is referred to as the Bread and Roses Strike. Today in 2018 the hospitality industry is majority women and majority black and immigrant here in Philadelphia. We think it is not a coincidence that the low wages, long hours, and unsafe conditions that we endure in this industry are experienced by our members and folks in our industries. In addition, our employers expect us often Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 to -- our employers often expect us to bend to their needs, but not to recognize our own. So we are supporting these two bills, which we believe seeks to end that unequal treatment. The fair workweek bill will change the lives of thousands of hotel workers and food service workers in the City, not least those working for the largest hotel company in the world, in this country, and here in Philadelphia, the Marriott Hotel Corporation. (Applause.)
It will provide access to full-time hours and the ability to plan our lives and take care of our children and ourselves. The $15 bill is going to provide workers at Philadelphia's International Airport, both those that provide food in the terminals and those providing food on the flights leaving our airport, both union and non-union, some Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 of the most vulnerable workers, to a $15 wage, which if you're working full time is just over $30,000 a year. So these bills provide both bread in terms of wages and hours and roses in needing time with our families, time off, and respect for our lives as human beings. (Applause.)
I want to note that this has been a deliberative and participatory process with labor, business, and government that has addressed some of the major concerns of the hospitality industry, while also addressing the major concerns of hospitality workers. And, importantly, this bill preserves the right of unionized workers to decide with employers through the collective bargaining process what parts of the law should or shouldn't apply. It does not legislate a contract nor does it leave any unionized worker behind. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 We thank you for your support today to bring hospitality workers out of poverty and into the middle class. Thank you. (Applause.)
Thank you. Mr. Decker, would you please call up our next speaker, please.
Annie Ellison, commenting on 180649-A. (Witness approached podium.)
My name is Annie Ellison. I've been a housekeeper at the Marriott for 18 years. When I first got to the Marriott, it was clear that it was hard work. I never done housekeeping work before. Every part of my body hurt. Many nights I would get home, I was so tired I couldn't sleep. I was physically and mentally exhausted. Sometimes I'll be dreaming knocking at the door saying "housekeeping." When I started, I was in good health. Now I'm starting having problems Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 with my hands, carpal tunnel. I started getting problems that I hear other women talking about when I first started working, knees, back, you name it. It takes a long time to clean 16 rooms. I start at 8:00 in the morning and some days when I am still working at 6:00, I am so drained that I want to crawl down and say, look, I can't clean any more rooms. But if I give back rooms, there can be consequences. I think the latest I ever stayed was 9:30 at night. I'm so tired, I honestly feel like I could cry. Sometimes the linen is dirty. You make a whole bed and see a stain, you have to make it all over again. There are days when we are searching for linen up and down the hotels. It is a lot of wear and tear on the body. I would like to -- it would be nice to go home on time. Some of my co-workers have small kids in daycare. If you are late, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 you can pay a fine for every minute. So you're staying on the clock, but you might be losing money. How is this fair? As many mothers, we need and have to have a regular schedule. I want to help Marriott. That's why I am there for my eight hours. I can choose to stay longer or let that be my choice. Right now it's not. We leave late at night and a lot of women feel unsafe. We're leaving too late at night. The transportation slows down, and we don't feel safe out there. A lot of mothers come to work at 8 o'clock, and by 12 o'clock they know that they cannot get out on time to pick up their child in daycare, and you can see the stress on their face. We're working under a lot of stress, and it's all day long that we worry about can we do the job, can we get out on time, can we pick our child up on time, can we go home, can we fix dinner, can we spend time to talk to our Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 families. These are the things that we are concerned about. These are the things that we are worried about. And today I'm crying out to the mothers, the fathers. I'm crying out for that young child who needs to spend time with their parents. It's not right. (Applause.)
It will make our community safe. It would make our families happy if we can be home on time. Thank you.
Terrence Wiggins, commenting on 180649-A. (Witness approached podium.)
My name is Terrence Wiggins. I lived in Philadelphia my whole life. When I first got involved with this campaign, I worked at Target. Now I Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 work at Ross too. Unfair workweek for so many enter second jobs. Now that I have two jobs, I cannot spend time with my family. I can't help take care of my nephew with cerebral palsy or my grandmother with cancer. I'm trying to be the man in my family, because so many of the men in my family are locked up or they're dead. I'm the only male role model left in my family, but what good is that if I can't even be there for them? Society say black men are lazy, that we want to stand on the corner, but here I am trying to support my family the right way and the deck is stacked against me. That's why I urge City Council to stand with workers like me today by voting for fair workweek. By passing this -(Applause.)
By passing this bill, you're giving everyone in retail, fast food, and hospitality a chance to Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 provide for their family, just like I'm trying to provide for mine. Dignity and respect should be standard in our community. Most of us in Philly, probably even some of your family members, have these service jobs. They are vital to our neighborhoods. So let's stand with Walmart workers who are supporting their family of five but can't get more than 30 hours a week, the housekeepers who is forced to stay two hours extra and has to pay $1 a minute in childcare fees. Let's make them good jobs now. (Applause.)
Mr. Decker, would you please read the name of our next speaker.
Elizabeth Fiedler. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 (Applause.)
Welcome to our Chambers, Representative. REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT FIEDLER: Elizabeth Fiedler, State Representative-elect for South Philadelphia. (Applause.) REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT FIEDLER: Thank you, City Council, for having me, and I would like to thank Councilwoman Helen Gym and Councilmember Mark Squilla in particular for showing great leadership. I'm here in support of fair workweek and $15 minimum wage. (Applause.) REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT FIEDLER: I am here on behalf of working people who live and work in my district and on behalf of working people across this beautiful city that we all love. The human cost of the current situation is very clear. The people and Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 their children are being hurt by big corporations that keep taking more and more. I would like to offer a special thank you to all of the workers who have spoken here today and spoken in the past. They've shown great courage and have really shown all of us elected officials the way. I would like to thank the unions, communities, social justice, and movement organizations who are in the balconies, behind me, and who have already made clear their opinions on this legislation. (Applause.) REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT FIEDLER: We stand on the side of workers every day, but most especially here today in the halls of our city government. Passing this legislation is the morally right and courageous thing to do, and it is the thing to do on behalf of our neighbors and our loved ones. It's time Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 to put people over profit and vote yes. Vote yes. While I am here specifically today on behalf of fair workweek and the $15 minimum wage, I would like to call on my fellow elected officials to support all legislation that comes before him -before them, both him and her, all people, all legislation that puts people over profit, that puts the people we have pledged to serve over the profits of giant corporations. (Applause.) REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT FIEDLER: I will simply end by proudly saying that the sight you see in the balconies, behind me, the calls, e-mails, and personal visits you have received, that is what democracy looks like. (Applause.) REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT FIEDLER: Thank you.
Mr. Decker, would you please read the name of our Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 next speaker.
My name is Robert Kee. I've been involved with fair workweek campaign for almost a year. You heard my story about struggling at Target, having to beg for hours, not being able to afford to even get to work, and facing retaliation for speaking up for myself. I am so grateful that you listened, City Council. I work at Whole Foods now, but when this bill passes, I'll be so excited for other team members at Target who won't have to look for a second job because they are getting the hours they need. Thank you, City Council, for Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 standing with workers. Thank you especially to City Councilwoman Gym for leading the important charge. Thank you for these City Councilpeople for corresponding or already voting yes in the committee, City Councilmembers Sanchez, Greenlee, Jones, Johnson, Henon, Blackwell, Green, and Bass. To the other Councilmembers, we look forward to your relationship. We look forward to today and to make better for Philadelphia working families. Thanks to you, 130,000 people will have the basic dignity to plan their lives, to spend time with their family, go to work, go to a doctor, and do other things that human beings need to do. Thank you. (Applause.)
Thank you very much. Good afternoon, everyone. So I Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 want to first say that I rise in support of a fair workweek and $15 an hour. I support the citizens of Philadelphia in their attempt to move government. This is what it's all about. This is what it's all about. I came to speak on 180741, but I'm going to talk about first the contents of 180741 and I want to talk about the principle around the policy and how we got to where we are with 180741. So first off, just for my friends in Council, 180741, all it does is allow for a homeowner like myself -- I live in Cherelle's district. I'm a homeowner in Cherelle's district. I had ten people that live in your district who were here to speak. They had to leave. They're homeowners. They're business owners. All we're asking is for the opportunity to get before a judge in 14 days. So if someone is in our house illegally, that we don't have to wait six Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 or seven months, that we just want to get before a judge. That's all it does. It doesn't say that you got to kick anybody out. It just says it gives me an opportunity to have my case heard before a judge in 14 days. That's really it. But I want to talk about how we got here. There was another bill, 160844, that was stuck in committee for two weeks, and it's ironic that the two republicans aren't here right now to hear us speak. But there was a bill stuck in committee, and Councilman Clarke said, okay, Emmanuel, if you want that bill out of committee, go get your eight people that you say support that bill and get them to write a letter and sign a letter and we'll see about moving that bill. So we had five courageous colleagues sign that letter and we had three of our people, our friends in Council, who were bamboozled, because they were led to believe that they were protecting councilmanic prerogative and Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 they were led to believe that they did not sign the letter because they wanted to hold the power to hold the bill in committee in case they really didn't like it was against the people. So you in Council were bamboozled by leadership. You thought you were protecting councilmanic prerogative to hold the bill as the Chairman that could do harm to the people. So you thought you were protecting us by not signing that letter that Darrell Clarke asked you to sign, but in essence, it's up to his discretion to actually circumvent what you were trying to protect. He took 180741 that was in Allan Domb's committee and because Allan Domb said I want to hold a hearing and everybody together, he moved that bill. So the councilmanic prerogative you're trying to protect, you're just showing you that you were bamboozled, that he deceived you, that this is -- that he Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 could indiscriminately move bills out of committee that you Councilmembers want to protect. So this is not a fair and just system. This is not a fair and just leadership. They pick and choose when they want to actually appoint leadership. So to take a bill that is sitting in committee since 2017 and leave it there but take another bill, 180741, and move it into committee, to another committee, pass in committee in one week is totally unjust and unfair. You as Council, who went to school, who got degrees, who are studying to become subject matter experts in your particular field, you are being bamboozled by the leadership in City Council. That's what's wrong with our system. We indiscriminately disperse the law and disperse enforcement of the laws. That's what we rarely give, that unfairness, even in this body, people like Maria Quinones-Sanchez, Cindy Bass, Derek Green. If you rally against City Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Council leadership, you can be punished. And you know how they punish you?
They put your bill in a committee and don't let that bill come out of committee. So you know what? Sometimes when you think your Councilperson is ineffective, you know what's really happening? He's being or she's being punished by the leadership in City Council. They put that bill in committee and they kill the bill in committee. That gives them even more power than the Mayor. The Mayor can't -- the Mayor can't kill a bill. )
Darrell Taylor. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 (No response.)
It wasn't on. It wasn't on. I came to stir some stuff up. That's what I do. My name is Trine Smith and I was born for this. I came as a voice for the people, of the people, by the people, and I came to say everything that brother just said about the way these bills and the way they rail and the way -- excuse me. A lot of people know my face and they know my voice. Everybody don't know my name, but my name is Trine Smith, and I'm here today really on a personal call. I'm fighting the Philadelphia Housing Authority for the second time. They did the same thing to me eight years ago, and now I'm in a place I could be evicted. I don't know what's -- I'm actually in limbo. I went in hiatus. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 I'm like I don't even -- I went to court. They came up with some BS. I said, you know what, I'm going to step out of this thing for a minute. And I'm back today to say if somebody don't help me, me and my family could be in the street by Christmas. I stand with the good cause bill. (Applause.)
I was with them in the beginning, but I had to fall out because I'm beat up. I'm also an environmental justice activist. So stand with the environment. If you're gonna get environment, the environment can't take care of you. It won't. By default you're going to hurt yourself if you don't take care of the environment. It's a lot that I could say, but Imma say this, Imma leave on a note of peace. I came out here for war. I did. I'm a fighter. That's what I do. I fight. I fight. But I believe in Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 peace and I believe in love, but at times of peace, you should still study war. And on that note, I'm out. Listen, I'm going to need y'all help. Everybody looking at me today, everybody see me? Yeah. I can call some names, but I ain't going to do that either. I need some help. Me and my family need some help. Thank you very much, y'all. (Applause.)
Good afternoon, City Council. I'm a homeowner. My name is Darrell Taylor, and I'm here for Bill 180430. I'm talking to everybody that's here that's a homeowner, people that need help. Who helps the homeowner when somebody break in your house and they charge you all this money to get them out? Who helps the homeowner? Nobody. So Mr. David Oh, Ms. Cindy Bass, and Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Councilpeople put a bill together. You have some Councilpeople here. The bill has only been here since September. They're not even letting it get an effect. They putting at least 100 -- I mean, at least a year and a half before you be heard to put this person that's unjust out of your home, and we're taking the cost of everything. So it doesn't -it's not fair. So I would advise you people, I represent 50,000 people, all softball leagues, all the football leagues throughout the City of Philadelphia. I'm an ex-pro player. We want you to help us. I'm not rich. I'm poor. It's not happening to the rich. It's happening to the poor. It's not happening to the rich counties and all the people out there that have money. It's happening to the poor. We need help. Please vote for this bill for Mr. Oh. Thank you. (Applause.) Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
Thank you. Mr. Decker, could you please read our next speaker.
Good morning. My name is Gladys Lackey. Good morning, Council. Good morning, everyone. The purpose why I'm here this morning is to prevent homeowners in Philadelphia from going through what I've been through in reclaiming my home from a criminal squatter. I am pleased to announce Monday, December the 4th I finally got into my home. It has been and still is very painful, and it has been an experience that has left scars on me for the rest of my life, because the squatters are living two doors away from me, living in property of theirs, which was valued at $170,000. They have not lost anything throughout this whole Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 ordeal throughout my two years. It has cost me twice as much to restore my property. They deliberately destroyed my property, realizing they had to leave. They destroyed my property, realizing that they had to leave and left my property inhabitable, leaving me with a shell. I'm here to testify before Council, but I've been here a couple times to testify in support of Councilperson David Oh, criminal and defiant trespassing bill. I thank the Councilmembers who supported it, and I urge Council not to change this law, but to help implement so people like myself and other homeowners will not have to go what I have been through, with months and years just to get before the judge to hear your case. Until now, there have been no -- there have been absolutely no consequences for individuals committing Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 these horrible crimes. Bill No. 180741 does not have a single provision that will help the homeowner who have been victimized by criminal squatters for far too long. Instead it takes away protection from homeowners. Victims of fraud and other crimes that are illegally occupying homes should be directed to existing resources and laws that are available to help them. No additional burdens should be placed upon homeowners. I ask that you please maintain and support on the criminal and defiant trespassing ordinance and vote no on this Bill 180741. Thank you so much. (Applause.)
Mr. Decker, would you please read the name of our next speaker.
Chris Labovitz, commenting on 180741-A. (Witness approached podium.) Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
My name is Chris Labovitz. I would like to thank Council for giving me the opportunity to speak in support of the existing Criminal and Defiant Trespassers Act and against the changes that will weaken the Bill 180741 as adopted. My name is Chris Labovitz. I'm a Zoning Chairman and trustee for the Tacony Civic Association in the great Sixth District represented by Bobby Henon. I can assure you that I represent more than just the Tacony Civic Association. I represent all the civic associations that are up in the Northeast. The property owners of Philadelphia should be able to feel that they will not have their homes taken from them by defiant trespassers. We often think this will happen to somebody else, it's not my problem, why worry about it. We just heard from a woman prior to my speaking how it does happen to people. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 I just imagine someone sitting in a hospital. They've been sick. They've been there a while. They're old. They're alone. Years ago their neighbors would have looked after the house, probably mowed their lawn. Times have changed. There are those that prey on people in this position. Now the person, after suffering in the hospital, comes to their home and cannot get in. Their keys don't work. No answer at the door. Things look different. They call the police, worried that something is going wrong, that they've done something wrong. The police arrive. With the Criminal and Defiant Trespassers Act, the owner is protected. The trespasser is asked to produce paperwork to show they've been given permission to occupy the home. The police can start investigating. With the current bill, any abuse of the occupants can be immediately dealt with by the police. These protections are already covered by law. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 They don't need to be altered. Sexual harassment, stalking, domestic violence should never be tolerated under any conditions. The court system can rule whether the trespassers are unlawfully living in the home. They will be told to leave. No loopholes are needed. With Bill 180741, the owners' rights aren't priority. The trespasser is given too much consideration. If the current occupant has been scammed or lying that they've been scammed, why must the owner suffer also? With 180741, the owner is asked to suffer up to 15 additional days. Imagine someone in your home for two weeks who knows they'll be getting kicked out. How do you think they'll feel about your house? I've had legal tenants who made a mess of their apartments with only hours of notice. That's ridiculous. Let the Criminal and Defiant Trespassers Act remain intact. Do not weaken it. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Bill 180741 is too subjective. What does reasonable good faith, unknowingly mean? Why is the homeowner expected to relocate? Where is the sympathy for the homeowner? Show criminals that our city values law and order and punishes those who take advantage of our neighbors. The rights of the homeowner should never take the backseat to anyone. Let's show the people who repeatedly operate these scams that they will be investigated and dealt with harshly. Philadelphia is not the place to be if you aren't going to be a good neighbor. Thank you for your attention. (Applause.)
Ruth Birchett, commenting on 180741-A. (Witness approached podium.) Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
Good afternoon. My name is Ruth Birchett. I am President of Heritage Homeowners Association. I'm speaking in reference to Bill 180741-A, the bill I describe as a nuisance amendment to the criminal and defiant trespasser bill that was passed by this Council in June and became law in September that was introduced by Councilman Oh. All 17 of you are lawmakers. Let me remind you of this. And this bill, this amendment is no different than the crazy amendments that are tacked on to good bills down in Washington. It's not just Washington where things are happening wrong. It's here in Philadelphia too, and we got to change that. And next year is election time for all of you. I'm addressing specifically Council President Darrell Clarke, area I happen to live in, the Fifth Councilmanic District, Curtis Jones, Kenyatta Johnson, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Jannie Blackwell, Derek Green, William Greenlee, Helen Gym, and Al Taubenberger. I'm talking to you, because you're the one that introduced this mess. I will tell you I observed as a block captain for over 30 years in Philadelphia and a committee person as well, I will tell you that as a homeowner, I have to battle people who sell drugs in a house on my block, an historic block, a block where Pearl Bailey used to live in North Philadelphia for two years. The Next Squad did nothing. That's a drug squad, supposed to come and get people away. And white people -- I live in North Philadelphia all my life, got the same phone number as when I was born. I'm a senior citizen. I've never seen white people drive up in cars over and over again, call on the cell phone, and wait for someone to come out to hand in whatever they hand and walk away. But the 22nd District did zero about it. The DA's Office did zero Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 about it. It took two years. It finally went to Sheriff Sale, but the owner of the property had to give due process to the criminals. I will tell you that I even wrote to the CEO of Fannie Mae, who was the mortgage company that acquired it and owns it now. It's not fair to law-abiding citizens who do everything that they can to preserve their neighborhoods. We spend our own money, our own time, talent, and treasure in our communities that we love, and you will not sit here and introduce legislation that will harm us and is predatory to our quality of life. Oh, no, you won't. (Applause.)
Andrea White. (No response.) Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
George Gould, commenting on 180741-A. (Witness approached podium.)
Good afternoon. My name is George Gould and I'm a Senior Attorney at Community Legal Services where I have worked for almost 50 years on matters affecting low- and moderate-income households. I've had the privilege and honor of working with this City Council during many, many years. This morning I'd like to briefly talk about four sets of important bills. First, there are two bills prepared by Councilwoman Parker concerning anti-squatting. One of these important bills would amend the recently passed anti-squatting ordinance. I want to make something abundantly clear. We are, and I know Councilwoman Parker is, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 totally and completely opposed to illegal squatting, criminal trespass. This bill does nothing to change the process. What it does simply is to make clear that there are persons besides tenants who have a legitimate right to live in properties and should not be subject to charges of criminal trespass and quick eviction. (Applause.)
These include homeowners who have lost their properties at tax sale and have a right to remain there during the nine periods where they can pay and stay in the property. It also protects tenants whose owners have been -- properties have been sold by mortgage foreclosure, and under federal law these former tenants have a right to be in the property. It also protects persons who enter into installment sales contracts. They are, quote, not tenants, but they clearly have a right to be there. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 It would also make it abundantly clear that victims of fraudulent leasing are not criminal trespassers and subject to fine. However, they would have to leave the property in a short period of time. Most of these cases take place in vacant properties. Both the police and DA have testified in favor of these bills. The second bill would impose fines and possible imprisonment for scammers who enter into fraudulent leases with unsuspecting tenant victims. It would also create a cause of action for these tenants to sue the scammers. I'm also here today to support Councilwoman Gym's fair work bill, Councilman Jones' just cause eviction bill, and Councilman Squilla's providing City contractors and subcontractors with a living wage. These are all important bills that need to be passed today. Thank you. (Applause.) Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
Good afternoon. I'm Jennifer Schultz. I'm a Senior Staff Attorney with Community Legal Services, and for the past decade, I have been working in the Homeownership Unit in Community Legal Services. I know that you've heard from a lot of homeowners who are opposed to the amendments regarding the squatter bill that Mr. Gould just spoke about, but I want to clarify that this is not an issue of tenants versus homeowners. I represent homeowners. It's all I've done in my 15 years of practice, and we agree that we need to make these amendments happen to this bill. Philadelphia needs to address the problem of criminal trespassers, but we need a system that is easily accessed by victims, responsive to complaints, and Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 capable of careful and complete review of accusations to determine the merits of those accusations of criminal activity. The bill that is currently enacted by law in June attempts to address these issues, but in doing so, it subjects many non-criminals to potential fines or jail time simply for living in a house they have a right to be in. The City law in its current form does not protect previous owners of the property who lost their house in a Sheriff Sale, victim of domestic violence, and people living in a property with permission from an owner but where there was no tenancy relationship. The bill before City Council today proposes amendments to address these flaws in the original law and providing a more balanced approach that honors the various rights people have over a property. And I want to be clear that nothing in the bill reduces the right that already exists for homeowners Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 to seek redress from the police or the courts. The courts have always been available to homeowners to seek emergency ejectment when circumstances justify it. City Council does not have any authority to change the process regarding the courts. Similarly, nothing in the law or the bill changes the criminal laws of the Commonwealth. The Philadelphia Police Department has worked to create clear guidance to all members of its force on how to properly investigate and refer for prosecution situations that involve criminal activity and criminal trespass. Nothing in the City's law or the new bill changes any of that. The issue here is simply about whether or not there will be additional penalties under the City's civil code and whether or not people can be subject to fines and imprisonment when there are civil levels of disputes, and our position is that civil disputes that do Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 not involve knowing trespass do not belong in putting people in jail. They belong in the civil system, and the bill 180741 provides for those corrections. Thank you. (Applause.)
Cateria McCabe. (Witness approached podium.) MS. McCABE: Good afternoon. My name is Cateria McCabe and I'm the Director of the Veterans, Kinship Care, and Tenant Rights at SeniorLAW Center. Members of City Council, thank you for this opportunity to provide SeniorLAW Center's response to Bill 180741. At SeniorLAW Center, we protect the rights of older Pennsylvanians. We're the only non-profit organization whose mission is dedicated to providing legal protection to Pennsylvania senior citizens. In our work, we assist seniors whose homes have been invaded by Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 trespassers who refuse to leave. These trespassers often pose dangerous and threatening situations for seniors. We also assist innocent homeowners and tenants who face being improperly removed from their homes despite having a legal right to remain. We encourage the creation of a process allowing trespassers to be removed more quickly. At the same time, we emphasize the need to carefully calibrate the process to ensure that it is not used to remove innocent seniors from their homes. We support Bill 180741 because it meets two very important goals. It ensures that criminal and defiant trespassers can be promptly removed from residential properties and it protects legitimate occupants, victims of abuse, and victims of fraud against being improperly penalized. Without this bill's improvements, innocent Philadelphians risk being removed from Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 their homes and/or charged criminally when they are rightfully in a property. There are numerous examples and circumstances where seniors have a right to stay in their homes but could be treated as a criminal trespasser. For example, seniors who lose their homes in the result of a tax foreclosure may have a right of redemption under the law, but without Bill 180741, a purchaser of the property at Sheriff Sale could have a senior removed from the home and potentially arrested. Additionally, in the context of landlord-tenant relationships or instances of domestic violence, there's a danger that bad actors will make false affidavits to force seniors out of their homes quickly. We look forward to continued work with Council to make our city a safer home for our senior population and empower them in the fight against exploitation and abuse, and encourage you Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 to vote favorably for this bill. Thank you. (Applause.)
Good morning, Council. My name is George Donnelly. I'm an attorney at the Public Interest Law Center here in Philadelphia, and today is poised to be a banner day for economic justice in the City of Philadelphia. (Applause.)
With Councilmember Gym's fair workweek bill, Councilmember Squilla's wage legislation, and two housing bills that I'm here to talk about, which are both commonsense economic justice reforms that will provide modest protections to the City's most vulnerable residents. And so I urge Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 City Council to support the good cause legislation from Councilmember Jones. (Applause.)
And Councilmember Parker's bill protecting victims of fraudulent leases. (Applause.)
There is nothing controversial about needing a good reason to evict somebody from their home, and there is nothing controversial about making sure people defrauded by scammers and fake leases are not treated like criminals. The good cause legislation will prevent retaliatory evictions and increase housing security for families with month-to-month leases. Right now these families are one repair request away from being homeless, since landlords can evict them for no reason, simply saying, your lease is up. Do you think landlords are evicting tenants who keep their mouth shut? No. They are evicting tenants who have the audacity to assert Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 their legal, moral right to safe and habitable housing, and this bill stops that abuse. And on Councilmember Parker's bill, there's been a lot of misinformation, a lot of misinformation, and what I would urge Council to do is not read Facebook posts and op-eds. Read the bill. Read the bill. The bill in its current form keeps the hearings in place that you heard so many homeowners ask for. They're exactly right. They wanted a hearing, they get their hearing. It keeps the penalties for criminal squatters in place. You want the penalties? They're still there. And it keeps homeowners' rights in check. All it does is de-criminalize those people who are scammed by fraudsters who will rent out empty properties with a fake lease. That's all it does, is just criminalizes those folks. And, again, don't take my word for it. Read the bill. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 These commonsense pieces of legislation, they provide a modicum of relief, an economic justice in the most vulnerable tenants in Philadelphia. And so I urge you to vote in favor of Councilmember Jones' good cause legislation and Councilmember Parker's bill. Thank you. (Applause.)
Thank you very much. My name is Phil Lord. I am an attorney and Executive Director of the Tenant Union Representative Network. December 10th is International Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Human Rights Day, but this can be Human Rights Day here in Philadelphia if we do the right thing, and I hope you will. We're standing up today for the basic human rights of workers and tenants to economic justice. There are four bills that I want to speak to - the good cause bill, the squatter amendments, the owner accountability bill, and the fraudulent lease bill, but they're overrated, and they're based -- they're required because there are several myths in our culture that need to be addressed. There are basic misunderstandings about the law right now that need to be corrected. One is, nobody moves into a property for a month. You don't pay $2,000 to $4,000 of deposit, move all your furniture and kids into the property, and then two weeks later said you get a notice to vacate. Month-to-month leases are a myth. People are expected to be in a property until Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 either they mess up, they violate the lease, they can't pay their rent or the landlord needs the property for some reason. The good cause bill, which you should call the just cause bill, because it's not about being good, it's about being just, it's about being fair. The good cause bill says you have to have a good reason to put a tenant out. Why is that so important? Because either you have a good reason or you have a bad reason. Nobody goes to eviction court for no reason. That's crazy. You have to hire a lawyer to go to court for no reason. If you have a good reason, like non-payment, damage to the property, a nuisance, that's fine. The bill covers that. You can do that and more. If you have a bad reason, what do you say, sorry, your lease is up, termination of term. You don't go to court and say, I'm doing this because of racism. You don't go to court and say, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 I'm doing this because I was sexually harassing you and you turned me down. You don't go to court and say, it's because I've retaliated against you because you complained. You say, your lease is up. But when you say that, the judge says fine, it's a month-to-month lease, it could be up any time. This law has to be passed because it has to protect tenants from this kind of fraud and abuse. Without it, we don't have any protection. All of our laws mean very little if someone could get past it just by saying, your lease is up, it's month to month, I'm sorry. We need this protection. Okay? Beyond that, we need the squatter amendments, because the squatter bill, as passed, it can be abused seriously. You heard from homeowners who say they can't get people out, and we understand that's a serious problem. We're not saying that people who go in the properties and try Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 to scam people should be allowed to do that. We think the criminal laws are available for that, and they should be enforced. There's no question about that. But the people we see -- I saw a couple just a little while ago, two little children under a year old. They moved into a property. They gave all their money to the landlord, $3,000 they saved up. A couple weeks later they found out that the person they gave the money to didn't own the property. They had furniture they just bought for it. They were all excited about being there, and they had to move out. These are the victims that we see every day, people who pay rent for a month or a year, without knowing that the person they rented to is not the owner. And there's reasons why they don't know, because there's no system for them to know. You don't know who your landlord is.
There's no way of saying -- if Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 somebody says I'm an agent for the owner, there's no way of checking that. We don't have a system to do that. So the fraudulent lease bill and the other bills are there to help provide some opportunity. Corporations now, LLCs are a shell. It's a shell game going on with the City. They move a wonderful LLC to another. You don't know who owns this property, and you wind up in trouble if you try to complain. They put it in somebody else's name and you don't even know what's going on. So people are moving into properties not knowing who the owner is, who the agent is, and they wind up being victims of crimes by other people. These are the real scammers, the ones who move people in innocently and in the property. So thank you. I hope you stand up for human rights today. Thank you. )
Mr. Decker, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 our next speaker, please.
Hello. My name is Jarrett Smith and I would like to read a statement from an ally of the Tenants Union and landlord, Chris Forsyth. My name is Chris Forsyth. I own a residential rental property at 2062 East Boston Street and a commercial property at 2341 North Front Street where I run Jerry's On Front, a music rehearsal studio business with six rooms rented monthly and yearly leases to musicians, artists, and community groups. I am currently in the process of acquiring and developing a property at 2637 Germantown Avenue near Lehigh Avenue to house a fresh produce market and a second location for the rehearsal studio business. I'm here to give my perspective both as a landlord and a civic-minded citizen and to urge City Councilmembers Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 to vote on Bill No. 170854, good cause eviction legislation. Before I was a landlord and homeowner, I was a tenant for 20 years, living in rental houses and apartments. So I have personal experience on both sides of the landlord-tenant equation. I've also spent much of my life in gentrifying City neighborhoods and have witnessed firsthand both the upsides in development for communities and also the negative consequences where development is unfettered and uncontrolled. One of these consequences obviously is that rents can skyrocket and families can lose their homes and be displaced, often by unfair evictions. If we want our city to continue to grow and to develop and to maintain and cultivate healthy, diverse communities, we need to control this phenomenon. Bill No. 170854, good cause eviction legislation, addresses in a very Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 commonsense way the issue of unfair evictions by simply requiring that landlords must offer a renewal lease to any tenants in good standing, and first tenants cannot be evicted without good cause. Any good reason to evict someone is allowed by this legislation, including if the tenant violates the terms of their previous lease, is a nuisance or refuses to accept a rent increase or if the landlord wants to sell the building, move a family member into the property or do major renovations. It does not unduly constrict a landlord's ability to conduct business in the City of Philadelphia. On the contrary, it enshrines good business practices in the law and protects our most vulnerable tenants from unfair treatment by unethical landlords, thereby helping to create stability in our communities. I think this legislation should be uncontroversial to any member of Council and, in fact, to any reasonable, Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 ethical landlord. Thank you. (Applause.)
Good afternoon, City Council. My name is Barry Thompson. I was the first elected President of the Philadelphia Tenants Union. I want to start this off by saying it's always the right time to do what's right. Testimony by Pastor Andrew Ed Price, on this day, 6th day of December, the City Council has gathered to vote on good cause eviction legislation. I entreat you all that you not vote according to the political whims of the moment or according to who has the most power to help you in seasons of reelection, but I ask that you vote with the most vulnerable and most marginalized in mind, for that is the American thing Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 to do. Our Declaration of Independence boldly declares that we have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as an unalienable right. The most vulnerable among us deserve life. When landlords can ignore court orders, when they want to evict tenants, who are oftentimes single black mothers of children, without accurate notice or just cause, it is a denial of life. Rather than demonize the vulnerable, care for them by passing this legislation. I am the Mount Olive Tabernacle Baptist Church where I am the senior pastor and stand in solidarity with the Philadelphians who have been unjustly evicted. Today we will vote those who choose life.
Thank you. And I'm Sterling Johnson. I'm from the Fair Housing Rights Center of Pennsylvania. I'm Director of Enforcement. I'm just here to remind the Council here about the requirements under the HUD's assessment Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 of fair housing even when it comes to rules that look neutral on their face, that they have disparate impact regarding against protected categories in our city from race and ethnicity to people based with families. Discrimination is not what it looked like in the '50s. After 50 years of the Fair Housing Act, you see that we still have the same issues, right? But today it is eviction records, it is criminal records, it is single women, single women of color with families. You need to think about those people and what discrimination looks like right now. This is -- what happens now, what this piece of legislation will do is actually give people a place, a legal right to be in the space. What happens now is that after -- even if there is any legal right, they have no recourse. There's no lease. This will stop that. You need to pass this now. Thank you. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018
Can you please state your name again for the record, please.
Hello. I'm here -my name is Aurica Hurst. I'm a community organizer for One PA. We're fighting for fair workers and good cause, but I'm here to speak on behalf of good cause. There is a tenant, Sierra Robinson, who wasn't able to be here today due to her unfair scheduling. Ironic. She says, hello. My name is Sierra Robinson. I used to live at 237 South 48th Street in Apartment 21-A. I was illegally evicted and I was actually locked in with no way Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 out and no way in. I was told that we only have five minutes to get all of our belongings by the Philadelphia Police Department. No sheriff was present. Myself, Aurica Hurst was there when this happened and there was an illegal lockout. The landlord, Phillip Pulley, is going by doing this in several places in Philadelphia, and the Dorset Admiral Court Building is where he's doing the most of this. He's pushed out tenants illegally. He didn't have a renter's license. He cut off the water and the electricity the day before Thanksgiving. There were families in that building. Some of them were immigrant families who could not even speak English, who were being told that they had to leave. Phillip Pulley hired young black men to stand up to fight tenants that were trying to get back in the building. These young men, who didn't even know that the building owner didn't Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 even have a writ of possession, which by law you must have, and a renter's license, which by law you must have. We need to pass good cause, but it doesn't stop at good cause. We need City Council to fight for renters and homeowners in Philadelphia. We are the -(Applause.)
We have a declining homeownership in Philadelphia and we have increasing evictions. We need City Council to go above and beyond past good cause. Yes, pass good cause, but look inside what you can do in your own chambers, in your own communities. What can you do to provide affordable housing for Philadelphians who are struggling to pay rent, who are struggling to stay inside their homes long term. There are families in that building that have been there for over 5, 10, 15 years. So how, how did this go unnoticed? How was this man able to Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 purchase the building and rent to tenants with no rental's license, with no writ of possession? How is it being done here in Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection? How is this being done? It's being done because a lot of things are being overlooked. We need you, City Council. We need you today to fight for good cause and vote yes. (Applause.)
Good morning. My name is -- good afternoon. My name is Rasheedah Phillips. I'm the Managing Attorney at the Housing Unit at Community Legal Services. Thank you for the Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 opportunity to speak today. I'll get straight to the point. This bill does not create any additional barriers for landlords who follow the law to legally terminate leases and remove tenants. It creates further clarity for both landlords and tenants on what grounds can lead to an eviction, gives tenants a fair opportunity to understand what the issues with their tenancy are under the terms of the lease. With or without a just cause law, a problem tenant or a tenant behind on their rent must still be put through the legal eviction process and should still be afforded notice and the opportunity to defend what is most at stake for them, their housing, their shelter and everything that goes along with that, their employment, their family. In a city that allows for no cause evictions and where the Pennsylvania Landlord-Tenant Act allows Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 favor of notice in lease agreements, the result is an average default judgment rate of 55 percent. Fifty-five percent of people are losing their homes because they did not get a simple piece of paper that tells them that their lease is at stake. Enacting just cause protections continues -- if we don't enact just cause eviction protections, we will continue to uphold an eviction process where landlords are able to evict people based on arbitrary, illegal, profit-motivated reasons that lead to further destabilization of the housing rental market. Many of the costs and adverse impacts of eviction can be avoided when tenants are provided with adequate notice when they're at risk of lease termination due to falling behind on rent, breach of a condition or at the end of their lease term without prospect of renewal. Notice under just cause laws provides Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 opportunities for tenants to settle, repay, get rental assistance, make arrangements to move or otherwise cure breaches before entering a courtroom but before having to ever enter a courtroom. Notice saves money that would be spent on court fees, attorney's fees. It saves time for all parties involved. In turn, this allows our great city to avoid some of the direct and collateral costs associated with housing instability, ultimately leading to healthier, more stable people and communities. If we want to move our poverty rate at all, we have to pass this. Stable housing, stable, healthy, and safe communities benefits every single person in this room. Simply put, there is no articulable reason, no public policy reason why denying tenants the benefit of notice of lease termination and a reason why the lease is ending. There's just no reason why not to give people that notice and that opportunity. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 Today we have an opportunity to join many other states, hundreds of other cities around the country who have just cause laws and shape the future of our city into one that embraces true equity and access in housing, health, education, and employment. Community Legal Services strongly urges you to pass this law today. Thank you. (Applause.)
I was going to say good morning, but we're afternoon at this point. Good afternoon. My name is Christian Banche. I'm here to speak on Bill 170854, unfair rental practices, once called just cause bill, started off as the good cause bill. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 I work with many organizations in Philadelphia and stand today as a proud member of the Philadelphia Tenants Union, who has been leading the way in legislation, standing in solidarity and struggle with our most vulnerable tenants in Philadelphia, a city that prides itself in rewarding wealthy property developers with tax breaks while at the same time paving the way for the displacement of those same most vulnerable residents. The journey for this bill started two years ago when it was formally introduced in October of 2017. Since then, the housing and landlord lobby has come in and they do what they do best. They lobby City Council, they water down the original language of the bill, and thus taking away the bill's teeth. I wish I could say I was surprised at this outcome, but I'm really not. Three minutes is not nearly amount Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 enough time to share with you the laundry list of property developers and lawyers who evict tenants that donate large sums of money to many of their Councilmembers sitting or playing with their phones in front of us right now. (Applause.)
This bill has been sent to committee and magically forgotten about for months while tenants are being evicted every day and sent to the streets, many of which are on low and fixed incomes, have disabilities, God forbid they have children, and most of which are black and brown. The Philadelphia Tenants Union knows this because they're the ones knocking on our doors and hearing the heartbreaking stories of families who have become homeless because they're evicted without good cause. A pediatric nurse can tell you firsthand the stories where children miss their important routine well child checks Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 and subsequently end up in the emergency room due to acute illness, all because they have faced housing insecurity in the face of unjust evictions. While City Council has balked on this bill, we've seen bills introduced and passed within months. A few weeks ago many of us sat in these same Chambers and watched as members of Council laughed and joked and had a mock debate about a resolution welcoming the sports mascot to the City. Many of the people testifying today will celebrate City Council for passing this bill. As probably you guys have guessed, I'm not one of them. This bill should have been a no-brainer with the original language as introduced. We like to pretend we have a progressive city, and some will say that they believe in housing as a human right, but City Council has done with this bill what it regularly does. It moves the goalpost so far to the right that we are Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 conditioned to celebrate every movement to the left is a win. (Applause.)
Controlling that narrative is yet another perk of a city that has empowered and owned and ruled by one political party without any real opposition to the left. I'm going to close up real quick. While this is a good start, and I do celebrate those voting yes today on this bill, it's merely a bread crumb in the loaf of social, racial, and economic justice that Philadelphia deserves, a more equitable Philadelphia. (Applause.)
Hi. My name is Ricci Rawls. I came and spoke a couple Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 weeks ago about how me and my five children was homeless inside the City of Philadelphia and we couldn't get the help we need. What I didn't mention is I am a member of Philadelphia Tenants Union. It's a group that actually helped my family when nobody else would listen. Now, since my last time I spoke here, before I say anything else, what I want to say is, because of Councilman Curtis Jones, next week me and my children move into a five-bedroom home. (Applause.)
I thank you. I'm going to try not to be emotional, but the truth of the matter is, landlords wait until your lease is over and then they find somebody else with a security deposit and they move them in, and then the families that resided there become homeless. And not only do you become homeless, you lose your child. What y'all don't understand is you're ignoring children. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 The City has 6 thousand and almost 34 children placed in foster homes and you're still asking for 300 more families, but if you assisted the families in keeping their home and saving them from being evicted, children and families would remain together. I'm here to say I think it costs a lot less money to help tenants stay in their homes than it do to place a child into foster care. And, you know, while you're ignoring children, their future, their education, everything like I spoke before -- I bring my children to these meetings. I know they make noise. I get addressed that I may be put out and I may not have time to speak, but I bring them to remind y'all of our future. I bring them to remind y'all what we're really fighting for. (Applause.)
So I want to say, you know, I thank Curtis Jones and every other Councilman and Councilwoman who Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 voted yes on this bill, because this bill is very much important to women, children, family, people of color, people without color. It's just Philadelphia needs to treat its people who live here so much better. You know, I never like speaking in front of people, but after everything I've been through living here for 30 years, I think it's my right to speak for other families and other people who are going through what I'm going through. (Applause.)
And another thing I want to say, how I went through everything I went through just to even speak a couple weeks ago, just to even get the help I got. There's mothers and families and individuals out here who can't do that. And so I'm not just speaking for me. When I speak, I speak for thousands. Like about 28 families are put out of their home every day inside of Philadelphia, and that's Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 about -- like I said, that's leading to y'all having 6,000 children in foster care a year and asking for 300 more families, but what about the 300 families those children belong to, who probably was wrongfully evicted from their homes? So I think y'all should think about that. And I thank City Council for voting yes on the bill and, again, I thank Curtis Jones, because after being homeless for a year, me and my children will no longer be homeless next year. Thank you. (Applause.)
My name is Reverend Gregory Holston. I'm the Executive Director of POWER. POWER is 65-plus congregations across the City of Philadelphia and the surrounding areas building communities of opportunity that Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 work for all. So much has already been said, but I just want to do two things quickly. One, I want to lift up and thank all of the Councilpeople who have already committed to vote for the $15 minimum wage bill and also the fair workweek bill. (Applause.)
I want to thank five incredible, powerful women who make up POWER's Economic Dignity Team who are leaders on our team - Kate Esposito, Paula Paul, Frances Upshaw, Terri Burgin, and Carol Duncan. We thank you for so doggedly staying on this issue. Just about every Councilperson in here said no, no, no, and no again for about three years, and finally the dogged pursuit of you continuing to push forward made the difference in this bill. But let me say this to all who are here: Look around you, for what you see here is a movement. What you see Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 here is black and brown people standing together, in a city that is a majority city of color, fighting for the same issues. I heard the stories of the bills and they seem so similar three years ago trying and getting said no and no and no again. Yet the poverty level in this city remains at 26 percent and it's getting worse every day, yet we still got to beg for the basic necessity of what these bills provide. Could not these decisions been made on the first day? Because we were still 26 percent in poverty three years ago. The question is, when you see this movement that is already here and there is the majority of the City recognize that you can do things in an incredible way, that you can dream things that you never dreamed before, that you can build legislation that you never did before, you don't have to worry about a chamber coming to you. You don't have to Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 worry about the business issues, because the majority of the people in this town are right here and they're demanding a change in the City, demanding a change in this government, demanding a change in what we do. (Applause.)
I got 22 seconds left, so let me say this: This is not simply anti-poverty legislation that has been laid out today. No. It is a racial justice piece of legislation laid out today. And unless we're prepared to stand up for black and brown women, black and brown children, black and brown people in this city and challenge the business interests that reign in this city and that have kept this city in this grip of poverty for over 50 years, unless you're willing to do that, a movement is coming. A movement is coming. A movement is coming. A movement is coming, and the time is now. Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 (Applause.)
My name is Elaine Feincalvin. I was inadvertently left off the list for the fair workweek people. Anyway, we need a fair workweek desperately. I am here for workers who are students at Community College and those who wish to be students anywhere. I recently retired from 20 years of teaching six-hour intensive remedial reading and writing courses at Community College. About 50 percent of our students had to take these courses to prepare for college work. My experience makes me feel passionate about the fair workweek. Most of my students usually worked, often at more than one job, as Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 well as attended CCP. It was hard for them, working many hours while going to six hours of English class a week, completing 12 hours of weekly homework, indeed a crushing schedule, and this schedule did not change. I greatly admired their motivation, their enthusiasm, and their discipline, but time and again I would lose a promising student because his or her employer arbitrarily changed the work schedule with no notice, disregarding students who were attending scheduled college classes. Even students who had worked a year or more for a specific employer would have their schedules changed and changed again. Too many students became discouraged and dropped out. Some tried to stick it out, but they had missed too much class and fell too far behind to pass the course. Both corporate and small business employers might object to a fair Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 scheduling law, but in the long run, they will benefit because the fair workweek bill will create a better educated workforce of adult students. Over and over I heard students say that if they worked hard, they could better themselves. And they did work hard, but they really need the support of a fair scheduling law. Politicians always say that education is the key to overcoming poverty, and Malcolm X said education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today. When City Council passes the fair workweek, adult students will have a real passport to their futures. Please vote for the fair workweek. Thank you. (Applause.) (Audience members chanting.)
Mr. Decker, are there any other speakers on today's Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 12/6/18 - STATED - 2ND READING Calendar? (Audience members chanting.)
Mr. Decker, are there any other speakers on today's Calendar?
There are no other speakers on the public comment list, Mr. Chairman.
This will conclude today's public comment period. (Audience members chanting.)
We will now consider the bills and resolutions on Second Reading and Final Passage Calendars. Clerk, would you please read our titles of our bills and resolutions.
Resolution No. 181049, entitled a "Resolution authorizing the Commissioner of Public Property to execute and deliver to the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority, without consideration, deeds conveying conditional fee simple title to certain Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 12/6/18 - STATED - 2ND READING City-owned lots or pieces of ground with the buildings and improvements thereon, situate in the Fifty-First Ward of the City of Philadelphia," introduced by Councilwoman Blackwell.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move for the adoption of the resolution. (Duly seconded.)
It has been moved and properly seconded. All those in favor signify by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it. The motion of the resolution carries.
Resolution No. 181050, entitled a "Resolution Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 12/6/18 - STATED - 2ND READING authorizing the Commissioner of Public Property to execute and deliver to the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority, without consideration, deeds conveying conditional fee simple title to certain City-owned lots or pieces of ground with the buildings and improvements thereon, situate in the Twenty-Eighth Ward of the City of Philadelphia," introduced by Councilman Greenlee on behalf of Council President Clarke.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move the adoption of the resolution. (Duly seconded.)
It has been moved and seconded the resolution be adopted. All those in favor signify by saying aye. (Aye.)
Opposed? Stated Meeting December 6, 2018 12/6/18 - STATED - 2ND READING (No response.)
Resolution No. 181051, entitled a "Resolution authorizing the Philadelphia Land Bank to dispose of 1238 North 15th Street located in the 5th Councilmanic District," introduced by Councilman Greenlee on behalf of Council President Clarke.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move the adoption of the resolution. (Duly seconded.)