COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC HEARING BEFORE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS FY '01 TRANSFER ORDINANCE 4 - - - Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Monday, 2/12/01 10:00 a.m. - - - BILL 010006 - Authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2001 within the Aviation Fund from certain or all City offices, departments, boards, and commissions to certain or all City offices, departments, boards, and commissions. BILL 010007 - Authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2001 from the General Fund to certain or all City offices, departments, boards, and commissions and from the Grants Revenue Fund, the Mayor - Office of Housing and Community Development, the Department of Public Health, and the Director of Finance - Provision for Other Grants to the General Fund, certain or all City departments, offices, boards, or commissions. BILL 010062 - authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2001 from the Grants Revenue Fund - The Director of Finance Provision for Other Grants to the Hotel Room Rental Tax Fund, the City Representative, and the Director of Commerce PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN JOAN L. KRAJEWSKI, Chair COUNCILMAN MICHAEL A. NUTTER, Vice Chair COUNCILMAN DARRELL L. CLARKE COUNCILMAN W. THACHER LONGSTRETH COUNCILMAN ANGEL L. ORTIZ COUNCILMAN BRIAN J. O'NEILL - - - VINCENT VARALLO ASSOCIATES, INC. Registered Professional Reporters Eleven Penn Center, Suite 600 Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215) 561-2220 2 2/12/01 - APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE I N D E X Rob Dubow, Budget Director. . . . . . . . . . Ken Trujillo, City Solicitor. . . . . . . . . 6 L&I - Robert Solvibile, Jerry Prospero. . . . 25 7 Karl Bortnik, Acting Chief Info. Off., MOIS 38 8 Vic Richard, Recreation Commissioner. . . . . 46 9 Joanne Mangano, Admin. Services Director. . . 46 10 Estelle Richman, Director of Social Services 49 Dr. Tsou Walter, Health Commissioner. . . . . 52 3 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 P R O C E E D I N G S
Good morning. Thank you all very much for waiting. We were waiting for Councilman O'Neill to come in. (Laughter.)
The Committee on Appropriations is now in session. Will the clerk please read the bills.
Bill No. 010006, an ordinance authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2001 within the Aviation Fund from certain or all City offices, departments, boards, and commissions to certain or all City offices, departments, boards, and commissions. Bill No. 010007, an ordinance 17 authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2001 from the General Fund to certain or all City offices, departments, boards, and commissions and from the Grants Revenue Fund, the Mayor - Office of Housing and Community Development, the Department of Public Health, and the Director of Finance - Provision for Other Grants to the General Fund, certain or all City departments, offices, boards, or commissions. 4 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 And Bill No. 010062, an ordinance 3 authorizing transfers in appropriations for Fiscal Year 2001 from the Grants Revenue Fund - The Director of Finance Provision for Other Grants to the Hotel Room Rental Tax Fund, the City Representative, and the Director of Commerce.
Thank you. Is there someone from the Administration here to testify? (Witness comes forward.)
's 1007, 1006, and 10062, which make FY 2001 budget appropriation transfers between and among classes and departments in the City's General Fund Grants, Revenue Fund, Aviation Fund, and Hotel Room Tax Fund. And I'll start with 1007, which is the General Fund Grants Revenue Fund midyear transfer ordinance. It includes 56 transfers, including 42 5 2/12/01 APPROP. 7 million for one-time employee bonuses that were part of the labor agreements with uniform and civilian bargaining units of the City. 9 million to fully fund expected contractual obligations for outside legal counsel; And $188,182 to fund an Affirmative Litigation Unit for half a year. The Affirmative Litigation Unit will initiate cases that can generate revenue for the City; Additionally, the Administration requests $1,070,121 to fund increases in the City's contracts for legal services with the Defender Association of Philadelphia, Community Legal Services, and the Support Center for Child Advocates. The contract increases will help funds additional costs created by a growing number of 6 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 cases; The Administration also requests $960,000 to be appropriated to the Department of Licenses and Inspections for implementation of a lot-cleaning programming as part of the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative; And increase of $882,818 is requested in the Health Department to fund the purchase of pharmaceuticals, dental chairs for the health care centers, and a fluoroscope for the Medical Examiner's Office; An increase of $420,000 is also requested for the Fire Department to cover vendor costs associated with increased EMS billing and collection activity; The Administration requests a net increase of $209,861 to the City Commissioners, with $73,139 transferred internally from Class 100 to 300 and 400. The Class 200 funds are needed to cover the shortfall in the amount budged for the maintenance expenses of the existing voting machines resulting from the unexpected delay in the contract negotiations for the purchase of new electronic voting machines; 7 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 An increase of $579,959 is requested in the appropriation for the Sheriff, of which $200,000 is needed to cover costs associated with RNC overtime. $33,587 is needed for the purchase of bulletproof vests and the remainder is for the one-time employees bonuses; A final increase of appropriation of $151,028 is needed for the Department of Recreation to cover additional prize money for the Mummers Parade. The contract with United Way for the administration of a citywide after-school consortium, and the Department's share in supporting the City's Office of Fun and fitness. The Department requests to transfer $30,836 from Classes 3 and 400 to help offset the class 200 shortfall; The Office of Fleet Management requests an internal transfer of $574,000 from Class 200 to Classes 100 and 3 and 400 to cover vehicle parts spending and repairs that will be performed by City workers, rising fuel prices in the one-time salary bonuses; Another internal transfer involves the Police Department requesting $282,737 to be 8 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 transferred from Classes and 400 to and 200 to help cover wage increases determined by the interest arbitration award, cellular phone charges, and helicopter pilot contract costs. These increases in the appropriations are possible made through savings of $10 million in appropriations for the Sinking Fund, resulting from the postponement of new debt issued and lower-than-projected interest rates on short-term borrowings. 8 million are available. The Director of Finance - Provision for Other Grants will provide $22 million.
Internal transfers with no change in appropriation level include 300,000 from Class 100 to 200 within the Mayor's Office of Information Services to cover contracted staff support; 210,00 from Classes 3 and 400 to 200 within the District Attorney's Office to cover office renovation expenses, and 400,000 from Class 200 to Classes 3 9 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 and 400 within the Department of Public Property to cover fuel oil costs. The Department of Public Property also requests an increase of $451,294 in Class 100 to cover both the one-time salary bonuses as well as overtime expenses incurred for the RNC. Now I'll go on to the other bills now. For 010006, that's the Aviation Fund transfer, there are two transfers totaling $492,460 coming from the Sinking Fund that go to the Police Department for $325,460 and the Fire Department for 160,000 to cover Class 100 salary increases included in the 2000 labor agreements. The Fire Department is also requesting 7,000 in Class 300 to pay for the uniform replacement allowance. And the final bill is 010062, and that's Grants Revenue Fund, Hotel Room Rental Tax Fund. 9 million from the Provision for Other Grants to go to the Hotel Room 22 Rental Tax Fund, and the increase would allow the Administration to allocate increased hotel tax revenues to the Convention Center, the GPTMC and the Convention and Visitors Bureau. 10 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 That concludes my testimony, and representatives from the Administration are here to answer any questions you might have.
Thank you. Mr. Dubow, I believe last year at this time, there has been -- we have discussed allocations for outside legal counsel, and it was suggested that the Law Department would be exploring ways to reduce the amount of money spent by outside legal counsel.
What they're exploring -- I think I'd like to call the City Solicitor up to talk about their plans.
I believe Councilman Ortiz had brought this question up last year at this time.
Good morning, Madam Chairman. I'm Ken Trujillo, I'm the City Solicitor. Seated with me is Chris Lane, the 11 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 Director of Administration for the Law Department, and it's my pleasure to be here this morning. You may also recall my very first day as City Solicitor was February 28th of last year in which I presented testimony on the budget for the Law Department. At that time, I spoke about some of the initiatives that the Law Department would be undertaking, and I'm happy to talk a bit about that. This year's use of outside counsel is a bit unusual for a number of reasons. First of all, the amount that was spent both with respect to stadium negotiations, and those expenditures continue; and secondly, with respect to labor negotiations for the municipal unions from last year. Those are unusual expenditures in the total amounts and make up a large portion of the amount that's being requested today. Your question was as to the kinds of initiatives that the Law Department is seeking out in order to reduce the amount of outside counsel -- the fees that are being spent for outside counsel. Two of things that we are doing include -- first of all, we have created an Affirmative 12 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 Litigation Unit, and that Affirmative Litigation Unit is both in-house and also utilizes outside counsel. What that unit does is seeks appropriate cases in which the City is an appropriate plaintiff to seek money for the City. We have a couple of those initiatives that are already underway; and in fact, we have at least two lawsuits that have just recently been started, seeking recovery of tax revenues that would not otherwise have been collected but for the affirmative litigation unit. We have revamped over the last several months the manner in which we are going to be paying outside counsel. A year ago, I testified about the amount of salaries and how those salaries have been dramatically increasing with private law firms. The -- for instance, we've had a presumptive cap of $150 per hour for outside counsel, which, as far as I've been able to determine, has been in the City for 18 years. Eighteen years ago, when I was a little bit younger than I am today, outside counsel would be paid an average -- a partner rate at a big firm would be 150, 170, $180 an hour. Today, it's hard 13 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 to do find an outside law firm whose first-year associates are charged out at any less than $150 an hour. And so one of the things that we are doing is paying a higher rate on partner time and trying to maintain a lower rate on associate time. And part of our review of legal bills indicated that there was a significant incentive for outside counsel to use a lot of associate time. First-, second-, third-, fourth-year lawyers out of law school were doing a substantial amount of our work. A substantial part of the reason that we go to outside counsel is because of the expertise of outside counsel. What I wanted to say was more of an incentive for partners to be doing the work that we're going to them for. So one of the things that we've done is we've revamped that, so we will be paying more on an hourly basis, but it's my expectation that we will ultimately not be paying a significantly amount more of outside counsel fees. The additional part of what we've done is -- the third area where we've spent a lot of 14 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 money on outside counsel has been in the labor areas, not just with respect to labor negotiations, but with arbitrations with, you know, police and fire and the like when employees either file a grievance and then ultimately an arbitration. We've revamped the Law Department's employment and labor practice so that previously, all of the employment cases were under a unit called Special Litigation. Separately, we had the Labor Unit.
), and so we're seeing some significant efficiencies there, and we expect we will hire one or two more lawyers in-house. And it is our expectation that we will see fewer cases for arbitrations going to outside counsel.
It just seems like each year we're continuing to transfer money to cover the costs, you know, the fees because the original amount designated is not enough. I mean, will we do this again?
One of the things we've done in the '02 budget is put additional money in the base for outside counsel fees, so that should 15 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 help avoid the problem next year.
Thank you. Any other questions from members? Councilman Clarke and then Councilman Nutter.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Since we're talking about outside legal fees, I have a question. I saw in the newspaper, I think it was Thursday or Friday, it was a certain election case that has finally some resolution to. I have a little percentage interest in that, and I understand that -- Mr. Trujillo, you are familiar with that case?
All right. I understand that there was substantial outside legal fees associated with that case, and it was a substantial amount of internal resources used for that case. Last year, I recall the City commissioners were testifying and I understood that they had outside legal fees associated with that. And at that time, I tried to get a sense of what that cost -- here we are a year later and 16 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 it's finally resolved, I hope. Could -- I'd like to get the final number on how much tax dollars were spent on that particular case, if you can.
I have an approximation right now. I'd also be happy to give you a final number in writing after this, if that's appropriate, however you wish.
I'd be happy to do that. And there are a couple of things, Madam Chair, if I might digress just a bit. We've had some extraordinary victories over this last year, and I'm actually going to distribute to members of this committee a couple of publications that I've shared with the Budget Director and with the Mayor. Over the last year -- last year, the City of Detroit spent $35 million in indemnities on civil rights cases. Last year, the City of Los Angeles spent over $100 million on civil rights 17 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 cases. The City of Philadelphia over the last three years, during the time that we've seen increased arrests, increased police activity, our numbers have significantly declined in what we spend on outside fees in the civil rights area and what we spend in the indemnities budget. The City of Washington D.C. recently was cited by a federal judge having its law department as being in absolute dire straits, and there was a tremendous criticism and published opinions about how they've handled a number of their cases. You mentioned, Councilman Clarke, just last week this victory that the -- and the Third Circuit handed down a final victory on this matter. On Friday, two of our lawyers finished a five-week trial in which the final demand from the plaintiffs in a civil rights case was between 3 and $4 million. We got a defense verdict on Friday. It didn't appear on any Saturday or Sunday or Monday newspapers and it probably won't appear tomorrow, but some of the work that's being done out of the Civil Rights Unit and Claims Units and Commercial Litigation, all of the Law Department, I think, is extraordinary, and I'm 18 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 very proud of it. Part of what happens is, we have a relatively sophisticated use of outside counsel. Very often, for instance, in a civil right case like this, we as the Law Department represent the City, we represent the Police Department, but often have to go to outside because of the potential conflict. And so it's a coordinated effort with outside counsel representing the police officers or the Fire Department or whoever has been sued directly. But part of what I will do is, I will submit some of this information, which I think it's difficult for you to see what you're getting -- the bang that you're getting for your buck until you compare it with what other law departments throughout the country of this size and magnitude are doing, and I'm just extraordinarily proud of the work that our Law Department does and the coordination that we have with your outside counsel.
Thank you. I don't have any other questions of this witness, Madam Chair. 19 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr. Trujillo, in the first page of the testimony, it talks about the largest single appropriation requested as a $10 million transfer from the Sinking Fund to the Director of Finance Indemnity Account to cover the increased costs of settlements of lawsuits against the City. Can you give us a little information about that? Why -- what's the trend of the settlements, are they occurring in one particular area? And tell us a little bit about that.
I'd be happy to do that. As to that specific item, there are two areas that are largely covered by that. First of all, so far to date, we have spent out of the Indemnities Budget, I believe, $4.997 million on the Osage Avenue settlements. And as you may recall, there are still homeowners that have 23 not settled; they filed a federal lawsuit. We are 24 responding with a motion to dismiss. 25 In the event that that motion is -- 20 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 either we win or we lose, we have -- we may be in a position where the remaining homeowners may 4 be in a position to settle. If that's the case, 5 that makes up a substantial amount of that 6 $10 million. 7 We also have several environmental 8 cases that we are defending, and in the event that 9 we either settle or those cases go to judgment, we 10 have to have that money available for purposes of 11 a settlement within this fiscal year. 12
That's 40-some-odd 13 homeowners at the -- what was the rate -- 150, 14 175? 15
It was 30 -- I believe 16 the total was 61 less, the 26 that did not settle, 17 and we paid $150,000, with the exception of two 18 that settled late; and the later ones, we've 19 spent, I believe, 130 or $135,000 per homeowner. 20
Okay, all right. 21 So that covers about half of the ten. What was 22 the other half? 23
The other half is 24 primarily made up of the possibility of judgments 25 or settlements in three environmental matters new. 21 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Three environmental matters, okay. The second item I have for you, the Affirmative Litigation Unit, is that the unit that's being headed by Shelly Smith?
I commend you for that; I've worked with her on a couple of occasions.
She's actually a part of the trial team that won the case I was talking, about on Friday.
Very good. Madam Chair, I don't have any more questions for the Law Department. If you have other questions.
Just one for the Law Department. Mr. Trujillo, could you explain the 22 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 insurance -- I know we're self-insured, but at any level, do we have insurance?
Well, it's not a -- it's not a -- what you would think in terms of excess insurance. It's specific insurance. Risk management, for instance, on specific events, it requires insurance sometimes of other parties; also for other contracted matters, there are times that we will get insurance, but that is the exception rather than the rule. I think it's been reported that there are some elements -- for instance, when you have something like the Republican National Convention, there's some elements of that where we have taken insurance. For instance, if we do things in the stadiums. Again, there are some elements of the build-out where we would require the other side to obtain insurance and insure us. But -- so insurance is the exception rather than the rule, but when you have a potential of substantial liability or where the 23 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 City's relying on other parties, it is when we would go out and, with Risk Management, seek insurance.
Since I have been here, that is not something that I have looked into, no, but it's something that I --
Let me tell you two things that might happen. One, you'd have catastrophic insurance, which I think is prudent from the taxpayer's standpoint. But, secondly, while we all think, you know, we do everything right and we know everything, you get the review of somebody, a company, a set of risk managers, sort of oversight case managers that can come in because it's all they do and just give you a review, you for your 24 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 department, and a review of how we are tracking our cases, are we covering -- I mean, you know, I'm not criticizing anyone. It's always good to get a fresh look, though, and I think that's one thing that may come out of that. I mean, we can have some private conversation, I have some ideas on it. But I'd also like to know, you know, what other large cities do, and not just as large as ours, but starting, you know, with cities above a certain, you know, population and budget. I think just leaving yourself open and, you know, hoping that it doesn't happy might not be the way to go in the future.
And I accept that. I think that's something we will take a look at and I will be happy to follow up with you.
Thank you. Are there any other questions for the Law Department? (No further questions.)
Thank you, gentlemen. 25 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Is there someone here from L&I? (Witnesses come forward.)
Good morning,, gentlemen. Please state your name for the record.
Robert Solvible, S-O-L-V-I-B-I-L-E, First Deputy Commissioner of Licenses and Inspections.
Okay, I just have one question. I believe that there's an allocation of $960,000 to be used for a citywide vacant lot-cleaning program. Since none of us have been briefed on it, can you give me an idea of exactly where and when?
That is a -- not even in our budget. It's there to assist the Managing Director's Office in the endeavor to clean all vacant lots within a year in the City of 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 Philadelphia. It's part of the money needed that we're going to give them to assist them in this endeavor.
See, none of us have been briefed on this, and I'm sure all of the committee members are interested as well as all of Council. And I'm sure, Darrell, you have some questions regarding this too. Councilman Clarke?
As the Councilwoman said, we have not in fact been briefed about the specifics of this program. We understand that, you know, it's --
Well, not just the lot-cleaning program, but also the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative. I'm hoping we're going to receive a follow-up from the one we received later last year. 27 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 One question in particular I have about this allocation of funding as it relates to lot-cleaning. One of the biggest concerns and one of the basis for the NTI Program was to stop the redundancy of these vacant lot cleanings where we would call you guys, you come out and clean up a lot, eight months, maybe a year later, that lot has to be cleaned up, and it just increasingly causes a burden on the City services and the City's budget. And my understanding, the Neighborhood Transformation Program was to hopefully get a final resolution to that particular vacant lot, that it would immediately be some sort of a short-term interim reuse of that lot and then a long-term reuse of that lot that would then afford us an opportunity to move on to other things, as opposed to coming back and continually cleaning that vacant lot. As a result of this allocation, is there any thought given to the reuse strategy, both short-and long-term, or is this just the simple old coming out and cleaning up vacant lots until you get called to clean it up again? I 28 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 mean --
I'd also like to ask if this is for just one part of the City or is this citywide?
It's citywide, it's citywide, Councilwoman. Councilman, I can answer that based on a few meetings I've attended -- I believe one in your district -- where the Neighborhood Transformation group is working with City Planning, and they're going to put together the reuse and what's going to happen with the lots after they're cleaned, working with communities on how to best -- what the community wants with them and how to bet keep 'em clean, to get rid of, as you said, the redundancy of us going back year after year, time after time to clean the lots.
Pat Smith's group, the Neighborhood Transformation Group, and City Planning will work on it with their planners. I believe it's --
Excuse me, 29 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 Bob, excuse me. Is there one contact person that Council can call or --
Respectfully, there were actually more than -- I actually attended a couple meetings in the District and I'm not aware of any discussion particularly at a community level that we're talking about a reuse strategy.
In the future, that's what they plan to do, not that it's going on right now.
So the allocation of this funding will essentially be banked until we can come up with that strategy? I mean, is this --
Do we just identify a number of lots that we are required to clean, and until we get a use strategy, we will not 30 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 implement this lot-cleaning program? 'Cause what I don't want to see is having us going out and cleaning up a bunch of lots.
You want to see this as a part of a larger strategy. I mean, that's what you're saying, right?
And in last week's hearing, the Chief of Staff said that we'd be doing a briefing within the next couple of weeks on NTI, and how this money ties into the larger strategy will be a part of that briefing.
Thank you, Madam Chair. In the same area, do we know what is 31 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 going to happen to these lots after the cleaning? Do we though when the cleaning is going to take place, and do when know when what lots going to be cleaned? Is there a list?
All lots in the City of Philadelphia is the goal and the desire of the Managing Director, to clean all lots, just like the piggyback on the vacant car-towing survey initiative, to do all lots that need cleaning will be done.
I understand. But does that mean that there is not a list of those lots that each of us could have and make sure that they're all covered? I mean, I understand the analogy between the lots and the cars; you know, the cars tend to kind of come and go. The lots are pretty stable; they don't usually disappear.
But lots tend to be cleaned -- some tend to stay cleaned and some tend to get dirty.
Right. 32 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
And what's clean today might not be clean tomorrow. But to answer your question, we can make available to Council a list of the vacant lots citywide and also possibly by district. I believe that the Managing Director is putting together such a list for a briefing for Council, with maps.
So we'll be able to provide you a list of the lots citywide but also more than likely in your districts also.
Okay. I mean, I'm certainly in favor of lot-cleaning, but I guess in response to that, if the program's not going to start until the next fiscal year, I mean, before I even ask the question, why don't you get the answer for Mr. Dubow who knows where the question going.
Councilman, we -- 33 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Why are we doing this now if you're not going to start until July 1?
No, we anticipate that it will start earlier than July 1st, more like April.
I thought you might want to give that answer, Mr. Dubow.
Yes, yes, I could see it already evolving. So, okay, we'll ask some more questions, I'm sure, at the briefing. Okay, thank you.
Are there any other questions? Councilman Clarke?
Yes, just a follow-up to that April start date. Is that -- is that going to be in coordination with the City's citywide cleanup? You know, every year, we do, what, three or four citywide cleanups per police district, so is that lot-cleaning program going to be coordinated with that or -- 34 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
So, see, I'm a little concerned. I -- you know, we've been talking about this for a while, and I would have hoped that, you know, requesting a million dollar transfer, that we would have a little more level of specificity as it relates to the implementation of this lot-cleaning program, as it relates to the broader Neighborhood Transformation Program. Because, you know, I'm really looking forward to this particular program. Unfortunately, a substantial amount of those lots will be in my Councilmatic District, but I really want to see some level of coordination that I will not have to sit here next year and have you ask for another million dollars to clean the same vacant lots.
So if we're talking April, this is February now, I think at a minimum, we should have some sense of what we're going to do with these lots in the short term as we move ahead. So -- and I really -- I'm a little concerned. 35 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Councilman, we can supply Council with a list of lots not necessarily the addresses, but we can -- it's on my desk. We can supply you with a list of the vacant lots in each district.
Well, unfortunately, I know where they are, so I'm not particularly interested in knowing where, you know, the list is because I know where they are. Actually, I have one not too far from where I live. What I'm trying to get at is a sense of some reuse strategies, and we're talking in two months out, we're going to embark on this massive program and you referenced the abandoned car removal and I don't know if the Mayor's going to give a 40-day deadline -- I would probably think it won't be 40 days. I think that we should be quite far along in that reuse strategy, I would think.
All right, okay. Thank you, Madam Chair. 36 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Okay. And how about lots that are privately owned or owned by other governments that cause the same problem? And with privately-owned, I got different railroad companies, they're all different names now. They were CONRAIL at one time, they were pretty derelict in cleaning them up. They sometimes create more blight in the neighborhood than any other lots. And there may be some reimbursement, just as we would bill a private owner, a business owner that we were going in on. Is there any thought to that kind of thing?
I'm rally thinking of PennDOT right-of-ways. They just -- there's grass, nothing but trash, and they, you know, clean it every 20 years or something. It doesn't matter to the person that's affected by it who 37 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 owns it.
The railroad right-of-ways would be in coordination with the railroads, 'cause you need to get permission to go on the land 'cause there are active railroads and flagmen that type of work. And in the past, in several locations citywide, they were doing a cleaning up of the whole strip in areas of the City. And I attended one meeting where they were starting in Southwest Philadelphia and going all the way through to the Northeast, wherever the railroad ran. PennDOT right-of-ways, I'd have to get back to you on that.
I'm not sure of the thinking there. But any kind of activity on railroad property needs to be coordinated with the railroads. If it's a regular street-type lot owned by a private agency, yes, that would be something that we would clean.
And would we try to get them to pay for it? 38 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Are there any other questions? (No further questions.)
Thank you, gentlemen. Thank you. Do we have anyone here from MOIS? (Witness comes forward.)
I'm Dr. Karl Bortnik, the Acting Chief Information Officer. And with me, on my left, is Jackie Henry, our Administrator.
Well, Mr. Bortnik, during last year's hearings, the subject of the outdated computers and systems that Councilmembers are experiencing is so outdated. Is there any plans? What do you expect to do with our computers here in Council? Any plans made?
The City of Philadelphia 39 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 currently, together with the Law Department, is looking at the opportunity to enter into an agreement for leasing equipment. And in that type of strategy, then there would be the opportunity for a more general replacement of equipment and management solution for not only your department but also FOR other City departments. So this is one of the things that's currently underway and under study, together with the Budget Department.
We expect in that strategy to replace the aging computers and to put departments more on a standard basis in a cycle of three- to four-year replacement rather than the current situation, which requires individual departments to have foreseen or a budget with limited resources.
Might I add simply that 40 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 this type of strategy, Councilpeople, is also being used in other governmental entities, states, and local governments, and so we are working with the --
Not in terms of leasing equipment. No, that's a new initiative that we're looking at, together with the Budget Department. I don't believe that that was discussed -- at least I didn't at that time.
Well, it's been a year and I have not seen any changes. I'm sorry, Councilman.
That's okay, Madam Chair. Are you sure that's not the same answer you gave last year? (Laughter.)
Well, I'm pretty sure because I wasn't up here last year myself, and --
I mean, we have the 41 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 notes of testimony.
Sure, I understand. I'm only too happy to look with you on that.
We have a few things on computer too, you know. (Laughter.)
Mr. Bortnik, you know, this kind of one of those pimple-on-the- elephant-behind kind of things, but unfortunately for you, you're here today, and I am trying to understand why it takes so long to have a person's e-mail I.D. transferred from one department to another. This is someone who's already in the government, transferred positions within the government, and two weeks later, I can't communicate with that person through the CC mail system. Can you tell me why it takes so long to have that done? Now, I'm not a computer expert so I'm sure there's a very involved and detailed 42 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 answer, but could you enlighten me?
No, Councilman, that is not a complex task to perform, and perhaps the solution would be for it to be escalated better if it's taking more time than --
Perhaps the solution is on our side to escalate better if this is taking longer than it should.
Escalate. That means that initially, the request goes in through a help desk and there's the creation of a request. Subsequently, this request is acted on by an individual within the network group. And if it's taking longer than it should, then perhaps the solution here is that it should be escalated more quickly in terms of time elapsed in order to accomplish the change. These routine changes should not take a great deal of time.
Okay. Could you 43 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 escalate it, please? (Laughter.)
I need you to escalate it before I escalate on you and your department, okay?
Two weeks is a long time. I'd like to be able to communicate with my folks, okay?
Are there any other questions? Councilman Clarke. 44 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
With respects to the purchase of services, is that done through the normal procurement process? Or how does that work in your department? Cause it's a little bit different than most other departments. Are you like on the 'Net, or how do you do that?
Purchase of services, these are contracts for support services that go through the Law Department.
All right. How does it start. Because of the nature of your nature of your department (inaudible) a more efficient way because of the technology association with your department that you can just 45 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 kind of like going on that 'Net, and boom, you got a contract. Would we still have that long, cumbersome process?
We use -- we enjoy the same processes of contracting that the rest of City does.
That's unfortunate. All right, thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Are there any other questions? (No further questions.)
Is there someone here from the Recreation Department? (Witnesses come forward.)
Good morning. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Good morning. 46 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Please state your name for the record. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Hi, I'm Vic Richard, Recreation Commissioner.
I have a question regarding the, I believe, approximately 175 recreation centers in this city. How old are the fences surrounding the playgrounds? Has there been any discussion to review the replacement of these fences? Most of the fences I see are pretty unsightly, rusted, and buckling from age. Can you explain to us, Commissioner what we can look forward to? COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Well, money's always an issue. In our Capital Projects Program, if we have enough money, we address the fencing as well. Also, in the maintenance side, in our preventive side, we have vandalism, trees falling, et cetera, et cetera. The wrought-iron fencing that had been erected -- and I can't tell you how many years ago -- very costly. We work on repairing those 47 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 internally, if we have the material. We do not design those type fences at today's cost. We go with your regular cyclone wire fencing, so it's a ongoing process. I want to say last year, we spent approximately $26,000 in-house, within our Operating Budget, and I want to say I believe there's $25,000 that's appropriated for '01. Could we use more money? I would always tell you yes, but it's an ongoing issue, based on the number and also the age.
I sympathize with you. We all have problems, but they are unsightly, some of these fences. Are there any questions? Councilman Nutter?
Yes, he is. I'll answer 48 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 that one for him.
All right. Thank you. Mr. Dubow has saved you once again. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning, Commissioner. Commissioner, what's the City's Office of Fun and Fitness? Can you explain that to me, how it operates? COMMISSIONER RICHARD: It's a part of the Mayor's initiative, Fun and Fitness and Healthy Employees.
Mm-hmm. What does it do? Where is it housed, first of all? 49 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Estelle Richman's going to answer that. (Witness comes forward.) COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Hi. I am Estelle Richman, Director of Social Services for the City of Philadelphia. The Mayor's Office of Fun, Fit and Free is housed within Social Services for the City, and Gwen Foster reports directly to me.
Where's it located at again? It's at DHS? COMMISSIONER RICHMAN: No, it's in the Municipal Service Building.
In MSB? COMMISSIONER RICHARD: It's directly part of Social Services.
So does it promote fitness throughout the City of Philadelphia or just with employees or what? COMMISSIONER RICHARD: No, it promotes fitness throughout the City of Philadelphia. In one of the newest initiatives, we'll be to look at the employees of the City directly, but its focus has been on the folks that live 50 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 within the City of Philadelphia.
Okay, so if I have some folks that -- from time to time, people have asked me about that and wanted to get a sense of where they should go to participate in the program, both for themselves and as it relates to themselves and educational purposes. Should they just contact your office? COMMISSIONER RICHARD: They should contact my office, and I will put them directly in contact with Gwen Foster, who is the czar for Fun, Fit and Free, and there are a number of initiatives going on right now, probably the most recent being the one, together with the 76ers, to have the City lose 76 tons in 76 days.
All right. Are we still Fat City? I know we were referenced that. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: We are not the fattest city.
We're number three. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: We dropped to the third fattest city, which is an improvement. 51 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
All right, that office is doing well, then. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Yes, this is for the Recreation Commissioner quickly. I first want to thank you for continuing to follow up on a very difficult situation I have with the Chalfont running track. I mean, it's the only one in my district, and I just talked to your staff the other day, and I hope we can continue as the spring comes forward to get that vendor involved in doing it right the second time. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Yes.
But I appreciate you still staying on top of that, and that's something you promised me and I appreciate it. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Yes. The leases as well.
Yeah, it's moving. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: I'm sure you're happy with that.
Absolutely. 52 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 COMMISSIONER RICHARD: All right, okay.
Thank you, commissioner. COMMISSIONER RICHARD: Thank you.
I believe there's someone here from the Health Department. (Witnesses come forward.)
I'm Dr. Tsou, the Health Commissioner, and I'm joined here with Carmen (inaudible), our Finance Director.
I believe maybe this question is more geared to 2002. Regarding the SPCA, they have terminated their contract with the City either this June or next. What do we intend to do to handle their duties?
Okay, we believe that -- they are giving us 16 more months to take over this contract. We believe this is going to be an important issue for Fiscal Year 2003. We are, over the course of the next year, going to be gearing up to assume the animal control program for SPCA, which includes locating a place where we 53 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 can do kennels and also to gear up for training our staff for doing this, but we don't anticipate this being a major expense for us until 2003.
Do you have any idea how much money it's going to cost by taking it over?
790,000 for our current contract with the SPCA. But we anticipate, however, that this could be an important expense for us, and we'll be talking with the Budget Department sometime in Fiscal Year 2003 budget proposal.
We'll be speaking with the Budget Department about our request for Fiscal Year 2003 to take over the animal control program from the SPCA. And we anticipate that will be an important expense for us then.
Thank you. 54 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 Are there any other questions? (No further questions.)
Are there any other questions from other departments?
Mr. Dubow, on of the testimony, it reads that these -- this is referring to some previous testimony. These increases in appropriations are made possible through the savings of $10 million in appropriations for the Department of Revenue Sinking Fund resulting from a postponement of new debt issued and lower-than-projected interest rates on short-term borrowings. Can you tell me what new debt we did no 24 issue?
What happened, when we 55 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 expected that our general obligation bond would be issued earlier in the fiscal year, and instead, it was instead issued in January, and the first debt service payment amount isn't due until FY '02.
Okay. So the second fund still remains a good place to hide the money, is that it?
Very good, good answer. The $18 million in Grants Revenue Fund left over at OHCD?
How is it possible for OHCD to have any money not spent or accounted for?
Well, what we do each year in the Grants Fund is put in excess appropriation in case more grants than we would have anticipated come in. And that has not happened this year, and OHCD assures us that it would not happen to the 56 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 extent that they would need any of this money.
When we put the budget together, we make sure that in our grants funds -- and this is a grants fund --
Well, what grant were you anticipating that we did not get? I mean, in OHCD, it's usually not a mystery as to what their funding is going to be. If they get $69 million or so in CDBG funds, they get another X-amount from POPLA, another amount from I think it's PHFA or AIDS-related funding. And I mean, what's -- what was this unknown grant that we were hoping to get?
Well, what we do when we set up the budget is we put in enough room in case there's something that we don't know about. There's a new federal program, for example, that we could get grants from. (Unintelligible, parties talking over each other.)
So there are a lot of new federal programs coming through for OHCD -- 57 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Right. Well, we didn't know when we set up the budget who was going to win the election.
Oh, okay, all right. So there's just another place where some dollars went.
Okay. I appreciate your honesty. Director of Finance - Provision for Other Grants will provide $22 million. What is or was this?
Okay. You know, Mr. Dubow, we are starting to figure this out.
Over the summer, let me encourage you to come up with some new techniques and strategies, okay? 58 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
Go back about five years and you'll see what they recycled from then.
Exactly. You know, we have very short memories up here. Hotel Room Rental Tax Fund, down at the bottom, $2.9 million. This increase in appropriation would allow the Administration to allocate stronger-than-anticipated hotel tax revenues to make the City's payments to the Convention Center, Greater Philadelphia Tourism, and the Convention and Visitors Bureau. Don't we --
-- every year have to make certain payments to them, and didn't we budget in the '01 budget payments to these people? What does this mean?
Yes. This is the place where we actually kind of did the opposite of what we did in grants. We appropriated too little at the beginning of the year, and now the hotel tax is coming in stronger than we anticipated, so we have more revenues than we had appropriations in 59 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062 the '01 budget. So we need excess appropriation power and when the money flows in, it goes over to the Convention Center, they use it to cover their debt service and their operating deficit. And then whatever's left over comes back to the General Fund. So the higher these revenues are, the more likely it is the money will flow through the Convention Center and come back to us. But without this additional appropriation power, we can't do that.
What's that have to do with the payments to -- I mean, excuse me, this would give someone the impression that our payments -- put the Convention Center aside for the moment -- to the Greater Philadelphia Tourism and the Convention and Visitors Bureau, aren't those finite amounts that we pay them? It's not on a sliding scale based on increases or decreases in the hotel tax collections, is it?
Well, yes, they actually get -- they each get an appropriation -- they each get a percentage of the hotel tax, each one of these entities. 60 2/12/01 APPROP. - BILLS 010006, 010007, 010062
The Visitors Bureau is actually capped. So at some point, they reach their cap, so they won't get any more. Then the rest of their portion winds up going to the Convention Center, but that's all figured out at the end of the year.
Thank you. Are there any other questions for members of the Administration? (No further questions.)
There being none, the Committee on Appropriations will stand in recess until March the 13th, 2001, at 9 a.m. (Adjourned 10:50 a.m.) 61 C E R T I F I C A T E I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing proceedings of the Council of the City of Philadelphia of Monday, February 12, 2001, were reported fully and accurately by me, and that this is a correct transcript of same. RE: COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS RES. NO.'S 010006, 010007, 010062 __________________________________, JOSEPHINE CARDILLO, Registered Professional Reporter