A broad ethics-reform package targeting Philadelphia's perceived "pay-to-play" culture has coasted through a City Council committee, and a final vote could be possible as early as December.
The legislation comes just eight days after Philadelphia voters resoundingly approved an amendment to the Philadelphia City Charter that limits campaign contributions by firms receiving "no-bid" government contracts.
This new round of legislation -- spearheaded by Councilman Michael Nutter -- goes after competitively bid contracts as well, barring businesses that donate more than $10,000 to a city politician from receiving a bid valued at over $25,000 and individuals who donate more than $2,500 from receiving a contract worth more than $10,000.
The centerpiece of the legislation, though, according to Julia Chapman, Nutter's chief-of-staff, is a proposed amendment to the City Charter that would establish an independent ethics board.
The board, Chapman said, would conduct investigations into and render decisions on any ethics violations. It would also oversee annual ethics training for city employees and provide day-to-day support for them, he added.
"It will help ensure that people don't get themselves into these situations in the first place," Chapman said, referring to the multiple city politicians who have recently been indicted or convicted on corruption charges.
Because the creation of the board requires a Charter amendment, it will need to be put before voters in a May referendum.
Another major change proposed in the legislation would require all candidates for city offices to file electronic finance reports, which would be made available over the Internet. This, Chapman said, will help make the city's actions more transparent.
"There is this cloud and perception of this city that you need to know somebody to get contracts and hook-ups. That shouldn't be the case," Chapman said.
The legislation passed through committee by a 4-to-1 vote, the only dissenter being Councilman Wilson Goode.
Goode went into the committee meeting expecting to support all of the measures.
However, he ultimately decided not to support the bill dealing with limiting campaign contributions by recipients of competitively bid contracts.
"At first I didn't think of it being a big deal," he said. "But the bill [could] knock people out of what is already a competitively bid contract for reasons unrelated to the bid."
Considering that the city already has laws limiting campaign contributions, Goode thinks this new legislation is redundant.
Despite these concerns, Goode said he could end up voting for the ethics package when it is brought before City Council.
"I just didn't think it should've been rushed through committee," he said.
Indeed, since it is riding the wave of the ballot issue's success -- it was approved with 87 percent of the vote -- Chapman said that she expects the ethics legislation to pass easily and is hoping for a 15-1 vote.
Aside from Goode, the only known opponent of the legislation is Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, who represents Penn's district. Blackwell was not available for comment.
Ethics proposals - Nov. 8: Eighty-seven percent of Philadelphia voters say "yes" to an ballot measure limiting the size of no-bid contracts awarded to campaign contributors.
- Nov. 16: Six proposed ethics bills pass through the City Council Committee on Law and Government by a 4-to-1 vote and could be brought before the entire City Council Dec. 1. A bill would limit the campaign contributions of -- and require certain disclosures from -- a person or business seeking competitively bid contracts. A bill would prohibit a person or business which has donated heavily to a city politician's campaign from receiving city financial assistance. A proposed amendment to the City Charter would create and provide for the funding of an independent Board of Ethics. A bill would require candidates for city offices and political committee treasurers to file campaign finance reports with the Board of Ethics and to publish those reports on the city's Web site.
