Heard in the Hall

The Committee of Seventy today expressed support of Mayor-Elect Michael Nutter’s desire for an amendment to Philadelphia’s Home Rule Charter that would give the City’s Police Commissioner more managerial flexibility. Mr. Nutter’s comments were made during yesterday’s press conference introducing former Washington, D.C. Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey as Philadelphia’s new Police Commissioner.

“We have been working on a proposed Charter amendment that would allow the Police Commissioner to name more than only two deputies of his own choice,” said Zack Stalberg, Seventy’s President and CEO. According to Stalberg, the rigidity of the current two-deputy limit emerged as a major concern during interviews of current and former City personnel recently conducted by Seventy’s Charter Review Subcommittee. “This limit, which applies to all City departments, is seen as a serious impediment to attracting and retaining top-flight candidates to fill high positions in government.” Given the urgency of the City’s gun violence crisis, Stalberg said it was “reassuring that the Charter’s rigidity did not dissuade Chief Ramsey from accepting the job offer.”

Stalberg stated that he expected to work with Mayor-Elect Nutter on a Charter amendment to provide greater managerial discretion in the Police Department by expanding the number of exempt deputies. Seventy is researching other large city Police Departments, most of which allow their chief officer to choose more than two deputies, to determine how many exempt positions make the most sense for Philadelphia.

Stalberg added that this is just one of the potential Charter amendments being explored by Seventy’s Charter Review Subcommittee. While Stalberg said that wholesale Charter change may be “optimal,” he acknowledged that the organization was “well aware that political minefields can doom a comprehensive package of Charter amendments.” He noted as an example the voters’ overwhelming defeat of a proposed new City Charter in 1994.

“The beginning of a new administration is a good place to start thinking about the ways, within and outside of the Charter, to make government more efficient, customer-friendly and productive. Seventy is looking forward to playing a role in this transformation,” Stalberg concluded.