SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON REGULATORY REVIEW AND REFORM ANNOUNCES INITIAL ROUND OF REFORMS

In Council News, Darrell L. Clarke, Derek Green, News by admin

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PHILADELPHIA, September 21, 2017 – The Special Committee on Regulatory Review and Reform, formed earlier this year, has been working diligently to help fulfill its purpose of continuing to develop and enhance Philadelphia’s economy by streamlining procedures and revising regulations.

In the interest of advancing their initiatives over the next year, the Committee members – along with the Kenney Administration and City Council – have identified three key elements for review:

  • The Administration and City Council have agreed to utilize the Special Committee on Regulatory Review and Reform, and its various subcommittees, as sounding boards for proposed regulatory changes and legislation. To that end, both bodies have agreed to notify the Special Committee of any regulatory or legislative changes that would impact the business community as soon as they are publicly available. This notification will help to educate and inform the Committee regarding relevant changes early, and provide an opportunity for feedback and questions within the public comment period.
  • Due to the creation of the Special Committee on Regulatory Reform and initial feedback garnered by the Sub-committee on Food and Hospitality regarding the complexity of opening a food business, 311, L&I and Health have launched a process improvement pilot. Tim Thornton, head of 311, is currently analyzing the process, identifying bottlenecks and pain points, and developing solutions. Process improvement across departments is one of the key goals of the Special Committee and we look forward to the results of this pilot as a model for streamlining other business processes.
  • One of the founding goals of this Committee was to streamline and eliminate unnecessary or burdensome legislation. City Council has done an initial review of business legislation and will initiate the streamlining process with the elimination of several sections of the code. Today we will start by eliminating certain language under such sections in the Philadelphia Code, as Miscellaneous Standards and Requirements, where it relates to radiation, and Preventative Medicine, where it relates to premarital examinations.

“I want to thank Special Committee co-chairs Epps, Wonderling and Green, and all of the volunteer members, for their diligent work toward improving the business environment in Philadelphia,” Council President Darrell L. Clarke (5th District) said. “The Special Committee on Regulatory Review and Reform is taking important steps toward getting rid of outdated and burdensome regulations, some of which were established to create roadblocks to progress for victims of systemic discrimination. I feel gratified by this clear demonstration of what is possible when Council, the Administration, and citizen stakeholders work together toward a shared goal: A fairer, more inclusive City in which economic opportunities are available to all.”

“As a co-chair of this Special Committee, I’m encouraged by this initial set of reforms, which will have a positive impact on the City’s business climate,” said Councilman Derek Green (At Large). “Further, I’m truly excited about how this work illustrates a substantive collaboration between the public and private sectors.”

“As a Co-Chair of this important initiative and on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia representing over 600,000 employees in our region, we are very pleased by the progress being made by the Special Committee for Regulatory Review and Reform,” said Chamber President & CEO Rob Wonderling. “Over the last several months, we have engaged many businesses with our City government in a highly collaborative way, with the overall goal to make Philadelphia a more competitive place to conduct business. The initial repeal of archaic regulations is a very good first step and we eagerly look forward to more regulatory reform in the months to come.”

“In the first several months of the Special Committee on Regulatory Review and Reform, we have been able to engage our business community in a meaningful way,” said Commerce Director Harold T. Epps. “I am impressed by the level of commitment that we have already seen between the business community and the City to work together to make Philadelphia more business-friendly, and look forward to continuing this partnership between the public and private sectors.”

In summary, the Special Committee on Regulatory Review and Reform is dedicated to making the process of creating and retaining business opportunities simpler and less complicated for all current and prospective Philadelphia entrepreneurs.

The eight bills introduced today are listed below:

Bill- Repeal 9-705 Public Baths

Bill – Repeal 6-207 Premarital Examinations

Bill – Repeal 6-305 Milk Products

Bill – Repeal 6-401 Shoe Fluoroscopes

Bill – Repeal 9-621 Pagers

Bill – Repeal 9-1800 Electronic Scanners

Bill – Repeal 10-712 Litter from Aircraft

Bill – Repeal 10-1400 Tailgating

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