View source for Philadelphia City Council

{{Short description|Legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US}}
{{Distinguish|Philadelphia City Commissioners}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2011}}{{Use American English|date=January 2022}}

{{Infobox legislature
| name = Philadelphia City Council
| coa_pic = Seal of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.svg
| coa_alt = Seal of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| background_color = #f3c613
| house_type = Unicameral
| leader1_type = President
| leader1 = [[Kenyatta Johnson]]
| party1 = [[Pennsylvania Democratic Party|Democratic]]
| election1 = January 2, 2024
| leader2_type = Majority Leader
| leader2 = [[Katherine Gilmore Richardson]]
| party2 = [[Pennsylvania Democratic Party|Democratic]]
| election2 = January 1, 2024
| leader3_type = Minority Leader
| leader3 = [[Kendra Brooks]]
| party3 = [[Working Families Party|Working Families]]
| election3 = January 1, 2024
| members = 17
| voting_system1 = *[[First-past-the-post]] (for [[Single-member district|single-member district seats]])
*[[Limited voting|Limited voting with limited nominations]] (for citywide [[at-large]] seats)
| last_election1 = [[2023 Philadelphia City Council elections|November 7, 2023]]
| next_election1 = [[2027 Philadelphia City Council election|November 2, 2027]]
| structure1 = File:Philadelphia City Council 2024.png
| structure1_res = 250px
| political_groups1 = *{{Color box|#0000FF|border=darkgray}} [[Pennsylvania Democratic Party|Democratic]] (14)
*{{Color box|{{party color|Working Families Party}}|border=darkgray}} [[Working Families Party|Working Families]] (2)
*{{Color box|#F8050D|border=darkgray}} [[Pennsylvania Republican Party|Republican]] (1)
| session_room = Philadelphia-CityHall-2006.jpg
| session_res = 200px
| meeting_place = [[Philadelphia City Hall]]
| website = [http://phlcouncil.com/ City Council Website]
| footnotes = 
}} 

[[File:PhilaTownHall.jpg|thumb|right|City Hall from postcard, {{circa}} 1900]]
[[File:Philadelphia City Council districts map (since 2024).svg|thumb|right|Districts map of the council from the 2023 election <br>({{maplink|from=Philadelphia City Council Districts (since 2024).map|text=Interactive version}})]]
[[File:Philadelphia City Council districts map (2016–2024).svg|thumb|right|Districts map of the council from the 2015 election until terms end in 2024<br>({{maplink|from=Philadelphia City Council Districts (2016–2024).map|text=Interactive version}})]]

The '''Philadelphia City Council''' is the [[Legislature|legislative body]] of the city of [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]] in the [[United States]]. It is composed of 17 councilmembers: ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large from throughout the city.

The Council serves as a check against the [[Mayor of Philadelphia]] in a [[Mayor–council government|mayor-council]] system of government. Council can override mayoral vetoes with a two-thirds vote. Among other responsibilities, the Council approves the city budget proposed by the Mayor. Councilmembers are elected for four-year terms with no limits on the number of terms they may serve.

The head of the City Council is the Council President. The current Council President, [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]] [[Kenyatta Johnson]], assumed office in January 2024. All proposed legislation is introduced by a councilmember and then the Council President refers proposed legislation to the appropriate committee.

Democrat [[Katherine Gilmore Richardson]] has headed the Democratic majority in the chamber as [[Majority leader|Majority Leader]] since January 2024. [[Working Families Party]] member [[Kendra Brooks]] is the [[Minority leader|Minority Leader]], representing the Council's minority caucus since January 2024. The Working Families Party is the minority caucus with two seats, ahead of the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]]'s one seat held by [[Brian J. O'Neill]].

It is the only city council of a first class city in the United States in which the Republicans do not serve as the minority caucus while retaining a seat on the council. 

== History ==
While [[William Penn]]'s original 1691 charter for the city of Philadelphia included a "common council" with appointed members, no records exist of this body ever having been convened.<ref name=Oberholtzer1a>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/philadelphiahist01ober_0/page/n177/mode/2up |title=Philadelphia: A History of the City and its People |chapter=Penn’s Second Visit, Return to England, and Death |first=Ellis Paxson |last=Oberholtzer |year=1911 |volume=I |pages=77–109 |publisher=[[S. J. Clarke Publishing Company|The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company]] }}</ref>{{rp|85–86}} Its successor, the Proprietor's Charter of 1701, constituted the city as a [[municipal corporation]] with a non-elected council made up of major city officials who selected their own successors.<ref name=Oberholtzer1a/>{{rp|86}} The colonial city government was abolished during the [[American Revolution]] and replaced in 1789 with an elected council including fifteen [[aldermen]] and thirty common councillors; these then elected a [[mayor]] and recorder who also were members of the council.<ref name=Oberholtzer1b>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/philadelphiahist01ober_0/page/n763/mode/2up |title=Philadelphia: A History of the City and its People |chapter=Under the Constitution |first=Ellis Paxson |last=Oberholtzer |year=1911 |volume=I |pages=330–360 |publisher=[[S. J. Clarke Publishing Company|The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company]] }}</ref>{{rp|343}} In 1796, a [[bicameral]] city council was created including a 20-member Common Council elected annually and 12-member Select Council elected every three years;<ref name=Oberholtzer1c>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/philadelphiahist01ober_0/page/n903/mode/2up |title=Philadelphia: A History of the City and its People |chapter=Social Life at the 'Republican Court' |first=Ellis Paxson |last=Oberholtzer |year=1911 |volume=I |pages=382–411 |publisher=[[S. J. Clarke Publishing Company|The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company]] }}</ref>{{rp|404}} the sizes of both bodies increased with the population of the city, peaking at 149 members of Common Council and 41 in Select Council, the largest municipal legislature in the US.<ref name=Fairlie1904>{{cite book |last1=Fairlie |first1=John Archibald |title=American Municipal Councils |url=https://archive.org/details/jstor-2140282/page/n1/mode/2up?q=Philadelphia |date=1904 }}</ref> It was replaced with a single 21-member chamber in 1919, which remained in effect until the adoption of a [[Home Rule]] charter in 1951.<ref>{{cite web|title=City Council|url=http://www.phila.gov/phils/Docs/Inventor/graphics/agencies/A120.htm|website=Philadelphia Department of Records|date = 8 November 2000 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20010711153409/http://www.phila.gov/phils/Docs/Inventor/graphics/agencies/A120.htm |archive-date=11 July 2001 }}</ref>

== Composition and term ==

The 1951 Home Rule Charter established the council as the legislative arm of Philadelphia municipal government, consisting of seventeen members. Ten council members are elected by district and seven from the city at large. At-large council members are elected using [[limited voting]] with limited nomination in which voters may only select five candidates on the ballot, and which guarantees that two minority-party or independent candidates are elected.<ref>{{cite web |last=Marin |first=Max |url=https://billypenn.com/2019/08/01/independents-are-on-the-rise-in-philly-could-they-actually-win-a-city-council-seat/ |title=Independents are on the rise in Philly. Could they actually win a City Council seat? |date=August 1, 2019 |website=[[Billy Penn (news site)|Billy Penn]] |publisher=[[WHYY-FM|WHYY]] |access-date=August 2, 2019}}</ref>  Each is elected for a term of four years with no limit on the number of terms that may be served.<ref name="General Information">{{cite web |url=http://phlcouncil.com/about-phl-council/ |title=About PHL Council |date=November 17, 2015 |publisher=Philadelphia City Council |access-date=August 2, 2019 }}</ref>

The members of City Council elect from among themselves a president, who serves as the regular chairperson of council meetings.  In consultation with the majority of council members, the President appoints members to the various standing committees of the council.  The president is also responsible for selecting and overseeing most Council employees.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://legislation.phila.gov/council/rules/rules.pdf |title=Rules of the Council of the City of Philadelphia |publisher=Philadelphia City Council  |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20100310202739/http://legislation.phila.gov/council/rules/rules.pdf |archive-date=March 10, 2010 }}</ref>

Philadelphia City Councilmembers are some of the highest paid city councilors in the United States.

== Legislative process ==

Every proposed [[Local ordinance|ordinance]] is in the form of a [[Bill (law)|bill]] introduced by a Council member. Before a bill can be enacted, it must be referred by the president of the council to an appropriate standing committee, considered at a public hearing and public meeting, reported out by the committee, printed as reported by the committee, distributed to the members of the council, and made available to the public. Passage of a bill requires the favorable vote of a majority of all members. A bill becomes law upon the approval of the mayor. If the mayor vetoes a bill, the council may override the veto by a two-thirds vote.<ref name="General Information"/>

Under the rules of the council, regular public sessions are held weekly, usually on Thursday morning at 10:00am, in Room 400, [[Philadelphia City Hall|City Hall]].  Council normally breaks for the summer months of July and August.

== Gerrymandering ==

In a 2006 computer study of local and state legislative districts, two of the city's ten council districts, the 5th and the 7th, were found to be among the least compact districts in the nation, giving rise to suspicions of [[gerrymandering]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.azavea.com/Portals/0/publications/Avencia_Gerrymandering_Index_White_Paper.pdf |title=The Gerrymandering Index: Using geospatial analysis to measure relative compactness of electoral districts |publisher=Azavea |access-date=September 29, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707202356/http://www.azavea.com/Portals/0/publications/Avencia_Gerrymandering_Index_White_Paper.pdf |archive-date=July 7, 2011 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> The [[Committee of Seventy]], a non-partisan watchdog group for local elections, asked candidates for council in 2007 to support a list of ethics statements, including a call for fair redistricting, which should take place after the [[2010 United States census]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seventy.org/OurViews_City_Council_Ethics_Agenda.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090108061157/http://seventy.org/OurViews_City_Council_Ethics_Agenda.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 8, 2009 |title=City Council Ethics Agenda |publisher=Committee of Seventy |access-date=September 29, 2009 }}</ref> In 2011, the council approved a redistricting map with more compact boundaries, eliminating the gerrymandered borders of the 5th and 7th districts; it took effect for the 2015 elections.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Graham |first1=Troy |title=Philadelphia Council approves redistricting map |url=http://articles.philly.com/2011-09-23/news/30194411_1_new-map-districts-council-members |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20150330040930/http://articles.philly.com/2011-09-23/news/30194411_1_new-map-districts-council-members |archive-date=March 30, 2015 |publisher=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]] |date=September 23, 2011 }}</ref>

== Councilmanic prerogative ==

''Councilmanic prerogative'' is the legislative practice where a Philadelphia city council member has final say over land use in their district.<ref name=Pew>{{cite web |url= https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/reports/2015/07/philadelphias-councilmanic-prerogative-how-it-works-and-why-it-matters |title=Philadelphia's Councilmanic Prerogative |date=July 23, 2015 |website=[[The Pew Charitable Trusts|Pew Trusts]] }}</ref> Chicago has a similar practice called ''aldermanic prerogative''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/hud-aldermanic-prerogative-segregation-chicago/ |title=HUD cites aldermanic prerogative fueling segregation in Chicago |date=November 29, 2023 |website=[[CBS News]] }}</ref> This unwritten practice affords council people who represent a geographically defined district unchecked power over land use decisions as it is custom for the 16 other council members to defer to them.<ref name=Terruso2019>{{cite news|url=https://www.inquirer.com/news/philadelphia/councilmanic-prerogative-city-council-darrell-clarke-development-kenyatta-johnson-gentrification-building-primary-20190227.html |title=The primary election issue most Philly voters have never heard of: councilmanic prerogative |last=Terruso |first=Julia |date=February 27, 2019 |publisher=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]] |id={{ProQuest|2186101109}} }}</ref> A [[The Pew Charitable Trusts|Pew]] study from 2015 uncovered that 726 of 730 Council votes on land use decisions were unanimous with only six total dissenting votes.<ref name=Pew/> This system can lead to [[Conflict of interest|conflicts of interest]] between council members and developers who want to change land use zoning or want to buy property below market rates in order to sell it at a higher price.<ref name=Terruso2019/><ref name=Vadala2022>{{cite news|url=https://www.inquirer.com/news/councilmanic-prerogative-philadelphia-city-council-20220321.html |title=Councilmanic prerogative in Philadelphia: What you need to know |last=Vadala |first=Nick |date=March 21, 2022 |publisher=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]] |id={{ProQuest|2640945264}} }}</ref> Since 1981, of six council members convicted of misconduct all revolved around land-use.<ref name=Pew/><ref name=Terruso2019/>

Critics of councilmanic prerogative argue that it undermines government transparency and accountability, often operating in obscurity, thereby hindering development, fostering public mistrust, favoring political insiders, and allowing narrow interests to override broader city goals.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Saffron |first=Inga |date=2019-02-27 |title=How an obscure City Council rule leaves a trail of blight in Philadelphia {{!}} Inga Saffron |url=https://www.inquirer.com/real-estate/inga-saffron/philadelphia-councilmatic-prerogative-corruption-land-sales-blight-home-rule-charter-20190227.html |access-date=2025-10-21 |website=Inquirer.com |language=en}}</ref> 
District council members argue that prerogative appropriately empowers elected representatives to oversee land use projects, allowing them to safeguard their communities' interests, enhance development quality, and secure funding for local initiatives, based on their intimate knowledge of the neighborhoods they represent.<ref name=Pew/>

== City council members ==
''{{As of|2024|1|2|df=US}}:''

{| class="wikitable sortable"
!District
!Name
!Took office
!Party
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|1||[[Mark Squilla]] || 2012 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|2||[[Kenyatta Johnson]], ''Council President'' || 2012 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|3||[[Jamie Gauthier]] || 2020 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|4||[[Curtis J. Jones Jr.]] || 2008 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|5||[[Jeffery Young Jr.]] || 2024 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|6||[[Michael Driscoll (Pennsylvania politician)|Michael Driscoll]] || 2022 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|7||[[Quetcy Lozada]] ||2022|| Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|8||[[Cindy Bass]] || 2012 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|9||[[Anthony Phillips (politician)|Anthony Phillips]] ||2022  ||Dem
|-{{Party shading/Republican}}
|10||[[Brian J. O'Neill]] ''Leader of the Third Party'' || 1980 || Rep
|-<!-- {{Party shading/None}} -->
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|At-large||[[Katherine Gilmore Richardson]], ''Majority Leader'' || 2020 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|At-large||[[Isaiah Thomas (politician)|Isaiah Thomas]], ''Majority Whip'' || 2020 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Working Families Party}}
|At-large||[[Kendra Brooks]], ''Minority Leader''  || 2020 || WFP
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|At-large||[[Jim Harrity]] || 2022 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|At-large|| [[Nina Ahmad]] || 2024 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Democratic}}
|At-large||[[Rue Landau]] || 2024 || Dem
|-{{Party shading/Working Families Party}}
|At-large||[[Nicolas O'Rourke]], ''Minority Whip''|| 2024 || WFP

|}
<references group="Note" />

==Presidents of the City Council==
{| class="wikitable"
!President !! Term 
!Term end!! Political party
|-
|[[James A. Finnegan]]|| {{Start date|1951|1|1}}
|{{End date|1955|01|14}}||Democratic
|-
|[[James Tate (mayor)|James Tate]]|| {{Start date|1955|1|20}}
|{{End date|1964|01|06}}||Democratic
|-
|[[Paul D'Ortona]]<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/20/obituaries/paul-d-ortona-88-philadelphia-official.html |title=Paul D'Ortona, 88, Philadelphia Official |date=October 20, 1992 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=April 21, 2012}}</ref>|| {{Start date|1964|1|6}}
|{{End date|1972|01|3}}||Democratic
|-
|[[George X. Schwartz]]||{{End date|1972|01|3}}
|{{End date|1980|5|29}}||Democratic
|-
|[[Joseph E. Coleman]]||{{End date|1980|10|30}}
|{{End date|1992|01|06}}||Democratic
|-
|[[John F. Street]]||{{End date|1992|01|06}}
|{{End date|1998|12|31}}||Democratic
|-
|[[Anna C. Verna]]||{{End date|1999|1|14}}
|{{End date|2011|12|15}}||Democratic
|-
|[[Darrell L. Clarke]]||{{End date|2012|1|2}}
|{{End date|2024|1|1}}||Democratic
|-
|[[Kenyatta Johnson]]||{{End date|2024|1|2}}
|Incumbent||Democratic
|-
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Philadelphia}}
* [[John Scott Medal]]
*[[List of members of Philadelphia City Council from 1920 to 1952]]
*[[List of members of Philadelphia City Council since 1952]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
* Ginsberg, Thomas; ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20110505213818/http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Reports/Philadelphia_Research_Initiative/City_Council_Philadelphia_Major_cities.pdf City Councils in Philadelphia and Other Major Cities: Who Holds Office, How Long They Serve, and How Much It All Costs]''; Pew Charitable Trusts’ Philadelphia Research Initiative (2011). ([http://www.pewtrusts.org/our_work_report_detail.aspx?id=327690 Overview])

==External links==
*[http://phlcouncil.com/ Philadelphia City Council website]

{{Philadelphia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Government of Philadelphia|City Council]]
[[Category:Pennsylvania city councils]]
[[Category:Philadelphia City Council members|*]]