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Council sought to update rules for Police Advisory Board's annual reports and complaint response.

Official:Amending Chapter 21-1200 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Police Advisory Board," by providing additional requirements for issuing annual reports and responding to complaints, under certain terms and conditions.

Sponsor: Councilmember Jones

Introduced: December 16, 2010

: Committee on Public Safety

advisory boardcomplaintspublic safety

No one voted on this bill

This bill was introduced in the 2008–2011 Council term and when that term ran out. The public record shows no committee vote and no floor vote at any stage, so no member of Council ever went on record for or against it.

That is not unusual here. Of the 8,465 bills introduced between 2000 and 2025, 1,624 lapsed without a single recorded vote. Ninety percent of bills that became law carry a roll call. Three percent of lapsed bills do. How this works.

Plain-Language Summary

This bill updates the rules for the Police Advisory Board, requiring them to issue annual reports on police complaints and respond to complaints within a certain timeframe.

What This Bill Does

AI-written. Every figure is checked against the bill text.

The Police Advisory Board must issue a public report summarizing its activities and recommendations at least once a year, with specific information about complaints, including: * The number of complaints received * A breakdown of complainants by demographic characteristics (race, gender, sexual orientation, age) * The disposition of all complaints
The report must be made available to the public at the Free Library and other locations.
The Police Advisory Board must respond to all complaints of police misconduct within 7 days of receiving the complaint.
The Board's findings and recommendations cannot be based solely on unsworn complaints or statements, nor can prior unsubstantiated or withdrawn complaints be the sole basis for findings or recommendations.

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