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Council sought to increase penalties for damaged or unused newsstand boxes on city streets.

Official:Amending Chapter 9-200 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Commercial Activities on Streets," by amending Section 9-211, entitled "Boxes for the Distribution of News and Printed Material," to add new subsections providing for additional penalties and procedures for violations of the section, under certain terms and conditions.

Sponsor: Councilmember Quiñones Sánchez

Introduced: September 10, 2015

: Committee on Streets and Services

business commercial activities government

No one voted on this bill

This bill was introduced in the 2012–2015 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 adds new penalties and procedures for violating Philadelphia's laws about newsstands and boxes on streets. Publishers who put up damaged or unused boxes may face fines of up to $500.

What This Bill Does

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

Adds a new penalty for violating the section on newsstands and boxes on streets: a fine of up to $500 for publishers who put up damaged or unused boxes.
Provides for the Department to promulgate regulations to implement the removal of boxes under this Section.
Allows for the issuance of code violation notices by authorized Department inspectors or other authorized persons to enforce the ordinance.
Requires a stipulated payment of $150 to be remitted in response to a notice of violation, in addition to any removal and storage fees.