PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia City Council is back in session Thursday after its summer break.
With less than four months left in this term and the primary for the next term behind them, council is heading into what's known as the lame-duck session. It will be the final one for President Darrell Clarke, but he said he doesn't intend to slow down.
"As long as you're on the tax roll, you're getting paid a check, you must work up until the end," he said.
He declined to give specifics about what legislation he's contemplating but said there could be some charter changes involved. "One of the things we want to do is kind of set the table for the next administration."
Councilmember Isaiah Thomas intends to hit the ground running.
"We have a lot that we're going to be doing legislatively," he said. "We're introducing a new package of bills tomorrow around folks who've been exonerated."
The package would provide support to some 40 Philadelphians who have been cleared of crimes they were imprisoned for.
Other big issues on council's agenda are affordable housing and the proposal for a downtown 76ers arena.
Thomas noted there's more on council members' minds than just legislation. "Clearly we have to forecast into 2024 thinking about what our council leadership is going to look like."
Clarke said he's been consulting with Democratic mayoral nominee Cherelle Parker about how council can prepare the way for what is likely to be the next administration.
