Parker asks Council for the public hearing that opens police contract talks

The city is getting ready to negotiate its next contract with the police union, and the first public step is now on Council's desk. In an Oct. 20 letter, Mayor Cherelle L. Parker told Council that her administration plans to submit a contract proposal to the Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 5, which would begin bargaining under Act 111. She asked Council to "promptly schedule a public hearing" on the city's proposal. The letter was read into the record at the Oct. 22 session as Communication 260886 (letter PDF).

This matters to residents because the police contract shapes more than pay. It covers discipline, overtime and how misconduct is investigated. The hearing is the one point in the process where the public can speak before the city and the union start talking.

What the law requires

Chapter 17-2300 of the Philadelphia Code, added in 2020, requires a public hearing before the city enters into a labor agreement with the FOP (ordinance text). Its sponsor, Councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson, described it then as requiring the hearing 30 days before the administration submits its first proposal, CBS Philadelphia reported.

The mayor's letter includes a fallback. If Council cannot hold a hearing in the next 30 days, Parker asks Council President Kenyatta Johnson to certify to the Office of Labor that Council is unavailable. The letter says that certification would satisfy the law and let the city move ahead with its proposal.

The union challenged the law when it passed. In October 2020, Lodge 5 sued, arguing the hearing requirement interfered with bargaining rights set by a 1968 state law and went beyond the city's powers, WHYY reported. The coverage we found does not report how that suit ended. Council has held hearings under the law since then.

What the record shows

• 2020: Council held its first hearing on a police contract proposal that November. City labor officials outlined goals including residency rules and changes to the arbitrator pool, WHYY reported.
• 2024: Council held a hearing under Chapter 17-2300 on Nov. 21, 2024, according to a report by the Citizens Police Oversight Commission. The commission wrote that the city included independent investigations of police misconduct in its proposals that year. It also wrote that the existing contract requires the FOP's written approval for changes the commission needs to carry out its mandate.
• 2025: That round ended in an arbitration award announced in August 2025. It gave 3% raises in fiscal 2026 and fiscal 2027 plus a one-time $3,000 payment, and moved some non-police work to civilian staff. Parker said the award would cost $343 million over the city's five-year plan, according to the city.

The award covered two fiscal years. Fiscal 2027 ends June 30, 2027, so the next agreement is the one now starting.

What's not known yet

The letter does not describe what the city will propose. It does not name a committee, and no hearing appears on Council's calendar as of Saturday. Act 111 is the state law that governs bargaining with police. When the two sides could not agree last time, the contract was set by an arbitration award.

What's next

Thirty days from the Oct. 20 letter is Nov. 19. Council has stated meetings scheduled for Oct. 29, Nov. 12 and Nov. 19. Watch for either a hearing notice on the Legistar calendar or a certification from the Council President that Council is unavailable. Both paths are allowed under the letter's reading of the law. Only one includes public testimony.