Bill easing residency requirement for parking board members passes
The Pennsylvania Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would relax the requirement that members of the Philadelphia Parking Authority board, a group mired in the fallout of a sexual-harassment scandal, live within the city.
The Pennsylvania Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would relax the requirement that members of the Philadelphia Parking Authority board, a group mired in the fallout of a sexual-harassment scandal, live within the city.
The House has already passed the bill. It will head to the desk of Gov. Wolf, whose spokesman Tuesday did not say if Wolf would sign it.
"We are reviewing the legislation," spokesman Jeff Sheridan said.
State law currently requires all six members of the authority's board to live in Philadelphia. Under the new legislation, up to two would be allowed to live outside the city limits.
The board faced heat recently after the members allowed Vincent J. Fenerty Jr., the agency's executive director, to keep his job despite having sexually harassed a coworker. The board took steps to remove Fenerty only when allegations from a second woman - accusations some board members had been told about years prior - became public.
The scandal prompted Fenerty's resignation and an impending review of the agency by the state auditor general. Some have suggested the board members should resign.
State Rep. Scott Petri (R., Bucks) introduced the residency legislation in April, long before the scandal broke.
Petri said he wanted entities in the suburbs that did business with the authority to have representation on the board. He cited limousine companies as an example, but said he had not been contacted by any specific groups or companies seeking a spot on the board.
Petri said the legislation was not introduced at the request of board members looking to move from Philadelphia, as some have speculated.
"I'm not aware of anyone wanting to move outside of the city that would be a board member," he said Tuesday before his legislation was voted on. "I don't even know who all board members are."
The board members are gubernatorial appointees, and several are politically connected. The board's chairman, Joseph T. Ashdale, has held the part-time post, which pays $75,000 annually, for 15 years.
The members hold staggered 10-year terms. Four have been on the board for more than a decade.
The agency's spokesman, Martin O'Rourke, has declined to comment on the bill.
215-854-2730 @TriciaNadolny
