Batman, wearing his utility belt.

Mayor Nutter's administration testified this morning at City Council's Committee on Public Safety about legislation that would make some changes to his ability to declare an emergency in Philadelphia.  That legislation has not been updated since it was created in 1967. 

MaryAnn Tierney, the city's deputy managing director for emergency management, described the legislation as a "set of tools" that allow the mayor to react to unplanned emergencies. "Remember Batman had tools on his tool belt," Tierney said. "And he doesn't use every tool in every emergency. He takes the tools that he needs off his belt and he uses them as they're needed."

Not to get all technical, but Batman wore a "utility belt."  The Committee tabled the legislation for further review after Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell raised concerns about how it impacts the Constitutional rights of city residents.

Fox 29 reporter Jeff Cole, who made headlines recently with his investigation into Councilman W. Wilson Goode Jr.’s chief of staff, has been looking into Brown’s use of her city car to drive her daughter to school. Cole’s report has not yet aired.

City elected officials and employees are prohibited from using city owned cars to transport family members and non-city workers. But Brown appeared before the city Administrative Board today to say that she was given a formal exemption to the rule in 2004 by the Managing Director, due to her family circumstances.

The Administrative Board – which includes the mayor, the managing director and the finance director -- today voted to grant Brown a waiver to continue to use her car for some personal transportation. Brown told the board that she uses her city car to drive her daughter to and from school and sometimes to transport her ailing mother to the hospital.

“I’m a working mother, I do that five days a week,” Brown said after the meeting. “I’m going to continue to do what I’m doing.”

Mayoral spokesman Doug Oliver also requested a similar waiver today, so that he can drive his young son to school several days a week in his city vehicle. The request was granted. Oliver said that he realized he might not be in compliance with city rules only after questions were raised about Brown’s car use.

»  More Councilwoman: I got ok to drive daughter to school in city car

Sgt. Timothy Simpson, a 20-year veteran, became the fourth officer killed in the line of duty this year.

To commemorate seven Philadelphia Police officers killed in the line of duty, City Council met four weeks ago to approve memorial signs on the the streets where they lived and died. Less then a month later, Council had to approve more memorial signs this morning for Sgt. Timothy Simpson, who died Monday night after his cruiser was broadsided by a driver allegedly under the influence.

The memorial signs will be posted at the accident scene, Allegheny and Aramingo avenues, and on the street where Simpson lived in Holme Circle. Simpson, 46, joined the department on Nov. 14, 1988. He celebrated his 20th anniversary as a police officer three days before he died.

Council members stood in silence to cast their unanimous votes for the resolution, which read in part: "Sgt. Simpson was a decorated and revered officer, having received a heroism reward in April 1994 and four merit awards, in July 1990, November 1990, March 1994 and March 1996, and just hours before his death was honored as supervisor of the month for the 24th Police District."

City Council, still wrestling with proposed budget cuts, battled it out again in this morning's caucus session, with harsh words fired across the big round table where they all sit.  At issue were two resolutions, circulated but then not submitted, that called for a study of proposed equipment elimination in the Fire Department and a delay in closing library branches.

Councilman Frank Rizzo got a little heated, complaining that Mayor Nutter's staff had not provided him with requested information about the budget cuts.  He took issue with comments made by Councilmen Jim Kenney and Frank DiCicco, who were sitting next to him. "It doesn't matter what we do," Kenney said, It doesn't matter how many resolutions we pass. It doesn't matter how many letters we write. For what? So you can stand on a grandstand and say: Look at me?"

"Grandstanding?" Rizzo asked, countering that that DiCicco's resolution to study Fire Department cuts, paid for with Council budget money, was grandstanding.

Councilman Curtis Jones, who had circulated the resolution calling for a delay in the library branch closings said he would hold off on submitting it in hopes of getting more information from Nutter.  Councilman Bill Green, who has sided with Rizzo in complaining about the lack of information, noted Council has the power to subpoena information and testimony.  "If they won't give it to us, we will demand it," said Green.

Amy Dougherty, director of the Friends of the Free Library, has asked for the delay to allow for time to seek private funding sources. But Nutter has said he does not expect to slow down the closings.

Nutter has announced that he will soon close 11 of the city's 54 libraries as part of a budget-cutting plan to shore up a $1 billion shortfall over the next five years.

When Councilman Frank DiCicco mentioned that the administration briefed Council on Monday, Rizzo shot back "You go do your study."

Council is currently holding a hearing on the Nutter administration’s plans to cut $1 million out of the city budget in the next five years. Council is considering a package of legislation, including measures to raise city fees while slowing reductions in the wage and business-privilege tax.

Councilman Frank DiCicco just challenged his colleagues to each trim $12,000 from their office budgets to raise $204,000 for an independent study of Fire Department cuts.

"Let's put our money where our mouths are," DiCicco said.

Meanwhile, Councilman Bill Green made a lengthy speech, slamming the administration for not providing more of their research to Council.

“The message seems to be that Council doesn’t need or deserve access to this data,” he said.

You can read the letter here.

Rizzo also writes that a five-year shortfall of $1 billion in a city with a $4 billion annual budget amounts to 5 percent in cuts across the board. But Nutter, in his budget address last week, noted that more than half the city's budget costs are locked in and can't be touched. So the non-fixed costs must take a bigger hit than 5 percent.

Councilman Jack Kelly

With 15 Philadelphia firefighters in City Council's audience this morning to protest budget cuts in their department, several members made speeches about the dangers of eliminating fire engines and ladder trucks.  Councilman Jack Kelly called on Mayor Nutter for look for other cost-cutting measures "before putting the lives of our residents at risk."

That got PhillyClout wondering:  What ever happened to that request Kelly made two months ago to Council President Anna Verna for a $25,000 annual contract to hire an outside press aide for his office?  "As far as I'm concerned, that’s something I'm looking at," Kelly said. "I'm going to try to save this administration and the taxpayers of the city of Philadelphia as much money as I can. We have to straighten out this dilemma that we’re in."

Kelly's office had a $25,000 annual contract for press help, held by a Republican ward leader from 2004 until this summer. Kelly said he is not pushing for the contract "at this time" but might revive the request.  "It all depends on the financial condition of the city," Kelly said. "We’re going to have to cope. We have to make a sacrifice." 

Several Council members have announced that they are taking pay cuts to help balance the city's growing budget deficit.  Kelly said he hasn't made any decisions on that because he is still trying to make a financial come-back from a tough re-election race last year.  "I have lent my own personal money to the campaign fund to pay for some of the legal defenses," Kelly said. "I’m still in debt."