Philadelphia Councilman eyes special session to discuss DROP program

DROP fallout continued yesterday, as city workers rushed to join the controversial retirement program and one city councilman called for a special legislative session to tackle the issue.

Councilman Frank DiCicco sent a letter to Council President Anna Verna yesterday saying: "In light of the recent report of its impact on city finances and the mayor's public call for its abolition, a special session is in order."

Mayor Nutter this week called on Council to abolish DROP - the Deferred Retirement Option Plan - after a study from researchers at Boston College said that the program had cost the city $258 million since its inception in 1999.

But a faster timetable doesn't appear to be in the cards. Verna put out a news release saying that the issue was too important to rush and that Council would take up DROP next month when it returns from legislative recess. Verna is in line for a $584,778 DROP payment in January 2012.

DiCicco is in line for a $392,195 DROP payment at the end of 2011. He has said he'll donate money back to the city if he runs again for office.

Meanwhile, city employees were hurrying to apply for DROP before it's too late. By 1 p.m. yesterday, 40 workers had submitted DROP applications, according to Nutter spokesman Doug Oliver.

Oliver described the number as "unusually high." According to city data, 362 employees had enrolled in DROP in 2010 through Tuesday.

And union campaigning to keep DROP was already heating up in Council offices yesterday.

Local Fraternal Order of Police president John McNesby sent a letter to Council members calling for meetings to discuss the report, claiming that Nutter was making "distorted or flat-out false assertions."

Under DROP, city workers set a retirement date up to four years in advance. At that point, their pension benefit is frozen and they start accruing pension payments in an interest-bearing account. Workers receive those payments in a lump sum when they retire, in addition to their full city pension.

According to researchers from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, the city incurs roughly $22 million in additional retirement costs each year through DROP because workers delay their final departure from the city to pump up their benefits, putting more financial pressure on the city.